The Hundred Years' War (French: Guerre de Cent Ans; 1337–1453) was a series of conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France and a civil war in France during the late Middle Ages. It emerged from feudal disputes over the Duchy of Aquitaine and was triggered by a claim to the French throne made by Edward III of England. The war grew into a broader military, economic, and political struggle involving different factions from across Western Europe, fueled by emerging nationalism on both sides. The periodization of the war typically charts it as taking place over 116 years. However, it was an intermittent conflict which was frequently interrupted by external factors, such as the Black Death, and several years of truces.
The Hundred Years' War was a significant conflict in the Middle Ages. During the war, five generations of kings from two rival dynasties fought for the throne of France, then the wealthiest and most populous kingdom in Western Europe. The war had a lasting effect on European history: both sides produced innovations in military technology and tactics, including professional standing armies and artillery, that permanently changed European warfare. Chivalry reached its height during the conflict and subsequently declined. Stronger national identities took root in both kingdoms, which became more centralized and gradually emerged as global powers.
The term "Hundred Years' War" was adopted by later historians and included dynastically related conflicts in Spain and Belgium, resulting in the longest military conflict in European history. The war is commonly divided into three phases, separated by truces: the Edwardian War (1337–1360), the Caroline War (1369–1389), and the Lancastrian War (1415–1453). Each side drew many allies into the conflict, with English forces initially prevailing; however, the French forces under the House of Valois ultimately retained control over the Kingdom of France. The French and English monarchies thereafter remained separate, despite the monarchs of England and Great Britain styling themselves as sovereigns of France until 1802.
Overview
Origins
The root causes of the conflict can be traced to the crisis of 14th-century Europe. The outbreak of war was motivated by a gradual rise in tension between the kings of France and England over territory; the official pretext was the interruption of the direct male line of the Capetian dynasty.
Tensions between the French and English crowns had gone back centuries, since the Norman Conquest of 1066 had put a king of (Norman) French origins, William II, Duke of Normandy, on the throne of England. Since that time, English monarchs had held titles and lands within France, which made them vassals to the kings of France. The status of the English king's French fiefs was a significant source of conflict between the two monarchies throughout the Middle Ages. According to military historian and author Michael Livingston, the conflict began in 1337, when Philippe VI of France claimed that France controlled English holdings in France.
In 1328, Charles IV of France died without any sons or brothers, initiating a succession crisis. A similar crisis in 1316 had resulted in the Estates-General in 1317 deciding that "Women do not succeed in the kingdom of France". Charles's closest male relative was his nephew Edward III of England, whose mother Isabella was Charles's sister. Isabella claimed the throne of France for her son by the rule of proximity of blood, but the French nobility rejected this on the basis of the 1317 decision, declaring that Isabella could not transmit a right she did not possess. An assembly of French barons decided that a native Frenchman should receive the crown rather than Edward.
The throne passed to Charles's patrilineal cousin instead, Philip, Count of Valois who had been made regent on the death of Charles IV. Edward protested but ultimately submitted and did homage for Gascony. Further French disagreements with Edward induced Philip during May 1337 to meet with his Great Council in Paris. It was agreed that Gascony should be taken back into Philip's hands, which prompted Edward to renew his claim for the French throne, this time by force of arms.
Edwardian phase
In the early years of the war, the English, led by King Edward III and his son Edward the Black Prince, saw resounding successes, notably at the battles of Crécy (1346) and Poitiers (1356), where King John II of France, having succeeded his father Philip from 1350, was taken prisoner.
Caroline phase and Black Death
By 1378, under King Charles V the Wise and the leadership of Bertrand du Guesclin, the French had reconquered most of the lands ceded to King Edward in the Treaty of Brétigny (signed in 1360), notably reducing English control on the continent, leaving them with few cities.
However, both countries faced challenges and problems. The Black Death, a deadly plague that spread through Europe between 1347 and 1351, caused catastrophic widespread damage. In France, 6 to 12 million people died, representing 30–60% of the population, resulting in major labour shortages, economic collapse, and widespread social dislocation. England also suffered from the Black Death, but to a lesser extent, with roughly 2–3 million deaths. Economic consequences of the plague and the war led to major unrest in both kingdoms, widespread poverty, and a weakening of royal authority. These crises were resolved in England earlier than in France.
Lancastrian phase and after
King Henry V of England seized the opportunity presented by the mental illness of King Charles VI of France and the French civil war between Armagnacs and Burgundians to revive the conflict. Overwhelming victories at the battles of Agincourt (1415) and Verneuil (1424) – as well as an alliance with the Burgundians – raised the prospects of an ultimate English triumph and persuaded the English to continue the war over many decades. A variety of factors prevented this, however. Notable influences include the deaths of both Henry and Charles in 1422, the emergence of Joan of Arc (which boosted French morale), and the loss of Burgundy as an ally (concluding the French civil war).
The Siege of Orléans (1429) made English aspirations for conquest all but unreal. Despite Joan's capture by the Burgundians and her subsequent execution in 1431, a series of crushing French victories concluded the siege, favouring the Valois dynasty. Notably, the battles of Patay (1429), Formigny (1450), and Castillon (1453) proved decisive in ending the war. England permanently lost most of its continental possessions, with only the Pale of Calais remaining under its control on the continent until the Siege of Calais in 1558.
Local conflicts in neighbouring areas, which were contemporarily related to the war, including the War of the Breton Succession (1341–1364), the Castilian Civil War (1366–1369), the War of the Two Peters (1356–1369) in Aragon, and the 1383–1385 crisis in Portugal, were used by the parties to advance their agendas.
By the war's end, feudal armies had mainly been replaced by professional troops, and aristocratic dominance had yielded to a democratization of the manpower and weapons of armies. Although primarily a dynastic conflict, the war inspired French and English nationalism. The broader introduction of weapons and tactics supplanted the feudal armies where heavy cavalry had dominated, and artillery became important. The war precipitated the creation of the first standing armies in Western Europe since the Western Roman Empire and helped change their role in warfare.
Civil wars, deadly epidemics, famines, and bandit free-companies of mercenaries reduced the population drastically in France. But at the end of the war, the French had the upper hand with their better weapon supply, such as small hand-held cannons. In England, political forces over time came to oppose the costly venture. After the war England was left insolvent, leaving the conquering French in complete control of all of France except Calais. The dissatisfaction of English nobles, resulting from the loss of their continental landholdings as well as the general shock at losing a war in which investment had been so significant, helped lead to the Wars of the Roses (1455–1487). The economic consequences of the Hundred Years' War produced a decline in trade and led to a high collection of taxes from both countries, which played a significant role in civil disorder.
Causes and prelude
Dynastic turmoil in France: 1316–1328
The question of female succession to the French throne was raised after the death of Louis X in 1316. Louis left behind a young daughter, Joan II of Navarre, and a son, John I of France, although he only lived for five days. However, Joan's paternity was in question, as her mother, Margaret of Burgundy, was accused of being an adulterer in the Tour de Nesle affair. Given the situation, Philip, Count of Poitiers and brother of Louis X, positioned himself to take the crown, advancing the stance that women should be ineligible to succeed to the French throne. He won over his adversaries through his political sagacity and succeeded to the French throne as Philip V. When he died in 1322, leaving only daughters behind, the crown passed to his younger brother, Charles IV.
Charles IV died in 1328, leaving behind his young daughter and pregnant wife, Joan of Évreux. He decreed that he would become king if the unborn child were male. If not, Charles left the choice of his successor to the nobles. Joan gave birth to a girl, Blanche of France (later Duchess of Orleans). With Charles IV's death and Blanche's birth, the main male line of the House of Capet was rendered extinct.
By proximity of blood, the nearest male relative of Charles IV was his nephew, Edward III of England. Edward was the son of Isabella, the sister of the dead Charles IV, but the question arose whether she could transmit a right to inherit that she did not possess. Moreover, the French nobility balked at the prospect of being ruled by an Englishman, especially one whose mother, Isabella, and her lover, Roger Mortimer, were widely suspected of having murdered the previous English king, Edward II. The French barons, prelates, and the University of Paris assemblies decided that males who derive their right to inheritance through their mother should be excluded from consideration. Therefore, excluding Edward, the nearest heir through the male line was Charles IV's first cousin, Philip, Count of Valois, and it was decided that he should take the throne. He was crowned Philip VI in 1328. In 1340, the Avignon papacy confirmed that, under Salic law, males would not be able to inherit through their mothers.
Eventually, Edward III reluctantly recognized Philip VI and paid him homage for the duchy of Aquitaine and Gascony in 1329. He made concessions in Guyenne but reserved the right to reclaim territories arbitrarily confiscated. After that, he expected to be left undisturbed while he made war on Scotland.
Dispute over Guyenne: a problem of sovereignty
Tensions between the French and English monarchies can be traced back to the 1066 Norman Conquest of England, in which the English throne was seized by the Duke of Normandy, a vassal of the King of France. As a result, the crown of England was held by a succession of nobles who already owned lands in France, which put them among the most influential subjects of the French king, as they could now draw upon the economic power of England to enforce their interests in the mainland. To the kings of France, this threatened their royal authority, and so they would constantly try to undermine English rule in France, while the English monarchs would struggle to protect and expand their lands. This clash of interests was the root cause of much of the conflict between the French and English monarchies throughout the medieval era.
The Anglo-Norman dynasty that had ruled England since the Norman conquest of 1066 was brought to an end when Henry, the son of Geoffrey of Anjou and Empress Matilda, and great-grandson of William the Conqueror, became the first of the Angevin kings of England in 1154 as Henry II. The Angevin kings ruled over what was later known as the Angevin Empire, which included more French territory than that under the kings of France. The Angevins still owed homage to the French king for these territories. From the 11th century, the Angevins had autonomy within their French domains, neutralizing the issue.
King John of England inherited the Angevin domains from his brother Richard I. However, Philip II of France acted decisively to exploit the weaknesses of John, both legally and militarily, and by 1204 had succeeded in taking control of much of the Angevin continental possessions. Following John's reign, the Battle of Bouvines (1214), the Saintonge War (1242), and finally the War of Saint-Sardos (1324), the English king's holdings on the continent, as Duke of Aquitaine, were limited roughly to provinces in Gascony (and Bordeaux).
The dispute over Guyenne is even more important than the dynastic question in explaining the outbreak of the war. Guyenne posed a significant problem to the kings of France and England: Edward III was a vassal of Philip VI of France because of his French possessions and was required to recognize the suzerainty of the King of France over them. In practical terms, a judgment in Guyenne might be subject to an appeal to the French royal court. The King of France had the power to revoke all legal decisions made by the King of England in Aquitaine, which was unacceptable to the English. Therefore, sovereignty over Guyenne was a latent conflict between the two monarchies for several generations.