The
siege of Harfleur,
NormandyNormandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is situated along the English Channel coast of Northern France between Brittany and Picardy and comprises territory in northern France and the Channel Islands.Normandy is divided between French and British...
, France began 18 August 1415 and ended on 22 September when
HarfleurHarfleur is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.It was the principal seaport in north-western France for six centuries, until Le Havre was built about five kilometres downstream in the sixteenth century to take advantage of anchorages less...
surrendered to the English.
On Tuesday 13 August 1415
Henry V of EnglandHenry V was King of England from 1413 until his death. From an unassuming start his military successes in the Hundred Years' War, culminating with his famous victory at the Battle of Agincourt, saw him come close to uniting the realms of England and France under his rule.-Early life:Henry was born...
landed at Chef-en-Caux in the
SeineThe Seine is a slow-flowing major river and commercial waterway within the regions of Île-de-France and Haute-Normandie in France and famous as a romantic backdrop in photographs of Paris, France. It is also a tourist attraction, with excursion boats offering sightseeing tours of the Rive Droite...
estuary. Then he attacked Harfleur with 2000 men of arms and 6000 bowmen. The garrison of 100 men was reinforced by two experienced knights, the Sieur d'Estouteville and the Sieur de Gaucourt, who arrived with a further 300 men-at-arms and took command.
On the 18 August,
Thomas of Lancaster, 1st Duke of ClarenceThomas of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Clarence was the second son of King Henry IV of England and his first wife, Mary de Bohun. He was born before 25 November 1387 as on that date his father's accounts note a payment made to a woman described as his nurse...
led part of the army to set up camp on the far, east side of the town.
Discussion
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The
siege of Harfleur,
NormandyNormandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is situated along the English Channel coast of Northern France between Brittany and Picardy and comprises territory in northern France and the Channel Islands.Normandy is divided between French and British...
, France began 18 August 1415 and ended on 22 September when
HarfleurHarfleur is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.It was the principal seaport in north-western France for six centuries, until Le Havre was built about five kilometres downstream in the sixteenth century to take advantage of anchorages less...
surrendered to the English.
English Landing & Attack
On Tuesday 13 August 1415
Henry V of EnglandHenry V was King of England from 1413 until his death. From an unassuming start his military successes in the Hundred Years' War, culminating with his famous victory at the Battle of Agincourt, saw him come close to uniting the realms of England and France under his rule.-Early life:Henry was born...
landed at Chef-en-Caux in the
SeineThe Seine is a slow-flowing major river and commercial waterway within the regions of Île-de-France and Haute-Normandie in France and famous as a romantic backdrop in photographs of Paris, France. It is also a tourist attraction, with excursion boats offering sightseeing tours of the Rive Droite...
estuary. Then he attacked Harfleur with 2000 men of arms and 6000 bowmen. The garrison of 100 men was reinforced by two experienced knights, the Sieur d'Estouteville and the Sieur de Gaucourt, who arrived with a further 300 men-at-arms and took command.
Total Siege
On the 18 August,
Thomas of Lancaster, 1st Duke of ClarenceThomas of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Clarence was the second son of King Henry IV of England and his first wife, Mary de Bohun. He was born before 25 November 1387 as on that date his father's accounts note a payment made to a woman described as his nurse...
led part of the army to set up camp on the far, east side of the town. This meant that the town was invested and a French relief convoy, bearing supplies of guns, powder, arrows and crossbows was captured.
Great Guns, Parley & Terms
Details of the siege are not well known but seem to have followed the standard pattern of siege warfare in the
Late Middle AgesThe Late Middle Ages is a term used by historians to describe European history in the period of the 14th and 15th centuries . The Late Middle Ages were preceded by the High Middle Ages, and followed by the Early Modern era ....
. After the walls had been seriously damaged by the twelve great guns and other traditional artillery of the English siege train, Henry planned a general assault one month to the day that the town had been enveloped.
But the town's commanders asked for a parley and terms were agreed that if the French army did not arrive before the 23rd then the town would surrender to the English.
Harfleur yielded to the invaders on 22 September. The knights were released on parole to gather ransom, and the town's people who were prepared to swear allegiance to Henry were allowed to remain, while the rest were ordered to depart.
The Bloody Flux
During the siege the English army had been hard hit by dysentery (then known as the 'bloody flux') which continued to affect them after the siege ended. Henry left a small garrison in the town and on Monday 8 October set out with the rest of his army to go to
CalaisCalais is a town in northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, of which it is a sub-prefecture...
.
Agincourt
He searched for an undefended or weakly defended bridge or ford on the
SommeThe Somme is a department of France, located in the north of the country and named after the Somme river. It is part of the Picardie region of France....
river hoping to slip past the French army but although he crossed the Somme he failed to evade the French army and was forced to fight the
Battle of AgincourtThe Battle of Agincourt was an English victory against a much larger French army in the Hundred Years' War. The battle occurred on Friday 25 October 1415 , in northern France...
.