Advance Banners English Warfare in the Fifteenth Century

About the Book

ADVANCE BANNERS In set battles in the Middle Ages, English commanders almost never yelled “charge” or “attack”. They exhorted their men to move forward against the enemy battle line with the command of either “banners forward”, or “advance banners”. This had significant meaning in England during the Middle Ages. This is the second of a three-volume set. The first volume of this narrative began in 1397, which is distinctly not part of the fifteenth century. But in order to understand the Lancastrian revolution, and what motivated the man who would become Henry IV, it is necessary to understand a little about his predecessor, and the tyranny that Richard II promoted. So, Volume I of this reference work starts in 1397, when Richard II’s absolutism gained a full head of steam. A little over two years later, Richard II was deposed. Volume I, covers this period, and also includes the entire reigns of both Henry IV and Henry V. It also covers the first few years of the reign of the toddler king, Henry VI. In the process, Volume I includes over 30 battles (including Agincourt, Baugé, Cravant and Verneuil) and over a dozen major sieges. This second volume begins in 1426, taking up where the first volume left off. Sir John, Duke of Bedford, was laboring mightily to complete the work of his older brother, the deceased Henry V, and complete the conquest of France. His work was made far more difficult by the machinations of his fickle allies, Burgundy and Brittany. But he also had to deal with a resurgent Charles VII of France and the unlikely intervention of a young peasant girl named Joan (or Jeanne). His task was further compounded by a weak and indecisive English monarch, by the greed and corruption of the English government, and by a discontented populace that finally had had enough of foreign wars and just wanted peace and stability at home. This volume ends in 1450, and the events that bring about the collapse of English Normandy. It also covers the groundwork that was laid to bring about the Wars of the Roses. In the process, it also covers much of the reign of Henry VI, and touches on the beginnings of what will become the Wars of the Roses. Along the way, it covers almost 30 major and minor battles (including Patay, Rouvray (Herrings), River Sark, and Formigny) and over two dozen sieges.

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