Phases of the Hundred Years War Quiz

Answer: Edwardian Phase

This naval battle took place in 1340 and was one of the earliest to involve the two main participants in the Hundred Years War - England and France. It took place in the North Sea off the coast of Flanders, then part of France but now in Belgium. England was led by King Edward III at the time and the early phases of what became a long-running conflict were named for him. The battle resulted in victory for the English, despite the French having more ships.

The conflict had its roots in the Norman conquest of England in 1066, with English knights being given properties in France. French kings took every chance to take back what they saw as their lands, and the decision of Philip VI to reclaim the Duchy of Aquitaine was the catalyst which began the war.

Answer: Edwardian Phase

Taking place in 1346, the English army at the Battle of Crecy was led by Edward III while the French had King Philip VI at their head. The English had landed in Normandy and worked their way through France towards Calais. The French army was considerably larger than the English force, but the battle ended in an overwhelming victory for the English. Deaths on the French side far exceeded those suffered by the English.

After this victory, Edward and his army laid siege to Calais with the French having lost too many men to be able to mount a defence of the city. Calais fell to the English and was destined to be England's last foothold in France, eventually being lost to the French in 1558 during the reign of Mary I.

Answer: Edwardian Phase

This 1356 battle was another victory for the English, who were led by the heir to the throne, the oldest son of Edward III who was known as Edward of Woodstock or the Black Prince. Having landed in southwestern France, Edward and his army, about 6,000 men, including those from Gascony, an English stronghold in France, met an army of over double their number and led by King John II of France.

Despite being outnumbered, the English prevailed and captured the French king, who was later ransomed.

Answer: Edwardian Phase

Signed in 1360, the treaty brought an end to the first phase of the war. Defeat for the French at Poitiers and the capture of their king meant the English were in the ascendancy and the treaty ceded huge parts of north west France to the English. In addition, the French had to pay a large ransom to obtain the release of King John II.

The only concession on the English side was that Edward III relinquished his claim to the French throne. If the two sides hoped this meant an end to the war, they were mistaken as the peace was destined to last for less than ten years.

Answer: Caroline Phase

In August 1370 Limoges was surrendered to the French, having been held by England, when the Bishop leader of the city changed his allegiance. An English army, led by three sons of Edward III - the Black Prince, John of Gaunt and the Earl of Cambridge - soon retook the city and, according to some sources, massacred many of the inhabitants. The main source for the atrocity was a Frenchman named Froissart, who may have been biased and subsequent historians have disputed the number of casualties claimed.

Whatever the truth of it, and massacres in the Middle Ages weren't uncommon, the siege and its consequences brought an end to the most famous of Limoges's industries, enamelware. This phase of the war is known as the Caroline Phase after King Charles V who ruled from 1364 until 1380, and is the period during which France was in the ascendency.

Answer: Caroline Phase

This naval battle, off the coast of La Rochelle, a French port on the Bay of Biscay took place in 1372. Edward III had sent a fleet of ships to France intending to wage another campaign in Aquitaine. They were met by an opposing force of Castilian (now part of Spain) and French ships and suffered a heavy defeat. The whole English fleet was either destroyed or captured,

La Rochelle itself was lost and this major setback, still described as the worst defeat in the history of England's navy, was followed by other territorial losses as England struggled to replace their lost ships.

Answer: Caroline Phase

Perhaps surprisingly, Edward of Woodstock did not die in battle but from a long illness that eventually cost him his life in 1376. His father, Edward III, was still alive at the time, dying a year later, so the Black Prince never became king - the throne passed instead to his son, who ruled as Richard II.

The illness is widely reported to have been a form of dysentery, probably picked up in Spain, and which had been debilitating for several years. The nickname of Black Prince has several theories, including his cruelty (not much different from that of other noblemen of the time) or that he may have worn dark armour. Another is his coat of arms, white feathers on a black background.

Answer: Caroline Phase

Agreed in 1389, the truce was agreed as both sides were facing severe problems. Richard II had succeeded to the English throne following the deaths of his grandfather (Edward III) and father (the Black Prince). In France, Charles VI had come to the throne in 1380, aged only eleven, and was prone to mental illness. Richard's claim to the throne was disputed by descendants of John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, notably Henry Bolingbroke, his son, who deposed Richard and became King Henry IV in 1399. The Truce of Leulinghem had been agreed to last until 1416, but was destined to be broken before then, ushering in the final phase of the war.

Answer: Lancastrian Phase

The war began again in earnest after the accession of Henry V to the throne in 1413. He reasserted his right to the throne of France, while offering to relinquish the claim in return for large areas of land including Aquitaine, Normandy and Brittany. France refused to agree to the demands, so Henry invaded, via Normandy, in 1415.

With Charles VI still suffering from mental incapacity, the English were successful, taking the city of Harfleur after a short siege. Illness then caused devastation among the forces while they were en route to Calais, before the English were ambushed and forced to fight the Battle of Agincourt. Despite being heavily outnumbered, the superior tactics of the English and, famously, the prowess of their longbowmen, meant that the battle was won. Henry consolidated his position by marrying Catherine de Valois, the daughter of Charles VI. The Treaty of Troyes, signed in 1420, disinherited the Dauphin (heir to the French throne), who was also named Charles, in favour of the future children of Henry and Catherine.

Answer: Lancastrian Phase

The Siege of Orleans in 1428 marked the beginning of the end for the English, not least because of the appearance of Joan of Arc on the scene. Orleans was well defended and the arrival of Joan of Arc put new heart into the French with the result being the siege being lifted and the English suffering their first major setback.

Inspired by Joan and her visions, the French began a counter offensive against the English which led to them retaking many of the regions held by England. The defection of Burgundy from the English to the French in 1435, after the death of their main English contact, the Duke of Bedford, meant that England's power was fast declining.

Answer: Lancastrian Phase

The death of Charles VI in 1422 made Henry VI of England, still a child, the successor under the terms of the Treaty of Troyes. The treaty was disputed by France, not least because of the decreased mental capacity of Charles VI, and the emergence of Joan of Arc stiffened the resolve of the French to reclaim the throne for the Dauphin, the heir.

In 1429, the coronation took place in Reims, with Joan in attendance, although she was destined to die in 1431 after being captured by the English and then executed by burning. The restoration of the French king gave renewed impetus to driving the English from France, and by 1453 the war was finally over.

Answer: Lancastrian Phase

This 1453 battle is generally considered to be the one which finally brought an end to the Hundred Years War. The French had captured the city of Bordeaux and the region of Gascony from English control, but the residents resented the unfamiliar, to them, rule.

The arrival of English troops at Bordeaux was welcomed by the local population. Led by John Talbot, the Earl of Shrewsbury, the English forces made several tactical mistakes and were unprepared for the artillery of the French. Talbot was killed, Bordeaux surrendered and the war came to an end.