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France
Henry II controlled more than half of France. Nearly all the lands Henry ruled were soon lost - most of them in the reign of his son, the unfortunate John. Edward III became king of England in 1337. Only Gascony and Guienne remained under English control. Thousands of casks of French wine were shipped. Merchants and nobles feared this profitable trade. They urged Edward III to fight to keep these territories.

French Throne

Philip VI (1328 - 1350)
Both Edward and Philip wanted the throne of France. After lengthy arguments between the two kings, Edward declared war in 1337. It was the start of a long series of raids and English invasions with intervals of peace in between. The actual fighting amounted to much less that 100 years.

Edward III (1327 - 1377)
Edward III often needed long periods of service and tighter control so he employed regular soldiers who were paid wages. This recruiting was done by means of indentures - agreements between the Crown and commanders who promised to raise and equip a number of soldiers. The commanders of the king's army made their own indentures with the soldiers.

Edward III receives a sword from St. George.

A clerk wrote out the details of each agreement twice. They did a zig-zag cut between the two copies, giving one copy to the commander and one to the soldier - Like upper and lower set of teeth, which is how such documents got their names.

By Edward III's time there were fewer knights on horseback, and many more archers and other foot soldiers in the king's army. To get an army across the channel with horses, siege towers, equipment, cooks, and blacksmiths was not easy and required a large fleet of ships. They loaded these at the so-called "Cinque Ports," Dover, Romney, Sandwich, Hastings, and Hythe.

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Longbows at Crecy
The first big battle of the war was at a port in Flanders in 1340 between the English fleet of 200 and a much larger fleet of French. Many of the French fleet were still anchored, thus easy targets for English longbows, Most of the French fleet was destroyed. This victory gave Edward control of the channel. His kingdom was safe from attack, yet he could land at will in France.

The English army fought short summer campaigns and retreated before King Philip could gather forces. After a raid in Normandy, Philip went after Edward. The French had about 12,000 more men. Edward took the high ground at Crecy. The longbows again won out; archers could fire six rounds minute.

In retreat, many French knights were trampled to death by their horses. After Crecy, Edward marched north to Calais. He took over the castle and it became a base for the English on French soil.

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Edward IV the Black Prince
King Edward's son, Edward IV, was known as the Black Prince. He was described as courageous and cruel as lion. He captured and held the new French king John for ransom. The two kings later made peace. Edward gave up his claim to the French throne. In exchange, he kept Calais and a large area around it.

Left: Edward the Black Prince, the eldest son of King Edward III. The Black Prince
won a remarkable victory at Poitiers in 1356 at the age of twenty-six.
Right: The gilt-bronze-effigy of Edward the Black Prince at Trinity Chapel, Canterbury Cathedral.

The Battle of Poitiers, from the Froissart chronicles. The French defeat led to the
collapse of the government and the breakdown of law and order.

King Edward was growing old and his son, the Black Prince, fell ill and was unable to fight. Little by little, year after year, the French regained their lost territories. When Edward died there were only a few coastal towns left. The war was unpopular because of loss of life and high taxes, so King Richard of England made peace in 1396.