England, France and Aquitaine : From Victory to Defeat in the Hundred Years War

This is a narrative history of England and France during the Hundred Years War, from the triumphs of Henry V to the defeat of England and the loss of Gascony and Bordeaux - a huge blow to English prestige.

It is a military history with technical detail, linked to high politics, courtly intrigue, dynastic ambition, and economic interest(the Bordeaux wine trade).

The story develops after the death in 1422 of two kings: Henry V of England, soon after his military triumphs, and Charles VI of France.

Both had historic claims to the French crown. Henry V was succeeded by Henry VI, still an infant, and Charles VI by Charles VII.

The contrast could hardly have been greater between Henry VI, a scholarly and religious figure, often suffering from mental illness, in an age when kings were expected to be aggressive leaders and effective military commanders, and Charles VII - an increasingly able politician, soldier and, in modern parlance, a 'hard man,' who personified the 15th century concept of kingship.

Intermittent but constant warfare continued until the English defeat at Castillon and the complete loss of Gascony after the siege of Bordeaux, both in 1453.

The Peace of Picquigny in 1476 between the next kings, Edward IV and Louis XI, brought an end to this decisive episode in the Hundred Years War, foreshadowing England's future total withdrawal from France.