The great English victory won by Henry V at Agincourt in 1415 may have prompted the French king Charles VI into a fit of madness; a trait passed on to his descendants. The coronation of Henry V (above) was held at Westminster Abbey in 1413.
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THE WARS OF THE ROSES
FOUNDATIONS OF
THE WARS OF THE ROSES
At the time of Henry V’s coronation in 1413, France was weak, creating a good opportunity for Henry to press his claim to the French crown as a descendant of Edward III. Resistance to an invasion was likely to be slow in developing, disorganized and perhaps half-hearted.
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‘He became known for a time as Charles the Beloved’.
The French king was unpopular, the kingdom was financially embarrassed and it was even possible that some French nobles would accept or at least not oppose an English bid for the throne.
The French king, Charles VI, had taken the throne in 1380 at the age of 11. He could not legally wield power at this age so four of his uncles – all of course great nobles in their own right, and with agendas of their own – were to govern the country until Charles came of age at 14. In the event it was actually several more years before Charles was able to assert himself, and by this time his regents had created several serious problems.
Charles’ four uncles put their own interests foremost, spending royal money on projects of their own or to block the manoeuvres of the others. Increased taxation to pay for all this infighting created unrest and even revolts, until finally Charles took power in his own right and began to restore matters. He was sufficiently successful that he became known for a time as Charles the Beloved, largely as a result of a brief period of prosperity created by his policies.
Mental illness ran in the family of Charles the Beloved, and in 1392 it manifested itself for the first time. Whilst on the way to Brittany, Charles suddenly lapsed into violent insanity and killed members of his own escort before he could be restrained. Further episodes followed, in which he would attack anyone nearby or flee in terror from unseen assailants. Between bouts of insanity he was rational, but not capable of good governance. This led to a new set of power-struggles in France, which gradually became a civil war between the Duke of Burgundy and a faction named for Bernard, Duke of Armagnac.
With France in such turmoil, Henry V considered he had an excellent opportunity to make territorial gains. His plans were initially opposed by Parliament, which preferred negotiation, but by early 1415 Parliament had agreed to sanction war with France.
In 1392, Charles VI of France suddenly turned on his escort and attacked them. His subsequent bouts of insanity gained him the nickname ‘Charles the Mad’. This tendency to madness was passed to his descendants including Henry VI of England.
Plots against Henry
Although he eventually obtained the reluctant support of Parliament for his invasion of France, Henry faced internal troubles that had to be dealt with before he could launch a foreign expedition. He had been generally successful in building support amo
