The popular history of England; an illustrated history of society and government from the earliest period to our own times . at-arms worecoats of steel reaching to their knees,and heavy leg-armour, with otherencumbering panoply. The con-temporary chroniclers, both Frenchand English, diifer greatly as to thenumber of the French army. Thelowest estimate is fifty thousandfighting men ; the highest, one hun-dred and fifty thousand. The pro-bability is that they were tentimes as many as the position was between the twowoods of Agincourt and Trame-court, in a space much too confinedfor
The popular history of England; an illustrated history of society and government from the earliest period to our own times . at-arms worecoats of steel reaching to their knees,and heavy leg-armour, with otherencumbering panoply. The con-temporary chroniclers, both Frenchand English, diifer greatly as to thenumber of the French army. Thelowest estimate is fifty thousandfighting men ; the highest, one hun-dred and fifty thousand. The pro-bability is that they were tentimes as many as the position was between the twowoods of Agincourt and Trame-court, in a space much too confinedfor the movements of such a vastbody. The woods as they atpresent exist show that the positionwas a disadvantageous one; and itwas probably more disadvantageousif the woods were then more exten-sive. The two armies passed severalhours without a movement on eitherside. According to Monstrelet, Sir Thomas Erpingham, a knight growngray with age and honovir, at last flung his truncheon in the air,and called Nestrocque! (now strike!) and then dismounted, as theking and others had done. The English then knelt down, invoking the. Robert Chamberlain, Esquire to Henry V. 1415.] THE BATTLE OF AGINCOURT. 63 protection of God ; and each man put a small piece of eartli into Ins mouth,m remembrance that they were formed of dust, and to dust should the national hurrah! they kept advancing. The archers, withoutarraom*, in jackets and loose hose, some even barefoot, went boldly on to meetthe mailed chivalry. Their bow-strings were drawn. The French stoopedas the deadly shafts flew amongst them. Many were slain. Onward rushedthe thousands of horsemen to break the line of the hardy yeomen. Thesharpened stakes were planted in the earth; and the archers shrank not fromthe charge. The arrows again flew ; and the horses becoming unmanageablefrom their wounds, the knights were driven back upon the van, which theythrew into confusion. The king now advanced with his main body. Adeadly confl
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1850, bookpublisherlondon, bookyear185
