[125] Shakespeare illustrates these tensions by depicting Henry's decision to kill some of the French prisoners, whilst attempting to justify it and distance himself from the event. with chivalry. The Battle of Agincourt took place on October 25, 1415. The Battle of Agincourt was another famous battle where longbowmen had a particularly important . [86], The only French success was an attack on the lightly protected English baggage train, with Ysembart d'Azincourt (leading a small number of men-at-arms and varlets plus about 600 peasants) seizing some of Henry's personal treasures, including a crown. This article was. Two are from the epigrammatist Martial: Laugh loudly, Sextillus, when someone calls you a queen and put your middle finger out., (The verse continues: But you are no sodomite nor fornicator either, Sextillus, nor is Vetustinas hot mouth your fancy. Martial, and Roman poets in general, could be pretty out there, subject-matter-wise. Although the victory had been militarily decisive, its impact was complex. But frankly, I suspect that the French would have done a lot worse to any captured English archers than chopping off their fingers. [60][61], Accounts of the battle describe the French engaging the English men-at-arms before being rushed from the sides by the longbowmen as the mle developed. With Toby Merrell, Ian Brooker, Philip Rosch, Brian Blessed. [62] A widely shared image on social media purportedly explains the historic origins of the middle finger, considered an offensive gesture in Western culture. The image makes the further claim that the English soldiers chanted pluck yew, ostensibly in reference to the drawing of the longbow. But frankly, I suspect that the French would have done a lot worse to any captured English archers than chopping off their fingers. before a defensive battle was possible. It. [82], The surviving French men-at-arms reached the front of the English line and pushed it back, with the longbowmen on the flanks continuing to shoot at point-blank range. The city capitulated within six weeks, but the siege was costly. T he battle of Agincourt, whose 600th anniversary falls on St Crispin's Day, 25 October, is still tabloid gold, Gotcha! [106] This lack of unity in France allowed Henry eighteen months to prepare militarily and politically for a renewed campaign. The army was divided into three groups, with the right wing led by Edward, Duke of York, the centre led by the king himself, and the left wing under the old and experienced Baron Thomas Camoys. I thought the French threatened to cut off the primary finger of the English longbowmen (the middle finger was neeed the most to pull the bowstring). Upon hearing that his youngest brother Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester had been wounded in the groin, Henry took his household guard and stood over his brother, in the front rank of the fighting, until Humphrey could be dragged to safety. The middle finger gesture does not derive from the mutilation of English archers at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. Eventually the archers abandoned their longbows and began fighting hand-to-hand with swords and axes alongside the men-at-arms. Subject: Truth About the Finger In the film Titanic the character Rose is shown giving the finger to Jack, another character. For three hours after sunrise there was no fighting. In a book on the battle of Agincourt, Anne Curry, Professor Emeritus of Medieval History at the University of Southampton, addressed a similar claim prescribed to the V-sign, also considered an offensive gesture: No chronicle or sixteenth-centuryhistory says that English archers made any gesture to the French after the battle in order to show they still had their fingers. The Most Famous, Bloodiest Medieval Battle - AGINCOURT - Full - YouTube David Mikkelson founded the site now known as snopes.com back in 1994. These heralds were not part of the participating armies, but were, as military expert John Keegan describes, members of an "international corporation of experts who regulated civilized warfare." Wikipedia. [133] Branagh's version gives a longer, more realist portrayal of the battle itself, drawing on both historical sources and images from the Vietnam and Falkland Wars.[134]. October 25, 1415. This was not strictly a feudal army, but an army paid through a system similar to that of the English. Many people who have seen the film question whether giving the finger was done around the time of the Titanic disaster, or was it a more recent gesture invented by some defiant seventh-grader. There is no evidence that, when captured in any scenario,archers had their finger cut off by the enemy( bit.ly/3dP2PhP ). One popular "origin story" for the middle finger has to do with the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. Before the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, the French, anticipating victory over the English, proposed to cut off the middle finger of all captured English soldiers. King Henry V at the Battle of Agincourt, 1415 by Sir John Gilbert, Atkinson Art Gallery, Southport, Lancashire. [107], Most primary sources which describe the battle have English outnumbered by several times. Whether this was true is open to question and continues to be debated to this day; however, it seems likely that death was the normal fate of any soldier who could not be ransomed. French history myths: The 'two fingers' insult comes from the Battle of Materials characterization, 29(2), 111117. Battle of Agincourt and the origin of Fu#K | Origin story of middle With 4,800 men-at-arms in the vanguard, 3,000 in the main battle, and 1,200 in the infantry wings. He told his men that he would rather die in the coming battle than be captured and ransomed. [92], The French had suffered a catastrophic defeat. The English won in a major upset and waved the body part in question at the French in defiance. [31], The precise location of the battle is not known. [8] These included the Duke of York, the young Earl of Suffolk and the Welsh esquire Dafydd ("Davy") Gam. [43], The French were organized into two main groups (or battles), a vanguard up front and a main battle behind, both composed principally of men-at-arms fighting on foot and flanked by more of the same in each wing. [50] Both lines were arrayed in tight, dense formations of about 16 ranks each, and were positioned a bowshot length from each other. It was often reported to comprise 1,500 ships, but was probably far smaller. [121] Mortimer notes the presence of noncombatant pages only, indicating that they would ride the spare horses during the battle and be mistakenly thought of as combatants by the English.[122]. The Burgundian sources have him concluding the speech by telling his men that the French had boasted that they would cut off two fingers from the right hand of every archer, so that he could never draw a longbow again. [59], The field of battle was arguably the most significant factor in deciding the outcome. I suppose that the two-fingered salute could still come from medieval archery, even if it didnt come specifically from the Battle of Agincourt, although the example that Wikipedia links to (the fourteenth-century Luttrell Psalter) is ambiguous. ), And even if killing prisoners of war did not violate the moral code of the times, what would be the purpose of taking archers captive, cutting off their fingers, and then executing them? [84] The exhausted French men-at-arms were unable to get up after being knocked to the ground by the English. [46] Many lords and gentlemen demanded and got places in the front lines, where they would have a higher chance to acquire glory and valuable ransoms; this resulted in the bulk of the men-at-arms being massed in the front lines and the other troops, for which there was no remaining space, to be placed behind. Medieval warriors didn't take prisoners because by doing so they were observing a moral code that dictated opponents who had laid down their arms and ceased fighting must be treated humanely, but because they knew high-ranking captives were valuable property that could be ransomed for money. The 'middle finger salute' is derived from the defiant gestures of English archers whose fingers had been severed by the French at the Battle of Agincourt. The battle repeated other English successes in the Hundred Years War, such as the Battle of Crcy (1346) and the Battle of Poitiers (1356), and made possible Englands subsequent conquest of Normandy and the Treaty of Troyes (1420), which named Henry V heir to the French crown. Plucking The Yew - Jerry Pournelle [69] (The use of stakes was an innovation for the English: during the Battle of Crcy, for example, the archers had been instead protected by pits and other obstacles. This famous weapon was made of the native English yew tree, and so the act of drawing the longbow was known as "plucking yew". According to contemporary English accounts, Henry fought hand to hand. Inthe book,Corbeillpoints to Priapus, a minor deityhedatesto 400 BC, whichlater alsoappears in Rome as the guardian of gardens,according to the Oxford Encyclopedia of Greece and Rome( here ). I admit that I bring this story up when I talk about the Hundred Years War only to debunk it. Supposedly, both originated at the 1415 Battle of Agincourt, . It did not lead to further English conquests immediately as Henry's priority was to return to England, which he did on 16 November, to be received in triumph in London on the 23rd. At issue was the question of the legitimate succession to the French crown as well as the ownership of several French territories. What's the origin of "the finger"? - The Straight Dope The original usage of this mudra can be traced back as far as the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. Since then there had been tension between the nobility and the royal house, widespread lawlessness throughout the kingdom, and several attempts on Henry Vs life. Turning to our vast classical library, we quickly turn up three references. The Battle of Agincourt was dramatised by William Shakespeare in Henry V featuring the battle in which Henry inspired his much-outnumbered English forces to fight the French through a St Crispin's Day Speech, saying "the fewer men, the greater share of honour". Idiom Origins - Middle finger - History of Middle finger It may be difficult to pinpoint exactly when the middle finger gesture originated, but some historians trace its roots to ancient Rome. Probably each man-at-arms would be accompanied by a gros valet (or varlet), an armed servant, adding up to another 10,000 potential fighting men,[7] though some historians omit them from the number of combatants. [85], The French men-at-arms were taken prisoner or killed in the thousands. A BBCNews Magazinereportsimilarlytracesthe gesture back toAncient Greek philosophers ( here ). Maybe it means five and was a symbol of support for Henry V? [27], During the siege, the French had raised an army which assembled around Rouen. Giving the Finger - Before the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, the French, anticipating victory over the English, proposed to cut off the middle finger of all captured English soldiers. Shakespeare's version of the battle of Agincourt has been turned into several minor and two major films. It is also because of the pheasant feathers on the arrows that the gesture is known as giving the bird. And yew all thought yew knew everything! Battle of Agincourt, (October 25, 1415)Battle resulting in the decisive victory of the English over the French in the Hundred Years' War. [89] A slaughter of the French prisoners ensued. [105] Other benefits to the English were longer term. The town surrendered on 22 September, and the English army did not leave until 8 October. The French, who were overwhelmingly favored to win the battle, Continue Reading 41 2 7 Alexander L Apparently Henry believed his fleeing army would perform better on the defensive, but had to halt the retreat and somehow engage the French It took place on 25 October 1415 (Saint Crispin's Day) near Azincourt, in northern France. [72], The French cavalry, despite being disorganised and not at full numbers, charged towards the longbowmen. [47] Although it had been planned for the archers and crossbowmen to be placed with the infantry wings, they were now regarded as unnecessary and placed behind them instead. The Battle of Agincourt (720p) Watch on The History of the Middle Finger & "Fuck You" - Blogger Since the French had many more men-at-arms than the English, they would accordingly be accompanied by a far greater number of servants. Legend says that the British archers were so formidable that the ones captured by the French had their index and middle fingers cut off so that they . When the first French line reached the English front, the cavalry were unable to overwhelm the archers, who had driven sharpened stakes into the ground at an angle before themselves. Battle of Agincourt - The English Really Should Have Lost, But They Won As the story goes, the French were fighting with the English and had a diabolical (and greatly advertised) plan of cutting off the middle fingers of any captured English archers so they could never taunt the French with arrows plucked in their . Without the middle finger, it would be impossible to draw the renowned English longbow; and therefore, they would be incapable of fighting in the future. She graduated from the University of Chicago in 2019 with bachelor's degrees in English Language and Literature and Medieval Studies. Sumption, thus, concludes that the French had 14,000 men, basing himself on the monk of St. Denis;[119] Mortimer gives 14 or 15 thousand fighting men. The Hundred Years War was a discontinuous conflict between England and France that spanned two centuries. The French knights were unable to outflank the longbowmen (because of the encroaching woodland) and unable to charge through the array of sharpened stakes that protected the archers. The Face of Battle.New York: Penguin Books, 1978 ISBN 0-140-04897-9 (pp. . The English army, led by King Henry V, famously achieved victory in spite of the numerical superiority of its opponent. . [93] In all, around 6,000 of their fighting men lay dead on the ground. By 24 October, both armies faced each other for battle, but the French declined, hoping for the arrival of more troops. Although an audience vote was "too close to call", Henry was unanimously found guilty by the court on the basis of "evolving standards of civil society".[136][137][138]. Keegan, John. The French could not cope with the thousands of lightly armoured longbowmen assailants (who were much less hindered by the mud and weight of their armour) combined with the English men-at-arms. The Hundred Years' War. This head-lowered position restricted their breathing and their vision. Although the French initially pushed the English back, they became so closely packed that they were described as having trouble using their weapons properly. The impact of thousands of arrows, combined with the slog in heavy armour through the mud, the heat and difficulty breathing in plate armour with the visor down,[83] and the crush of their numbers, meant the French men-at-arms could "scarcely lift their weapons" when they finally engaged the English line. Nicolle, D. (2004). [94][10][11] The list of casualties, one historian has noted, "read like a roll call of the military and political leaders of the past generation". The Agincourt Carol, dating from around this time and possibly written for Henrys reception in London, is a rousing celebration of the might of the English. While numerous English sources give the English casualties in double figures,[8] record evidence identifies at least 112 Englishmen killed in the fighting,[103] while Monstrelet reported 600 English dead. [96] Of the great royal office holders, France lost its constable (Albret), an admiral (the lord of Dampierre), the Master of Crossbowmen (David de Rambures, dead along with three sons), Master of the Royal Household (Guichard Dauphin) and prvt of the marshals. In Gestures: Their Origins and Distribution, Desmond Morris and colleagues note that the digitus infamis or digitus impudicus (infamous or indecent finger) is mentioned several times in the literature of ancient Rome. Opie, Iona and Moira Tatem. [81] In any case, to protect themselves as much as possible from the arrows, the French had to lower their visors and bend their helmeted heads to avoid being shot in the face, as the eye- and air-holes in their helmets were among the weakest points in the armour. [130][131] Partially as a result, the battle was used as a metaphor at the beginning of the First World War, when the British Expeditionary Force's attempts to stop the German advances were widely likened to it.[132]. [93] Among them were 90120 great lords and bannerets killed, including[95] three dukes (Alenon, Bar and Brabant), nine counts (Blmont, Dreux, Fauquembergue, Grandpr, Marle, Nevers, Roucy, Vaucourt, Vaudmont) and one viscount (Puisaye), also an archbishop. Without the middle finger it would be impossible to draw the renowned English longbow and therefore be incapable of fighting in the future. [5] [b] Henry V 's victory at Agincourt, against a numerically superior French army. It is unclear whether the delay occurred because the French were hoping the English would launch a frontal assault (and were surprised when the English instead started shooting from their new defensive position), or whether the French mounted knights instead did not react quickly enough to the English advance. Why is showing the middle finger offensive? When, how, and - Quora Details the English victory over the French at the Battle of Agincourt. [70]), The tightness of the terrain also seems to have restricted the planned deployment of the French forces. The legend that the "two-fingered salute" stems from the Battle of Agincourt is apocryphal Although scholars and historians continue to debate its origins, according to legend it was first. Battle of Agincourt | Facts, Summary, & Significance | Britannica This famous weapon was made of the . It supposedly describes the origin of the middle-finger hand gesture and, by implication, the insult "fuck you". The one-finger salute, or at any rate sexual gestures involving the middle finger, are thousands of years old. |. Rogers, Mortimer[117] and Sumption[41] all give more or less 10,000 men-at-arms for the French, using as a source the herald of the Duke of Berry, an eyewitness. [23] The army of about 12,000 men and up to 20,000 horses besieged the port of Harfleur. They were successful for a time, forcing Henry to move south, away from Calais, to find a ford. Contents. Theodore Beck also suggests that among Henry's army was "the king's physician and a little band of surgeons". The third line of the French army, recoiling at the pile of corpses before them and unable to make an effective charge, was then massacred swiftly. Image source Pluck yew - onlysky.media 33-35). There had even been a suggestion that the English would run away rather than give battle when they saw that they would be fighting so many French princes. This battle concluded with King Harold of England dying at the hands of the Norman King William, which marked the beginning of a new era in England. The main part of the speech begins "This day is called the feast of . You would think that anything English predating 1607, such as the language, Protestantism, or the Common Law, would have been a part of Americas patrimony. Most importantly, the battle was a significant military blow to France and paved the way for further English conquests and successes. False claim: "Middle finger" gesture derives from English soldiers at The struggle began in 1337 when King Edward III of England claimed the title King of France over Philip VI and invaded Flanders. On 25 October 1415, an army of English raiders under Henry V faced the French outside an obscure village on the road to Calais. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. Thinking it was an attack from the rear, Henry had the French nobles he was holding prisoner killed. After the battle, the English taunted the survivors by showing off what wasn't cut off. Why do some people have that one extra-long fingernail on the pinkie finger. Wikipedia. Several heralds, both French and English, were present at the battle of Agincourt, and not one of them (or any later chroniclers of Agincourt) mentioned anything about the French having cut off the fingers of captured English bowman. Some historians trace its origins to ancient Rome. [53] A further 600 dismounted men-at-arms stood in each wing, with the left under the Count of Vendme and the right under the Count of Richemont. . Adam Koford, Salt Lake City, Utah, Now for the facts. In the other reference Martial writes that a certain party points a finger, an indecent one, at some other people. Without the middle finger it would be impossible to draw the renowned English longbow and therefore they would be incapable of fighting in the future. Send questions to Cecil via cecil@straightdope.com. Agincourt 1415: The Triumph of the Longbow: Directed by Graham Holloway. Moreover, if archers could be ransomed, then cutting off their middle fingers would be a senseless move. Early in the morning on October 25 (the feast day of St. Crispin), 1415, Henry positioned his army for battle on a recently plowed field bounded by woods. . Fighting commenced at 11:00 am, as the English brought their longbows within killing range and the first line of French knights advanced, led by cavalry. The Battle Of Agincourt: What Really Happened? | HistoryExtra [49], The French vanguard and main battle numbered respectively 4,800 and 3,000 men-at-arms. [74], The plate armour of the French men-at-arms allowed them to close the 1,000 yards or so to the English lines while being under what the French monk of Saint Denis described as "a terrifying hail of arrow shot".
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