Henry V of England (9 August 1386 – 31 August 1422) was King of England from 20 March 1413 to 31 August 1422, succeeding Henry IV and preceding Henry VI. Henry was the second Lancastrian monarch of England, and he was best known for his 1415 campaign in France and his victory at the Battle of Agincourt.
Biography[]
Henry was born in Monmouth, Monmouthshire, Wales on 9 August 1386, the son of King Henry IV of England and Mary de Bohun. In his youth, he gained military experience fighting the Welsh during the revolt of Owain Glyndwr and against the powerful aristocratic House of Percy at the Battle of Shrewsbury, during which he was wounded in the face by an arrow. He later came into political conflict with his father, whose health was increasingly precarious from 1405 onward, and who started to withdraw from government functions as a result.
King of England[]
King Henry in London, 1415
After his father's death in 1413, Henry assumed control of the country, and asserted the pending English claims to the throne of France. Henry sought to reclaim his inheritance, and he was provoked into invading France in 1415 after Dauphin Louis, Duke of Guyenne mocked him by sending him tennis balls as a bribe for Henry discontinuing his claims to the throne. King Henry embarked on war with France, laying siege to the walled city of Harfleur. His army was far smaller than the French army, but he was able to score a famous victory over the French at the Battle of Agincourt on 25 October 1415, having given his famous "St. Crispin's Day speech".
Victory in France[]
King Henry and his troops at Agincourt
Henry came close to conquering France, conquering large portions of the kingdom and restoring English rule to Normandy after a 200-year gap. After months of negotiation with King Charles VI of France, the 1420 Treaty of Troyes recognized Henry V as regent and heir apparent to the French throne, and he was subsequently married to Charles' daughter, Catherine of Valois. However, the fighting continued, and Henry conquered Meaux on 2 May 1422. Henry died suddenly on 31 August 1422 at the Chateau de Vincennes from dysentery, which he had contracted during the Siege of Meaux. His young son Henry VI of England succeeded him, and the inability of the regents to rule properly led to all of Henry's conquests being reversed.
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