House of Lancaster - King Henry V
Name: King Henry V
Father: Henry IV
Mother: Mary de Bohun
Born: August 9, 1387 at Monmouth Castle
Ascended to the throne: March 20, 1413 aged 25 years
Crowned: April 9, 1413 at Westminster Abbey
Married: Catherine de Valois
Children: One son Henry VI
Died: August 31, 1422 at Vincennes, France, aged 35 years, and 21 days
Buried at: Westminster
King of England 1413–22, son of Henry IV. Invading Normandy in 1415 (during the Hundred Years' War), he captured Harfleur and defeated the French at Agincourt. He invaded again in 1417–19, capturing Rouen. His military victory forced the French into the Treaty of Troyes in 1420, which gave Henry control of the French government. He married Catherine of Valois in 1420 and gained recognition as heir to the French throne by his father-in-law Charles VI, but died before him. He was succeeded by his son Henry VI.
Henry was knighted aged 12 by Richard II on his Irish expedition 1399, and experienced war early. He was wounded in the face by an arrow fighting against his military tutor Harry 'Hotspur' at Shrewsbury. Campaigns in Wales against Owen Glendywr taught him the realities of siege warfare. He was succeeded by his son Henry VI.
Henry was a cold and ruthless soldier, respected by contemporaries as a chivalric warrior. Determined to revive the war in France, his invasion of 1415 was impressively organized but his siege of Harfleur took too long, reducing his intended grand chevauchée (raid through enemy territory) to a reckless dash to Calais. Although his tiny, bedraggled army was cut off by a superior French force, it achieved a surprising victory at Agincourt. When Henry returned it was with serious intent to reduce Normandy, which he did, including a long, bitter siege of Rouen. Military pressure on Paris ensured the favourable Treaty of Troyes in 1420, making him heir to the French throne, but he contracted dysentery conducting the siege of Meaux.
Timeline for King Henry V
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1413 | Henry accedes to the throne at the age of 25 upon the death of his father, Henry IV |
| 1414 | Henry adopts the claims of Edward III to the French crown |
| 1415 | Henry thwarts the Cambridge plot, an attempt by a group of nobles to replace him on the throne with his cousin, Edmund Mortisner, Earl of March. |
| 1415 | Henry renews the war against France in order to win back territories lost by his ancestors. After a five-week siege, he captures Harfleur the leading port in north-west France. |
| 1415 | Battle of Agincourt, at which 6,000 Frenchmen are killed, while less than 400 English soldiers lose their lives. |
| 1416 | Death of Owain Glyndwr, leader of the Welsh revolt. |
| 1420 | Henry marries Catherine, daughter of Charles VI. Under the treaty of Troyes, Henry will become King of France on the death of Charles VI. |
| 1421 | Birth of Prince Henry, later Henry VI. |
| 1422 | Henry V dies in France of dysentery before he can succeed to the French throne. King Charles VI of France dies the following month, leaving Henry VI, Henry’s 10-month-old son, as King of France and England. |