John Keegan and Peter Arnade record the accounts of the Battle of Agincourt and the Army of Flanders press against the Low Countries during the Dutch Revolt, respectively, in Keegan’s Agincourt and Arnade’s Beggars, Iconoclasts, and Civic Patriots. In fifteenth and sixteenth century Europe, military conflicts ranging between the English and the Spanish to the Spanish versus the general population of the Low Countries were governed by the emotions of the persons that participated. Understanding the emotions and feelings that went into wartime decisions, acts of brutality, and religious fervor on all sides of European military conflict will prove to be beneficial for those looking into reasons behind victory and/or defeat. The English army is
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The Spanish were feeling confident about their chances and, in the words of Keegan, were “certain of victory” (94). Yet even an army of at least 20,000 men with strong beliefs that they would win fell to an English army half of the Flanders’ size. This was due to the emotional state of the English Army – one that highly valued honor and spiritual commitment. Before the Battle Agincourt had even begun, the English Army turned to spiritual rejuvenation above all else, confessing their sins and attending mass prior to dressing for war (Keegan 82). This prioritization of emotional assurance among the English not only achieved unity under God but under their King who set the standard for religious devotion, two aspects not seen in the Army of Flanders. Henry V was found participating in “Mass three times in succession before the battle, and took Communion, as presumably did most of his followers” (Keegan 114). Additionally, the presence of Henry created a feeling of honor within his own ranks. This differs from creating a culture of honor between the English and the Spanish, a task the English King failed to accomplish once he ordered his Spanish prisoners to be executed. Nonetheless, once soldiers witnessed their King “visible to all and ostentatiously risking his life in the heart of the mêlée”, the honor Henry expressed was desirous of all (Keegan 114). An army of 8,000 archers and 2,000 men-in-arms who were weary and surviving off of nuts and berries during the battle (Keegan 89) wouldn’t have been able to defeat the 20,000 strong Army of Flanders without the instilled desire to fight for one another and their cause of the Hundred Years’ War. Not only this, but the atmosphere of honor provided the additional feeling of seriousness among the English Army, an emotion that couldn’t be
The Spanish were feeling confident about their chances and, in the words of Keegan, were “certain of victory” (94). Yet even an army of at least 20,000 men with strong beliefs that they would win fell to an English army half of the Flanders’ size. This was due to the emotional state of the English Army – one that highly valued honor and spiritual commitment. Before the Battle Agincourt had even begun, the English Army turned to spiritual rejuvenation above all else, confessing their sins and attending mass prior to dressing for war (Keegan 82). This prioritization of emotional assurance among the English not only achieved unity under God but under their King who set the standard for religious devotion, two aspects not seen in the Army of Flanders. Henry V was found participating in “Mass three times in succession before the battle, and took Communion, as presumably did most of his followers” (Keegan 114). Additionally, the presence of Henry created a feeling of honor within his own ranks. This differs from creating a culture of honor between the English and the Spanish, a task the English King failed to accomplish once he ordered his Spanish prisoners to be executed. Nonetheless, once soldiers witnessed their King “visible to all and ostentatiously risking his life in the heart of the mêlée”, the honor Henry expressed was desirous of all (Keegan 114). An army of 8,000 archers and 2,000 men-in-arms who were weary and surviving off of nuts and berries during the battle (Keegan 89) wouldn’t have been able to defeat the 20,000 strong Army of Flanders without the instilled desire to fight for one another and their cause of the Hundred Years’ War. Not only this, but the atmosphere of honor provided the additional feeling of seriousness among the English Army, an emotion that couldn’t be