Tuesday, October 25

596 years ago today

I'm a bit down on England a lot of the time, but I love our history and it was today – Saint Crispin's Day – in 1415 that Henry V orchestrated the crushing defeat of the huge French army at Agincourt in northern France.

For anyone who hasn't heard the story, English longbowmen were the best in the world... so good that if they were captured in battle, the first two fingers of their bow-string hand were often severed by the French so they were unable to use a bow again. As a result, the English bowmen started sticking these two fingers up at the enemy in defiance before raining steel-tipped death onto them; it's a gesture beloved by all Englishmen still.

The English bowmen and the sticky mud on Agincourt's battlefield made mincemeat of the heavily (literally) armoured French cavalry. I've visited the battlefield often; there is a little museum and cafe nearby. Well worth a visit if you're in that part of France.

OK, back to the motorcycles.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

with all that history it staggers me why there is the lemming like adoption of giving 'the bird'(?)
I blames the media , dude. (bugg*r!)

59

Anonymous said...

Minglands greatest invention.

Chris said...

Love the last scene in "Le Mans" as McQueen shows his two fingers.