[MR] Wikipedia: Agincourt and St. Crispin's Day

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble Friends,

Today, 25 October, is the anniversary of the Battle of Agincourt. This
famous 1415 battle pitted Henry V's dysentery-ridden army of some 5,000
longbow archers and 1,000 dismounted knights and men-at-arms against a
French army in three battles numbering some 30,000 mounted knights,
men-at-arms afoot, and commoner infantrymen. Thanks to the superb use of
archery, and "force multipliers" inherent in the carefully chosen
battlefield, the English won against impossible odds. The result was some
6,000 French nobles killed, and as many as 2,200 captured, with the third
French battle fleeing the field without engaging. Official English losses
were 112, though they may have been as high as 600. The result was the
destruction of France's chivalry for nearly 10 years, and a great speech
put in Henry's mouth by William Shakespeare.

I've commented on this battle before, so no further mention of its details
is needed today. Rather, I thought to highlight Saints Crispin and
Crispinian, upon whose feast day the battle happened. These two saints are
prominently mentioned throughout the famous "Band of Brothers" speech.
Saint Crispin is also honored in Wagner's *Die Meistersinger*, in a piece
sung by the shoemaker's guild.

The two saints were said to be twin brothers of noble Roman birth. They
supported themselves by making shoes, while preaching on the sly in
Novoidunum (now Soissons, France, where their major shrine is located). In
286 or 287 they were tortured and beheaded on the orders of the Roman
governor Rictus Varus. Because of their trade, the two brothers are the
patron saints of cobblers, glovers, and other leather workers, plus lace
makers and weavers.

Saints Crispin and Crispinian's feast day was removed from the liturgical
calendar by the Second Vatican Council, but the two saints are still listed
in the Catholic martyrology. They are still honored by the Church of
England, which makes a great deal of nationalistic sense when you ponder it.

More about the saints is at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crispin_and_Crispinian .

More on the battle itself is at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Agincourt .

Yours Aye,


Lord Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge  🦆