Crecy Models produce 54mm white metal figures focusing on the Hundred Years' War and mainly featuring knights from the Battles of Crecy, Poitiers and Agincourt.
On 25 October 1415, the English and French armies faced each other in a valley near Agincourt. The 20000 French troops were drawn up in 3 lines: the cavalry (vanguard); the infantry (middle); the crossbowmen (rearguard). The English army, 6000 soldiers in poor health, was drawn up in a single line with archers at both ends. After several hours, Henry V decided to move forward to which the French cavalry retaliated but got stuck in the mud and was stopped by the English arrows. A hand-to-hand battle ensued, with an English victory thanks to the intervention of the archers who joined the fray. The French were too slow in their heavy armour - an easy target for the English who were agile since they wore no breastplates. Many were killed including the Dukes of Orleans and of Alencon for the French, and the Duke of York for the English. Henry V was saved from death by his helmet though the crown was seriously damaged. The Battle of Agincourt was the last important English victory during the Hundred Years' War.
In 1356 the English army, led by King Edward III, raided several French territories. On his way back to England, he was intercepted near Poitiers by King John II, nicknamed "Le Bon", with an army of 16000 soldiers. The English, with just 8000 units, lined up in a defensive formation: during the mediation process, they built stake-fences and arrayed the bowmen on the top of a hill. The French cavalry attacked first but was decimated by a shower of English arrows. The 1st French battalion followed, but the bustle of the fleeing horsemen helped the English to surge towards the enemy. The Duke of Orleans, brother of the king, had to withdraw his troops and so the King entered the field leading the 3rd battalion. John II (with his son Philip) showed his valour fighting with an axe. At the end of the battle, King John and his son were taken prisoners to London. Ensuing this battle, the Treaty of Bretigny was concluded where the French waived their rights to the south-western territories of their country.
Firstborn son of King Edward III of England, Edward II became protagonist of some of the most important battles of the “Hundred years' war”. Nicknamed “The Black Prince” because of the dark colour of his armour, in 1346 at 16, Edward II flanked his father during the Normandy campaign, which led to the victory of Crecy. The decisive factor for the English success was the use of the longbow as the English soldiers could thus shoot a shower of arrows, piercing the breastplates of the cavalry. The use of the longbow and good military organization led the Black Pince to the successful Battle of Poitiers (1356), where the French were defeated and King John II was taken prisoner. Edward II became Prince of the French territories of Guascogna and Acquitania but soon left for Spain for a new military campaign. The French noblemen rebelled during his absence supported by Charles V King of France, forced Prince Edward to give up his possessions and return to England. He died in 1376, a year before his father's death.
At the service of the king or a nobleman, the herald had the duty, among others, to carry messages on the battlefield. He knew everything about heraldic arms and after each battle he had to draw up a list of the knights fallen in battle. Since the helmets covered the face completely, men in armour could only be identified by the heraldry that was on their shields and surcoats. The herald soon became an expert of these distinctive arms which allowed the identification of knights. It ensued that more knights asked for his advice when they were taking up heraldry to avoid using insignia already used by others ... A herald present at the Battle of Agincourt was, among others, the French Mountjoy. Mountjoy wore long boots and civilian clothes together with a tabard on which there was the contemporary French insignia of his king Charles VI of France. He carried with him a leather bag for his writing materials. He had to deliver the proclamation of the defeat of the French to the victorious English King Henry V.
Jean le Maingre "le Boucicault" a French marshal born in 1365. Governor of Languedoc & Guyanne, under the French King Charles VI, he fought the English and later the Teutonics in Poland. Captured at Adrianople in 1396 during a Crusade. He governed Genoa for the King of France (1401-1409). In 1403 another Crusade led him to Beirut. In 1415, heavily defeated as field commander at Agincourt, he was found alive and captured by the English. Nobody paid his ransom & he died a prisoner in England in May 1421. Marshal le Maingre was renowned for the foundation in 1399 of the knightly order "Emprise de l'Escu vert à la Dame Blanche" and as author of the book "Heures de Boucicault" (1405). At Agincourt, the Marshal wore armour covering his whole body with the iron mail camail substituted by a fixed plate (gorget). The heraldic emblem of Jean le Maingre was a two-headed red eagle on a white background. The figure can be painted with other French heraldry since the garment's cut with sleeves was a typical French trend.
The medieval period was an important age for change in culture, art and life in general. Also the art of war and combat improved with many important invovations that proved decisive on the battlefield. New knowledge allowed, for example, the development of more resistant materials, very important in any phase of combat... Body armour used in battle developed in little more than a century - in intermediate steps - from leather to plated armour. Weaponry was dictated by necessity to maintain efficiency. The single-handed sword with sharp and short blades gave way to the more resistant model of the two-handed sword. The heaviest two-handed swords – average weight of 3 kg - are different in respect to the normal swords being stockier and of a less elegant line, their scope was to cover a longer distance, to damage their opponents' armour, and to cause fractures or inflict still greater damage. Ever since 1415, some French and English noblemen - like Sir Jacques d'Heilly or John Mowbray Count of Notthingam - its use in battle was introduced in Agincourt, becoming more common towards the XVth century.
Grand Master of Teutonic Knights - Grunwald (Tannenberg) - 1410
A herald was originally a messenger sent by a king or nobleman to convey a message or proclamation. The heralds were about that day, couning the dead, and listening the names of the slain of highblood. Another skill, knowing those who faught, wich came from a knowledge of teh armorial insignia they wore. In addition to the tasks mentioned above, in medieval times, the heralds would officiate at tournements, and would have the management of cerimonies of state to contend with. Knowing the insignia of those in authority, the herald would also know the pedigrees of the families of those entitled to wear such armorial bearings, that is, the devices they wore on shields, or on surcoats. The heralds wear a tabard emblazoned with the arms of his nobleman or sovereign. He wears contemporary civilian clothes with long riding boots , and carries a leather satchel for writing materials.
Option of 2 different heads.
Welsh and English archers with their “long-bow” played a leading role at the beginning of the Hundred Years’ War. The longbow was a very difficult weapon to employ, and the archers had to have practiced from an early age to become proficient .It was its widespread use in the British Isles that gave the English the ability to use it as a weapon but it was the strategic developments that brought it to prominence.The longbow enabled English army to pick battle locations, fortify them, and destroy opposing armies. At that time the French mainly relied on heavy cavalry and crossbows. This one was used because it took little training or skill to operate effectively but it was heavy, slow to reload, and lacked the accuracy of the longbow. The English some time before during the invasion of Wales had learned through defeat what a dismounted bowmen in fixed positions could do to heavy cavalry. Since the arrows shot from a longbow could kill or incapacitate horses or armoured knights, a charge could be dissipated before it even reached an army’s lines. An experienced military longbowman was expected to shoot twenty aimed shots per minute. The sound of hundred of longbows during a battle was called by the French “Devil’s harp”.
The kit includes:1 x head1 x face helmet1 x modular helmet
Aymer was son of William de Valence and Isabella of Angouleme. He was a French-English nobleman and was one of the welthiest and most powerful men of his age. Primarily active in England he had also strong connections with the French royal house. Aymer de Valence covered a central role in the conflicts between Edward II and his nobility, particulary Earl Thomas of Lancaster. He was one of the Lords Ordainers appointed to restrict the power of the king. The Earl of Pembroke wasn't among the most radical of the Ordainers and he remained essentially loyal to Edward II throughout most of his career. In the following years in fact he worked closely with the king who, on 1314, appointed him as his lieutenant in Scotland. On 24 June 1314 he was present to the disastrous English defeat at the battle of Bannockburn where helped Edward II away from the field of battle. In 1317, while returning from a papal embassy to Avignon, he was captured by a Jean de Lamouilly and held for ransom in Germany. The high amount of money paid for freedom caused him significant financial difficulties for the rimainder of his life. On June 1324 while on an embassy in France he suddenly collapsed and died while lodging in Picardy.Text courtesy of Crecy Models
Richard I was born in Oxford in 1157, the third legitimate son of King Henry II. He was King of England and also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Lord of Ireland, Lord of Cyprus, Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Count of Nantes and Overlord of Brittany. He was known as Richard the Lionheart because of his reputation as a great military leader and warrior. At age 16, Richard was already commanding his own army, putting down rebellions in Poitou against his father. He was a crucial Christian commander during the Third Crusade, effectively leading the campaign after the departure of Philip Augustus, and scoring considerable victories against his Muslim enemy, Saladin. Interestingly enough, he spoke very little English and spent little time in his Kingdom, preferring to use it as a source of revenue to support his army. His subjects considered him a pious hero. Richard died in 1199 because of a wound that had grown gangrenous. His brain was buried at the abbey of Charroux in Poitou, his heart was buried at Rouen in Normandy, and the rest of his body was buried at the feet of his father in Anjou. He remains one of the very few Kings of England remembered by his nickname, not number, and is an enduring, iconic figure in England.
Text courtesy of Crecy Models
54mm white metal and resin kit
