
The novel opens amid the brutal, decades‑long feud between the houses of Orléans and Burgundy, a civil war that has ravaged France and left its nobility divided even as a foreign enemy looms. Through vivid scenes of court intrigue and battlefield rumors, the story paints a Europe on the brink—where loyalties shift, alliances are forged through marriage, and both French and English ambitions clash over a shattered kingdom. Against this turbulent backdrop, the narrative follows the fortunes of a modest English‑French baron whose lineage ties him to the Black Prince and whose marriage to a well‑connected lady brings both hope and tension to his holdings.
In a quiet Hampshire hamlet, Sir Eustasy de Villeroy’s men practice their longbows on the village green, showcasing the deadly skill that will soon shape history. The dialogue between locals reveals the uneasy balance of power, the looming threat of French conflict, and the quiet confidence of a handful of archers whose reputation spreads far beyond their fields. As whispers of a forthcoming English campaign grow louder, the stage is set for the legendary clash at Agincourt, promising a tale of courage, strategy, and the harsh realities of medieval warfare.
Language
en
Duration
~11 hours (641K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Etext produced by Anne Soulard, Charles Franks and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team HTML file produced by David Widger
Release date
2004-12-01
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
Subjects

1832–1902
Best known for fast-moving historical adventures, this prolific Victorian writer turned real wars, distant places, and imperial history into stories that thrilled generations of young readers. Before becoming a hugely popular novelist, he worked as a journalist and war correspondent, giving his fiction a strong sense of action and detail.
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