The Hundred Years War In 1066, the reign of William the Conqueror began in France.

Little did anyone know that the start of his reign after his victory at the Battle of Hastings would be the start to what would become a long lasting war. William the Conqueror united England and Normandy, making him the first ever Norman King of England ruling both lands. Fast forward 300 hundred years, and the death of Charles IV comes into play. Once Charles IV died in 1328, Edward III, who was king of England at the time, believed that he should be the king of France for two reasons: England controlled two of Frances areas by his time of becoming king in 1327Gascony and Ponthieu, which had been added since the days of Henry II's reign in Franceand because of his family ties. Edward III believed that he should becomes the next king of France because his mother, Isabella, was the sister of Charles IV; however, France believed that Charles' cousin, Philip, should be the next crowned King of France instead. Needless to say, this didn't please Edward at all. In 1337, Edward III declared war against Phillip so he could take what he believed was rightfully his: the French crown, Ponthieu, and Gascony. By the 1340s and 1350s, Edward had formed alliances with princes of France as well as different French provinces in order to "render substantial regions of France virtually ungovernable from Paris, and to keep the fighting on French soil going in between occasional English expeditions" (Keen). These allies included "the Flemings, always open to English pressure on account of their commercial links with England; the Montfort claimants to the duchy of Brittany in the succession war that broke out there in 1342; and Charles of Navarre, of the French blood royal and a great Norman vassal and landowner, in the 1350s" (Keen).

The entirety of the Hundred Years war is typically divided into three sections time: Edwardian (1340-1360), Caroline (1369-1389), and Lancastrian (1415-1453). During these years, numerous battles and sieges took place. The Edwardian years were basically a time of English domination. The French lost many lives in these battles. England was commanded by Edward III, who won the battles at Crecy and Calias, and his son Edward the Black Prince who won the Battle of Poitiers. France, on the other hand, was lead by Philip VI and King John of France, who the Black Prince took into captivity in which he died at the Battle of Poitiers. The next phase, the Caroline years, saw a bit of an uprising from the French troops, who ended a majority of the battles as the victors. This time, the French were lead by Charles Blois and Bertrand du Guesclin. For the English troops, they were lead once again by the Black Prince, John of GauntEdward III's third sonand Simon de Montfort. After around 26 years, the Lancastrian years of battle began, ultimately bringing an end to the Hundred Years War. This section of the war had the most battles and sieges: 14. The French ended up being victorious, winning seven of these battles, including the last three, and, ultimately, the entire war itself. The final battle was fought on July 17, 1453. The English troops were lead by Henry V during this era while Joan of Arc lead the French troops. Works Cited "Hundred Years War." History Curriculum Homeschool. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. "The Hundred Years War." The Hundred Years War. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. Keen, Maurice. "The Hundred Years War." BBC News. BBC, 17 Feb. 2011. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.