England's forgotten hero

When the Hundred Years' War was reaching a climax, one man was fighting tenaciously to secure the English claim to the French crown. So why, asks Joanna Arman, is Henry V's formidable brother, John, Duke of Bedford, not better known?

- Joanna Arman

As black skies faded to grey, and dawn broke on that fateful day in the early 15th century, an English army gazed across a field in northern France. What their eyes encountered was a vastly superior force: some 15,000 French-led troops glared back - their numbers nearly double those of England's men-at-arms and archers. The English had faced seemingly insuperable odds before, and emerged victorious. But could they really triumph over this well-armed force bolstered by fearsome international allies?

The Hundred Years' War had been raging for close to a century already, with negotiations between England and France coming and going - but all ultimately failing to decisively end the conflict. The balance of military success had swung one way and then the other in clashes on land and, occasionally, at sea. Many confrontations had ended with English longbowmen proving decisive. But as morning ebbed and the afternoon rolled on, the outcome remained uncertain. Finally, battle commenced - and the English won a great and memorable victory against the odds.

Sounds familiar? No, this is not a description of the battle of Agincourt, Henry V's famous victory of 1415. Instead, it's the story of the clash fought on 17 August 1424 - nearly nine years after Agincourt, and two after Henry's death - outside the town of Verneuil-sur-Avre in Normandy. Here, the English army led by Henry's younger brother John, Duke of Bedford, hammered a combined force of French and Scottish solders plus 2,000 Milanese heavy cavalry, killing perhaps 6,000 enemy troops while suffering minimal losses.

Historians refer to the battle of Verneuil as 'the second Agincourt' - yet that clash, like John himself, is largely forgotten today. Why has such a heroic victory faded from memory? And what part did John play in that tumultuous period of English and French history?

Born to battle