This Is History: A Dynasty to Die For — "The Glass King"

Episode 4: A New Hope
Original Air Date: August 19, 2025
Host: Danièle Cybulskie

Episode Overview

This episode delivers a tense and immersive retelling of the events leading to, during, and after the Battle of Agincourt (1415). Host and historian Danièle Cybulskie frames the battle not just as a military disaster, but as a heartbreaking chapter in the slow collapse of Charles VI’s France — wracked by internal strife, traumatic royal illnesses, and a string of deaths amongst the heirs. With vivid narrative and sharp wit, the episode examines the stakes, the fractured leadership, and introduces the young prince Charles (later Charles VII), hinting at how chaos and unexpected succession will shape France’s destiny.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Stage: Turmoil Before Agincourt

Timestamps: 02:29–05:55

• The French army, fractured by the ongoing civil war between the Armagnacs (led by Bernard, Count of Armagnac) and Burgundians (loyal to John the Fearless), is struggling to respond to the English invasion.
• Danièle gives a cinematic account:
  • Marshal Boucicaut (Jean le Maingre) patrols a rain-drenched camp, worriedly observing the overconfidence of young nobles like Charles of Orléans.
  • Vigorous infighting and rivalry plague the royal house; the king (Charles VI) is unwell, mentally unstable, and others jockey for real power.
• “If the French take to this field tomorrow without a solid plan, it’s going to be a bloodbath. And they’ll have only themselves to blame.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 04:21)

2. Political Maneuvering and Factional Betrayal

Timestamps: 05:56–09:55

• John the Fearless, humiliated and plotting revenge, cannot claim royal favor — he still seeks a pardon for his role in past violence.
• The Armagnac faction grows ever more dominant, especially as Bernard takes the opportunity for brutality:
  • The sack of Soissons:

    “The citizens of Soissons are slaughtered indiscriminately… the Count of Armagnac casually executes those he calls traitors, hanging them by the dozen.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 09:01)

• Despite a new “peace treaty,” dirty tricks abound—Louis (the Dauphin) promises more than he delivers, inflaming tensions.
• The English — led by the ambitious, cool-headed Henry V — land at Harfleur, catching the French unready.

3. Prelude to Disaster: Divided Command and Agincourt Approaches

Timestamps: 13:53–18:41

• The French army musters as best it can but excludes the main faction leaders to prevent infighting, placing command in the hands of the inexperienced 19-year-old Charles of Orléans.
• John the Fearless sends only the minimum troops, withholding his son, Philip the Good, in protest.
• As the French rely on noble pride and outdated tactics, Boucicaut issues warnings:

  “Their superior numbers are not an advantage in the bottleneck of this particular, hedged-in battlefield. In fact, they’re a disadvantage.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 15:38)

• Overconfident nobles insist on leading from the front — a recipe for catastrophe.

4. Battle of Agincourt: Collapse and Horror

Timestamps: 18:42–22:35

• The battle opens in driving rain and deep mud, with the French mired, exhausted, and bunched tightly between hedges and trees.
• A storm of English arrows decimates the French vanguard:

  “The arrows drive straight through plate, chainmail, and flesh. Men and horses tumble and are trampled under hooves…” (Danièle Cybulskie, 19:55)

• Boucicaut’s worst fears are realized: chaos, choked movement, nobles crushed or impaled, and no coordination.
• Miraculously, the underdog English slaughter or capture most of France’s top nobility.
• When a potential French counterattack is spotted, Henry V orders the massacre of prisoners not worth ransom — including young Charles of Orléans and Boucicaut, who witness the horror firsthand.
  • Memorable quote:

    “The English also ransomed the others mercilessly, even those lying on the ground among the dead… who were still breathing and showing some signs of life.” (Monk of St. Denis, as quoted by Danièle, 21:41)

5. Aftermath: Grief, Succession, and a Kingdom in Shock

Timestamps: 22:36–27:16

• News of the disaster breaks the French spirit; Charles VI weeps, Louis the Dauphin rages, and ambitious courtiers angle for vacant positions.
• Charles VI withdraws into fantasy; Louis, determined, starts rebuilding trust circles with survivors.
• The Armagnacs are back in favor, John the Fearless is marginalized, and a new royal player is summoned: Charles of Ponthieu (later Charles VII).

6. The Agony of Succession: Dauphins Drop, New Hope Emerges

Timestamps: 27:17–end

• Two further royal tragedies strike in short order:

  • Louis the Dauphin dies suddenly, likely of illness.
  • His brother Jean, the new Dauphin, is maneuvered up, but both politics and his sudden death (at age 18) leave the third son, Charles of Ponthieu (just 14), as the effective king (regent) of France.
    • Striking anecdote:

      “One chronicler can’t resist adding the gory details, saying he had a pustule near his ear which burst inside his body and strangled him. Gross.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 31:28)

• The royal court is left reeling — relieved at the ascension of someone they know, but fearful because Charles is inexperienced and a “child of civil war”, “the most dangerous prince of them all.”

  “The royal government... will not bend as far as a pardon for John the Fearless." (Danièle Cybulskie, 30:52) "A year and a half ago, [Charles] had been the spare of the spare, and now he’s the heir to the kingdom of France.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 31:42)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On French infighting:

  “It’s hard to say what the King thinks of the violence done to his own people, or even if he’s told at all.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 08:24)

• On Boucicaut’s dread pre-Agincourt:

  “What he sees fills him with dread. Henry has chosen the perfect spot… There’ll be fish in a barrel.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 03:50)

• On Agincourt’s horror:

  “With the vanguard now in complete chaos, the French soldiers charging behind find themselves squeezed in the bottleneck, forced to climb over corpses… In the crush, men are pressed into the thick mud and drown.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 20:50)

• On royal tragedy:

  “For John the Fearless, it must seem like he’s just been sent a first-class ticket from Burgundy back to Paris.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 28:43)

• On the unpredictability of power:

  “The tides of history are often set in motion by great deeds and noble principles. But one should never underestimate the power of sheer dumb luck.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 25:30)

• Closing Hook:

  “Charles of Ponthieu is a child of civil war, and he will prove to be the most dangerous prince of them all.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 32:27)

Important Segment Timestamps

• [02:29] — French army’s pre-Agincourt camp, Boucicaut’s worries
• [05:56] — Fallout post-Cabochien revolt, rise of Count of Armagnac
• [09:00] — Sack of Soissons
• [13:53] — Fall of Harfleur, English advance
• [18:42] — Agincourt: Battle begins
• [22:36] — Devastation and rebuilding at French court
• [25:30] — The domino of Dauphin deaths, rise of Charles of Ponthieu

Final Takeaway

This episode underscores the fragility of medieval monarchy, revealing how pride, rivalry, and the unpredictability of fate repeatedly stymied France at a critical moment. Danièle Cybulskie's narrative is at once suspenseful and irreverent, offering a deeply human look at the aftermath of Agincourt — and foreshadowing that, amidst collapse, the seeds of a bold new chapter are about to take root.

Next episode tease: What will this new, dangerous prince — Charles, now de facto king — mean for war-torn France? Expect more whiplash, more danger, and perhaps, a glimmer of hope.

Community Prompt:
“Agincourt went terribly for the French, but how does it compare to other military bungles of the Middle Ages? If you think there’s a military loss that tops Agincourt, let me know.” (Danièle Cybulskie, 33:20)

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