At Agincourt

A Tale of the White Hoods of Paris

De: G. A. Henty

Narrado por: Jim Hodges

G.A. Henty novels are highly researched as well as drawn from his first-hand experiences of people, places, and events.

From 1413-1415 the butcher’s guild, otherwise known as the “White Hoods” of Paris, kept that city in a state of near anarchy. With a mad king, a virtual civil war between the houses of Orleans and Burgundy, and King Henry V of England claiming the French throne, there is plenty of opportunity for Guy Aylmer, a squire to Sir Eustace de Villeroy, to show his mettle in many a skirmish, finally winning his spurs at the lopsided victory of the English over the French at the Battle of Agincourt on October 25, 1415.

©2020 G. A. Henty (P)2020 Made for Success

richly detailed dialog brings 1415 history alive

Delightfully engaging fast-moving plot, lots of dialog acting, and crisp narration. I got an easy-to-digest but socially intelligent education on the era-and-territory of the Hundred Years War. The story does include the famous 1415 battle at Azincourt, but there is substantial background leading to it.

The scene description is full of pungent detail, yet the action moves quickly through the device of pithy, richly worded conversations. G.A. Henty clearly knows the micro-cultures of early 15th-century Paris and Winchester. He cleverly animates characters who explain and exemplify the dysfunctional culture of aristocratic wars, the entitled chevaliers, the wretched poor, the violent anarchists, the butchers guild of Paris, the dehumanized rabble, and the arrogant gentry.

Some are elder and wizened, some are young and frisky, some are mid-life and ambitious. The lynchpin of the whole intrigue, the knowledgeable astrologer, is a master of human nature and knows everyone high and low.

At Agincourt: A Tale of the White Hoods of Paris is comparable in its history-learning effectiveness to Bernard Cornwell's tales of medieval England. I'll be looking for more by G. A. Henty. Recommended!