This book is the second in my Hundred Years’ War trilogy, and covers almost a year of great courage and valour, as well as shocking brutality, while the English laid siege to Calais.

Calais: it was a name that resonated with English kings and queens for centuries, a proud foothold on the mainland of France, captured in late 1347 and held for two hundred years by the English Crown; a cause of shame and humiliation to the French until 1558, when the Duke of Guise retook it for France.

But what was Calais like for those who were besieging it in 1346? Thousands were encamped outside Calais in Villeneuve-la-Hardie, the bustling town of wooden sheds built by Edward III to house his army. Preparations for the town had been going on for some time, because he had a definite plan to take Calais, I believe. His Crécy campaign was well thought through, and while his first objective was to destroy the French army, his second was to take the port. That way he had a crucial jumping-off point whenever he wanted to re-enter France.

However, fascinating though the siege was, when I set out to write this book, I did not want it to be about the siege alone. There was too much else going on at this time. The ‘Auld Alliance’ with Scotland led to the sudden invasion of King David, with his rampage as far as the terrible battle of Neville’s Cross, while at the same time the French were suffering from treachery at home as barons and knights tried to gauge which way the winds of power were blowing. There were many, like Sir Peter of Bromley and Sir Jean de Vervins, who sought new alliances.

Of course, there was no vintener called Berenger Fripper, and it is unlikely that one man was unfortunate enough to find himself in each of the battles depicted in this book. However, I have tried to give a feel for what it would have been like to be an English archer fighting in these battles.

It’s been enormously enjoyable writing down the adventures of Fripper and his vintaine. I hope you get as much pleasure from reading their stories.

Michael Jecks

North Dartmoor

February 2015