Stephen Clarke's irreverent account treats late-fourteenth-century campaigning as an economic opportunity for English soldiers crossing the Channel. Against that culture, Richard II's 1396 marriage to the French king's young daughter and his 1398 truce with France looked like appeasement to frustrated interests at home. The author presents Richard's reputation as a Francophile as one contributing factor in his deposition in 1399, not as a complete explanation. Peace policy, dynastic marriage, and the incentives of military labour could all become entangled with royal legitimacy.
Chapter · 15:09-16:19
Richard II's French truce becomes an English political liability
The comic history links profitable English soldiering to the hostility that met Richard II's French marriage and truce.