During the year 1328, the last Capetian king died without a male successor. Immediately Edward III, the King of England, held claim to the French throne because he was the grandson of Philip IV and felt he had the right to the throne. Edward launching for the French throne further complicated matters. This conflict added to the centuries miseries and we know it as the Hundred Years' War. The war that Edward III launched for that throne continued on and off from 1337 to 1453. It was fought on French territory and victory passed back and forth between the two countries.
             From the beginning of the war (1337) until the battle of Orleans (1428-29), the English won many victories including the important battles of Crecy, Poitiers, and Agincourt. The English used a new method of ware fare by combining forces of longbow men with dismounted men-at-arms with much success.
             In 1429, at the siege of Orleans, the French finally gained the upper hand. Joan of Arc led a relief force, which successfully defeated the English. Between 1421 and 1453 the French rallied and drove the English out of France entirely, expect for the western port city of Calais. The long war finally ended in 1453, with the English left with only Calais.
             The war gave birth in both countries to a feeling of nationalism. Most people think of the king not simply a feudal lord but as a national leader fighting for the glory of their country. The end of the Hundred Years' War is considered by most historians as the end of the Middle Ages. The twin pillars of the medieval world such as the religious devotions and the code of chivalry all collapse. Along with that the Age of Faith died a slow death caused by the Great Schism, and discrediting of the Church during the bubonic plague.
             After the death of the last Capetian king I feel that the French side had more rights than the English. Despite the fact that Edward III was claiming fo
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