Battle of Agincourt Conquest of France", raising the popular prominence of particular events mentioned only in passing by the original chroniclers, such as the gift of tennis balls before the campaign. The most famous cultural depiction of the battle today is William Shakespeare's "Henry V", written in 1599. The play focuses on the pressures of kingship, the tensions between how a king should "appear" – chivalric, honest, and just – and how a king must sometimes "act" – Machiavellian and ruthless. Shakespeare illustrates these tensions by depicting Henry's decision to kill some of the French prisoners, whilst attempting to justify it and distance
Oak at the Gate of the Dead been associated with the reign of King Ecgberht of Wessex (802–839). If the estimated age is correct, the oak was standing in 1165 when the Battle of Crogen was fought at the location and has therefore been described as the "only living witness to this battle". A Welsh army under Owain Gwynedd inflicted a defeat upon the English king Henry II and forced him to retreat. The battle's dead were said to have been buried in the ditch of the dyke at that point: in the 19th century this was known as "Adwy'r Beddau", the pass, or gap, of the