Giving the Finger - Plucking the Yew

Before the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, the French, anticipating victory over the English, proposed to cut off the middle finger of all captured English soldiers. Without the middle finger it would be impossible to draw the renowned English longbow and therefore they would be incapable of fighting in the future.

This famous weapon was made of the native English Yew tree, and the act of drawing the longbow was known as "plucking the yew" (or "pluck yew").

Much to the bewilderment of the French, the English won a major upset and began mocking the French by waving their middle fingers at the defeated French, saying, "See, we can still pluck yew! "PLUCK YEW!" Since 'pluck yew' is rather difficult to say, the difficult consonant cluster at the beginning has gradually changed to a labiodental fricative 'F' and thus the words often used in conjunction with the one-finger-salute!.

It is also because of the pheasant feathers on the arrows used with the longbow that the symbolic gesture is known as "giving the bird."

...And we were talking about just this at lunch on Saturday.

However, I always thought the English stuck two fingers up at the French (and still do) rather than just the one.

Rustam

actually it isn't true (should be though)- just good old fashioned internet lore- but I still love it anyway

Never heard from this expression. I cannot imagine the French cutting fingers?

Agincourt Battle
The French are more numerous 50000 against 15000, they refused to hear the advices of the Duke de Berry.
The Duke of Albret decided to attack the English army in a narrow plowed place between two forests.
They spent the night straddling their horses, the soil was too wet to sleep on the ground. Without waiting for the infantry the chivalry charged the English entranched behind sharp stakes. They are facing the sun and blinded. They disdained to wait for the lancers and the Genova cross-bowers.
The narrow place is like a swamp and the knights charged almost in single file. The armoured horses got stuck up. The front of the knights were decimed by arrows and empaled themselves against the English spears. It resulted a “traffic jam†where the French were easy targets. The knights had to fight on foot ensconsed in their heavy armors ( 40 – 50pounds), padding in the mud. Should they fell they could not get up.
The English bowers let their bows and finished the lying knights with their axes or swords.
It’s abominable, something never seen. The code of honour insist on the fact that the knights must be captured (the French and English chevalries are cousins) and released for a ransom, not to be butchered by boors.
This day the majority of the French chevalry disappeared for ever.
It was such an abomination that 3 weeks later, the English, although winners, sailed back to England.
What was the name of the stupid French King : Charles VI the madman (Charles VI le fou).
In Azincourt the French were defeated more by the mud than by the archery.

10.26.1415 a day to be remembered.

The first and last time the French were studip and arrogant.

quote:

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jbderunz:
"26Oct1415 a day to be remembered.
The first and last time the French were studip and arrogant"

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I beg to differ !!
That couldn't be the last time the French were STUPID & ARROGANT ??

I hope you don't have IndoChina in mind, CaptJack.

Could well be a case of pot, kettle, black.

Rustam

quote:

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RHB
"I hope you don't have IndoChina in mind"

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You gotta believe they were stupid & arrogant at least once more between 1415 & 2005
Now if you were referring to Dem Bien Phu- they were really stupid & arrogant !!
But- I was an infantryman in the HiepDuc & QueSon valleys south of DaNang so I'm aware of my own country's stupidity & arrogance.
It could be said of the current escapade were are involved in now.
As I write this my battalion, from Vietnam, is on patrol in Mosul...

I'm the tall one in the pic- used to be Sgt.Krohn
http://pic12.picturetrail.com/VOL433/1045515/1957272/27009659.jpg

Sorry Pals,

There is a thread for politics;
I wanted not be obnoxious. Just make self-derision about the ever arrogant more often than not stupid French. I am a Frenchman disagreeing our actual politicians.
Archery and Bow-hunting is far more interesting.

Hundred Years war again,
In 1337, the Brittish King Edward III promulgated a law :
“On pain of death, any game or leisure are prohibited, save only amusing oneself with the bow and arrows.The debts of the bows and arrows makers are cancelledâ€.
No wonder the Brits were good in archery.

It’s correct, the French cut the index finger of the seized English archers.
The soldiers from the lower class were killed, the archers (from the middle class) were crippled, the nobility was splendidly treated and released for a ransom.

The biggest archery battle occured in Verneuil. http://www.rickard.karoo.net/articles/battles_verneuil.html
On the left aisle the French charged the English, won and retireed, in the middle of the front the Scots (ever allied with the French) began the biggest archery battle, 6000 Scots against 6000 English archers during 45 minutes. On the right aisle, the Genova (Italians) cross bowers and Portugueses seized all the English luggages and treasures and retreated.
Only the Scotish archers remained and were salvaged by the English.

During the hundred years war the French heroin Joan of Arc http://members.aol.com/hywwebsite/private/joanofarc.html won 4 battles against the English before they burnt her in Rouen. The name ARC is meaning BOW in French.

The French lost most of the battles but won the last ones, thanks to a better artillery and alliances with now-French provinces.
Europe was dominated by a quartet of 4 powerful nations, England, Austria, Spain and France. They always fought but no nation could win alone against the 3 others.
Since the defeat of Napoleon I the French and the English are close friends (save their navies, tradition? ). The son of our last emperor, Napoleon III , the Prince Napoleon Eugène was speared to death by the Zulus (South Africa) at Ulundi. This tragic news was the biggest story of 1879. In both England and France it was hard to comprehend that the last in the Napoleonic dynasty, France "little Prince", had perished wearing the “Red Coat†in Africa fighting in the British army.