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It has been described as one of the greatest battles of all time -- the fight
between Henry V of England and the French army on October 25, 1415, at
Agincourt in northern France. Henry, whose goal was to reclaim English
territory seized by France in earlier centuries, had approximately 6,000 men.
The French army, depending on which historical report you read, had
anywhere from 30,000 to 60,000 soldiers, many of them knights in armor
prepared to fight on foot and on horseback. The English army had neither
armor nor horses, and they were exhausted by their two-month trek across
France trying to reach what was then the English port of Calais.
But they did have what turned out to be a decisive advantage -- Henry V's
leadership skills and his ability to innovate in ways that would turn
significant disadvantages into game-winning advantages. In addition, before
the battle started, he delivered one of the most famous motivational speeches
in history -- at least as it is written in Shakespeare's Henry V. The speech has This is a single/personal use copy of
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Here is how Henry won: He stopped his army on a field that was flanked on either side by woodlands,
thus forcing the French army to move forward through a narrow funnel and neutralizing their superior
numbers. He took full advantage of a rainfall that had muddied the battlefield and that would prove
disastrous for the armored French soldiers -- when they slipped backwards wearing their 60-pound armor,
they couldn't hoist themselves back up; when they fell forward, they drowned in the mud.
In addition, rather than rely on the more traditional, easy-to-use crossbow, Henry chose the long bow,
which could fire arrows more quickly and at greater range. The resulting hail of arrows killed French
soldiers behind the front line, taking away urgently needed reinforcements. Henry armed his men with
pikes a foot longer than those used by the French, allowing English soldiers in hand-to-hand combat to
deliver the first, and usually lethal, blow. And, in what has been described as a last minute innovation,
Henry planted sharp stakes in the ground just at the point of the battle's engagement. The French army's
horses, rushing forward, were impaled on the stakes and fell to the ground, crushing soldiers around them
and blocking the path forward for others.
When the fighting stopped after several hours, the French had lost about 6,000 men, and the English
about 450.
Some version of this battle has been told in history books, in Shakespeare's play and, two weeks ago, by
Carol and Ken Adelman, founders of Movers & Shakespeares, which uses the world's greatest playwright
to teach modern management skills to executives. The Adelmans were at Wharton as part of a Wharton
executive education program called "The Leadership Journey."
Carol Adelman is director of the Hudson Institute's Center for Global Prosperity where, among other
things, she developed the annual Index of Global Philanthropy and Remittances. Ken Adelman is a
former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations and director of the U.S. Arms Control & Disarmament
Agency during the Reagan administration.
The two started Movers & Shakespeares eight years ago because, as Carol noted during the course,
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The two started Movers & Shakespeares eight years ago because, as Carol noted during the course,
William Shakespeare offers his audience exceptionally astute insights into human nature and has a genius
for telling stories, which, she suggested, "is the best way to learn." The downside to the bard, she added,
is that the language can be tedious and hard to understand -- something that comes as no surprise to high
school students everywhere.
The Adelmans' approach is to delve into the language and extract leadership lessons from Shakespeare's
plays. In this particular session, the focus was on Henry V, brought to life by a series of scenes from the
1989 movie starring Kenneth Branagh as Henry and Emma Thompson as the French princess Katharine.
The class discussion centered on the battle scene, the motivation speech, Henry's wooing of Katharine,
the punishment meted out to a soldier caught stealing, and the conference between Henry V and the
Archbishop of Canterbury before Henry sets sail for France.
This 'Band of Brothers'
From the description of the battle at Agincourt, it's clear that Henry V displayed remarkable leadership
capabilities, said Ken Adelman. He led by example, situating himself in the middle of the fighting
whereas the French king, Charles VI, stayed in Paris, leaving the army under the leadership of a group of
nobles. "Henry was willing to innovate, recognizing, for example, the superiority of the long bow and
making sure his men were well-trained in how to use it," Adelman noted. Before Agincourt, the English
army was 80% foot soldiers and 20% archers. After Agincourt, it was 20% foot soldiers and 80% archers.
Yet perhaps the English army's biggest asset was the speech Henry made to his men just before going into
battle, including the famous sentence, "All things are ready if our minds be so." (The words are
Shakespeare's; the actual text of the speech does not exist.) Even before speaking, Henry walks among
his troops listening to what they are saying and feeling, and then positions himself in their midst to deliver
his address. By contrast, the French leaders (in the Branagh movie) are shown at the head of their army,
uttering confident phrases unable to be heard by any of their soldiers.
Here are excerpts from Henry's speech in the play:
"That he which hath no stomach to this fight,
Let him depart; his passport shall be made
And crowns for convoy put into his purse:
We would not die in that man's company
That fears his fellowship to die with us...
Old men forget: yet all shall be forgot,
But he'll remember with advantages
What feats he did that day: then shall our names
Familiar in his mouth as household words
Harry the King, Bedford and Exeter,
Warwick and Talbot, Salisbury and Gloucester,
Be in their flowing cups freshly remember'd.
This story shall the good man teach his son
And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remember'd;
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he today that shed his blood with me
Shall be my brother."
"Henry painted a vision of what success looked like," said Adelman. "He spoke of God, and never
mentioned the word 'defeat.' He talked about children being proud of their fathers who fought in this
battle. He said 'we are a band of brothers' and he is one of them. He connected to the mission and to the
people."
In addition, Adelman noted, Henry said he did not want one more man on his side because it would dilute
the glory, and he told the troops that if any man didn't want to fight, then he should feel free to go.
Finally, Henry called out some of his key people "and said they would be household words." In our
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Finally, Henry called out some of his key people "and said they would be household words." In our
workplaces today, Adelman told the class, "we can't bring religion in but we can remind employees that
we have a higher purpose, and we can communicate to them that vision."
Legitimizing the Mission
Contrast Henry's moving speech with a scene earlier in Henry V during which the young (age 28) newly
crowned king asks the Archbishop of Canterbury a simple question: Does he, Henry, have the right to
reclaim France? The response from the Archbishop is long-winded, meandering and almost impenetrable.
An excerpt:
"Nor did the French possess the Salique land
Until four hundred one and twenty years
After defunction of King Pharamond,
Idly supposed the founder of this law;
Who died within the year of our redemption
Four hundred twenty-six; and Charles the Great
Subdued the Saxons, and did seat the French
Beyond the river Sala, in the year
Eight hundred five. Besides, their writers say,
King Pepin, which deposed Childeric,
Did, as heir general, being descended
Of Blithild, which was daughter to King Clothair...."
The speech continues in this vein until Henry finally is forced to repeat the question: "May I with right
and conscience make this claim?" (The answer, eventually, is "yes.") The Archbishop's performance is
not that different, Carol Adelman noted, from executive presentations that ramble; use obscure language,
irrelevant facts, and charts and graphs that no one understands; and allude to unspoken subplots that hint
at, rather than reveal, the meaning of the presenter's words.
Indeed, the outcome of the discussion between Henry and the Archbishop had already been decided
before the meeting took place. Based on earlier speeches in the play, it is known that the Archbishop will
grant Henry the right to attack France because Henry had earlier agreed to stop a bill in Parliament that
would have taxed the church and taken away half its land. We also know that Henry entered the
discussion with the full support of the English nobles who had visions of plundering the land and riches
of a defeated France. As for the king himself, he favored war in order to gain the respect of the English
people and the nobles of the English court. But none of this is mentioned during the talk between Henry
and the Archbishop, nor is there discussion of substantive questions, such as: Could England actually
win? How many troops would be needed to secure that victory?
So why have the meeting at all? "For unity and affirmation from the church," said Ken Adelman. "God
gives Henry the right to invade France. The battle is legitimized." Equally important, he added, is that
"Henry has the last word, which provides further clarity and legitimization for the mission ahead." As the
king says: "Now are we well resolved; and, by God's help, and yours, the noble sinews of our power,
France being ours, we'll bend it to our awe, or break it all to pieces...."
The question for the leadership course: Is this a good way to reach a major decision? Adelman's response:
"In my experience, this is the only way to go if you want to make a big change in your organization. You
have to meet with all the interested parties before hand and get them behind you. You have to meet the
specific interests of different groups before you can align the group behind the big goal."
It's true in business and also in politics, he noted. Adelman remembered attending a meeting called by the
national security advisor (NSA) during the Reagan administration. The object was to debate SDI
(Strategic Defense Initiative), an idea which Reagan had long championed. Indeed, the President had
already spoken about SDI with all the relevant groups before the meeting even took place, and Adelman
as well had been asked by the NSA to show his support. "So when it came time to agree on implementing
the initiative, everybody present, including [Secretary of Defense] Caspar Weinberger and [Secretary of
State] George Shultz, was on board," said Adelman. And at the end of the very agreeable discussion,
"Reagan looked around the room and said, 'This has been a great meeting.'"
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