Some Agincourt Ransoms

In pre-modern times it was common to make war pay for itself. One way was to exact ransom from prisoners-of-war. Because Medieval nobles fought in expensive, and pretty effective, armor, it was common for the nobles and knights to survive defeat in battle. Since nobles saw themselves as a class that transcended nationality and language, it was considered good manners, and good business, to take enemy nobles alive and hold them for ransom. This money was eagerly, if not happily, paid. For the alternative was death, or a lifetime in captivity. The ransom for King Jean II of France, captured at Poitiers, was so enormous (up in the hundreds of millions of ducats by our reckoning), that the French never actually paid it. The king died of natural causes, in regal captivity in England, before the sum could be collected.

Other French troops captured at Agincourt were ransommed for much less, and the list below shows the ransoms that were paid for various prisoners.

Captive                                         Ducats                  Captor                  

M. de Corpe                                     220,000                 two men-at-arms and     
                                                                        an archer               

Man-at-arms                                         8,000               Sir Robert Laurence     

Man-at-arms                                         8,000               Sir Robert Laurence     

Man-at-arms                                       16,000                Unknown                 

Man-at-arms                                         3,000               a man-at-arms           

Man-at-arms                                            650              an archer               

Unknown                                                360              an archer
               

In terms of Hundred Years War game, the players are at the level of the Seigneur de Corpe or higher. Family members would presumably be at rather less than what the Player would have to pay. Most NPCs would be at the level of the men-at-arms, the precise amount presumably varying with the status and skills of the NPC.

Amounts apparently varied according to the rank of the captor as well.

Although these figures are for a great many years later than 1337, there was little inflation during the period.