I was fortunate to have early success in my career through writing Roman military fiction, involving the campaigns and careers of the likes of Julius Caesar, Augustus and Marcus Aurelius. I had quite a few soldier, serving in Afghanistan at the time, who contacted me to say how much they enjoyed the books and banter between characters. By that time, however, I was a bit Romed out, so to speak, and I wanted to produce a series set during the medieval era – featuring soldiers and battles.

The Agincourt campaign interested me – and was also a suitably commercial prospect. I wanted to tap into the idea of how soldiers have and haven’t changed over the years. There are certain common denominators (a black sense of humour, liquid diet, violent streak, whoring) shared by soldiers – from legionaries to longbowmen to squaddies today. What makes a soldier a soldier?

I also wanted to write the book to help put Henry V on the map for readers who were unaware of his character and achievements. I should just say that Dan Jones has just released a biography of Henry V which has put him on that map in a far greater way. Henry is not quite a paradigm of kingship, but he comes as close to any king that England has seen, I would argue.

Can you tell is a bit more about what Band of Brothers is about?

The series follows a group of archers, from just before the campaign to the Battle of Agincourt, via the siege of Harfleur. An urbane, witty knight also features – as does Thomas Chaucer, son of the poet Geoffrey. As well as action there are elements of espionage as well as a love story – and plenty of history – in the series. Historical fiction is the gateway drug to straight history, or it certainly was for me, many moons ago, when I devoured the likes of Bernard Cornwell and George Macdonald Fraser.

The climax of the series is, of course, the Battle of Agincourt in all its gore and glory. The battle was a remarkable feat of arms – and leadership.

Thankfully it wasn’t the most onerous task in the world, thinking up different and imaginative ways to kill French soldiers (those that didn’t run away).

Henry V is a major character throughout the series. How central was he to the success of the campaign?

Very, in short. He was a driving force in raising the funds for the war chest, overseeing logistics and making strategic and tactical decisions on the ground. Henry was ably supported by competent lieutenants but there would have been no campaign or victory without Henry.

After the turbulent reigns of Richard II and Henry IV, Henry V initially steadied the ship. Law and order were (largely) re-established throughout the realm. He won over parliament and the nobles, who needed to sanction the tax revenues to go to war (Henry may well have ended up taxing the populous more than Rachel Reeves, if that’s mathematically possible, although I dare say his approval ratings were higher). Richard II may not be considered a great monarch, by any stretch of the imagination, but I think that Henry absorbed a sense of majesty and performance from him. Henry was literate (as well as being a lover of music), devout and determined. He believed he had God and right on his side (his near-death experience at the Battle of Shrewsbury may have inspired or fuelled this idea). He was a skilled diplomat and soldier, who demanded high standards of both himself and his men.

As mentioned, I would urge readers to buy the new biography of Henry V, by Dan Jones. As well as giving due weight to the Agincourt campaign, the book is also excellent on Henry’s years as a prince and on his bid to secure the French crown after Agincourt.

There is plenty of humour in the series. I laughed out loud on more than one occasion. Was this due to your readership including soldiers?

Yes, but only partly. I try to inject humour into all my books. There’s plenty to be depressed about out there in the world, but there’s plenty to laugh at too.

There’s a Shakespearean bawdiness to some of the humour, as well as some in-jokes relating to Shakespeare’s Henry V. A couple of the characters are acerbic and sarcastic. Everyone – the Scots, Welsh, French and English – are fair game for satire and ridicule. As with the humour of soldiers, there’s very little that’s off the table when it comes to making jokes. Hopefully some readers will take offense at some of the humour in the series. If not, I would consider that I have not done my job properly.

Can you tell us about what you are working on at the moment?

I am just finishing off a Spies of Rome novella, Gladiator. I have also started to write a series, similar to Band of Brothers, which is centered around Edward of Woodstock, the Black Prince. The first book will cover the Battle of Crecy. The working title for the series is Men-At-Arms. Thinking of killing more Frenchmen in different and imaginative ways is a dirty job, but somebody’s got to do (alongside Bernard Cornwell). The current project will keep me busy for a year. After that, who knows what the future will hold? More history, I imagine.