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Richard I of England
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Reign 6 July 1189 – 6 April 1199
Coronation 3 September 1189
Predecessor Henry II
Successor John
Regent Eleanor of Aquitaine; William Longchamp (Third Crusade)
Consort Berengaria of Navarre
House House of Plantagenet
Father Henry II of England
Mother Eleanor of Aquitaine
Born 8 September 1157(1157-09-08)
Beaumont Palace, Oxford
Died 6 April 1199 (aged 41)
Châlus, Limousin
Burial Fontevraud Abbey, France
Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 6 July 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Lord of Ireland, Lord of Cyprus, Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Count of Nantes, and Overlord of Brittany at various times during the same period. He was known as Cœur de Lion, or Richard the Lionheart, even before his accession, because of his reputation as a great military leader and warrior.[1] The Muslims (referred to as Saracens at the time) called him Melek-Ric or Malek al-Inkitar (King of England).[2]
By age 16, Richard was commanding his own army, putting down rebellions in Poitou against his father, King Henry II.[1] Richard was a central Christian commander during the Third Crusade, effectively leading the campaign after the departure of Philip Augustus and scoring considerable victories against his Muslim counterpart, Saladin.[3][4]
While he spoke very little English and spent very little time in England (he lived in his Duchy of Aquitaine, in the southwest of France), preferring to use his kingdom as a source of revenue to support his armies,[5] he was seen as a pious hero by his subjects.[6] He remains one of the very few Kings of England remembered by his epithet, not number, and is an enduring, iconic figure in England.[5]
Early life and Duke of Aquitaine
Family and youth
Richard was born on 8 September 1157,[7] probably at Beaumont Palace.[8] He was a younger brother of William IX, Count of Poitiers; Henry the Young King; and Matilda, Duchess of Saxony.[9] As the third legitimate son of King Henry II of England, he was not expected to ascend the throne.[10] He was also an elder brother of Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany; Leonora of England, Queen of Castile; Joan of England; and John, Count of Mortain, who succeeded him as king. Richard was the younger maternal half-brother of Marie de Champagne and Alix of France.[9] Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine's oldest son, William IX, Count of Poitiers, died in 1156, before Richard's birth.[9] Richard is often depicted as having been the favourite son of his mother Eleanor of Aquitaine.[11] His father, Henry, was French and great-grandson of William the Conqueror. The closest English relation in Richard's family tree was Edith, wife of Henry I of England. Contemporary historian Ralph of Diceto traced his family's lineage through Edith to the Anglo-Saxon kings of England and Alfred the Great, and from there linked them to Noah and Woden. According to Angevin legend, there was even infernal blood in the family.[8]
While his father visited his lands from Scotland to France, Richard probably stayed in England. He was wet-nursed by a woman called Hodierna, and when he became king he gave her a generous pension.[12] Little is known about Richard's education.[13] Although born in Oxford, Richard could speak no English; he was an educated man who composed poetry and wrote in Limousin (lenga d'òc) and also in French.[14] He was said to be very attractive; his hair was between red and blond, and he was light-eyed with a pale complexion. He was apparently of above average height, according to Clifford Brewer he was 6 feet 5 inches (1.96 m)[15] but his remains have been lost since at least the French Revolution, and his exact height is unknown. From an early age he showed significant political and military ability, becoming noted for his chivalry and courage as he fought to control the rebellious nobles of his own territory. His elder brother Henry was crowned king of England during his father's lifetime, as Henry III. Historians have named this Henry "the Young King" so as not to confuse him with the later Henry III of England, who was his nephew.
The practice of marriage alliances was common among medieval royalty: it allowed families to stake claims of succession on each other's lands, and led to political alliances and peace treaties. In March 1159 it was arranged that Richard would marry one of the daughters of Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Barcelona; however, these arrangements failed, and the marriage never took place. Richard's older brother Henry was married to Margaret, daughter of Louis VII of France and heiress to the French throne, on 2 November 1160.[16] Despite this alliance between the Plantagenets and the Capetians, the dynasty on the French throne, the two houses were sometimes in conflict. In 1168, the intercession of Pope Alexander III was necessary to secure a truce between them. Henry II had conquered Brittany and taken control of Gisors and the Vexin, which had been part of Margaret’s dowry.[17] Early in the 1160s there had been suggestions Richard should marry Alys (Alice), second daughter of Louis VII; because of the rivalry between the kings of England and France, Louis obstructed the marriage. A peace treaty was secured in January 1169 and Richard’s betrothal to Alys was confirmed.[18] Henry II planned to divide his kingdom between his sons, of which there were three at the time; Henry would become King of England and have control of Anjou, Maine, and Normandy, while Richard would inherit Aquitaine from his mother and become Count of Poitiers, and Geoffrey would get Brittany through marriage alliance with Constance, the heiress to the region. At the ceremony where Richard's betrothal was confirmed, he paid homage to the King of France for Aquitaine, thus securing ties of vassalage between the two.[19]
After he fell seriously ill in 1170, Henry II put in place his plan to divide his kingdom, although he would retain overall authority of his sons and their territories. In 1171, Richard left for Aquitaine with his mother and Henry II gave him the duchy of Aquitaine at the request of Eleanor.[20] Richard and his mother embarked on a tour of Aquitaine in 1171 in an attempt to placate the locals.[21] Together they laid the foundation stone of St Augustine's Monastery in Limoges. In June 1172 Richard was formally recognised as the Duke of Aquitaine when he was granted the lance and banner emblems of his office; the ceremony took place in Poitiers and was repeated in Limoges where he wore the ring of St Valerie, who was the personification of Aquitaine.[22]
Revolt against Henry II
According to Ralph of Coggeshall, Henry the Young King was the instigator of rebellion against Henry II; he wanted to reign independently over at least part of the territory his father had promised him, and to break away from his dependence on Henry II, who controlled the purse strings.[23] Jean Flori, an historian who specialises in the medieval period, believes that Eleanor manipulated her sons to revolt against their father.[24] Henry the Young King abandoned his father and left for the French court, seeking protection from Louis VII; he was soon followed by his younger brothers, Richard and Geoffrey, while the 5-year-old John remained with Henry II. Louis gave his support to the three sons and even knighted Richard, tying them together through vassalage.[25] The rebellion was described by Jordan Fantosme, a contemporary poet, as a "war without love".[26]
The three brothers made an oath at the French court that they would not make terms with Henry II without the consent of Louis VII and the French barons.[28] With the support of Louis, Henry the Young King attracted the support of many barons through promises of land and money; one such baron was Philip, Count of Flanders, who was promised £1,000 and several castles. The brothers had supporters in England, ready to rise up; led by Robert de Beaumont, 3rd Earl of Leicester, the rebellion in England from Hugh Bigod, 1st Earl of Norfolk, Hugh de Kevelioc, 5th Earl of Chester, and William I of Scotland. The alliance was initially successful, and by July 1173 they were besieging Aumale, Neuf-Marché, and Verneuil and Hugh de Kevelioc had captured Dol in Brittany.[29] Richard went to Poitou and raised the barons who were loyal to himself and his mother in rebellion against his father. Eleanor was captured, so Richard was left to lead his campaign in against Henry II's supporters in Aquitaine on his own. He marched to take La Rochelle, but was rejected by the inhabitants; he withdrew to the city of Saintes which he established as a base of operations.[30][31]
In the meantime, Henry II had raised a very expensive army of over 20,000 mercenaries with which to face the rebellion.[29] He marched on Verneuil, and Louis retreated from his forces. The army proceeded to recapture Dol and subdued Brittany. At this point, Henry II made an offer of peace to his sons; on the advice of Louis the offer was refused.[32] Henry II's forces took Saintes by surprise and captured much of its garrison, although Richard was able to escape with a small group of soldiers. He took refuge in Château de Taillebourg for the rest of the war.[30] Henry the Young King and the Count of Flanders planned to land in England to assist the rebellion led by the Earl of Leicester. Anticipating this, Henry II returned to England with 500 soldiers and his prisoners (including Eleanor and his son's wives and fiancées),[33] but on his arrival found out that the rebellion had already collapsed. William I of Scotland and Hugh Bigod were captured on 13 July and 25 July respectively. Henry II returned to France where he raised the siege of Rouen, where Louis VII had been joined by Henry the Young King after he had abandoned his plan to invade England. Louis was defeated and a peace treaty was signed in September 1174,[32] with the Treaty of Montlouis.[34]