Transcript Richard I `the Lionheart` King of England Duke of Normandy, Brittany

Richard I
‘the Lionheart’
King of England
Duke of
Normandy, Brittany,
Anjou, Maine, Tourraine,
Gascony and Aquitaine,
Count of Poitou
1189-99
Duke of Brittany 1169-89
Character
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Possibly the finest warrior king England has ever
produced, the relatively success of the Third
Crusade (1189-92) was primarily due to him.
He was widely regarded as the greatest king of his
time by contemporaries for his combination of
personal valour, astute generalship and piety.
He was not especially brutal by the standards of his
day – even his wholesale massacre of Moslem
prisoners was seen as normal behaviour.
He was however a one-dimensional character who
lived for war, his relationship with his father and
Phillip II Augustus showed he was capable both of
treachery and being manipulated by more bale
diplomats.
He had neither affection nor a sense of duty
towards his English realms – he barely spent three
months there in his entire reign and valued it solely
for its tax income and its crown.
Coronation 1189
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Richard had already taken the crusading vow before he
became king. Thus from the moment his father died his
actions were designed to stabilise the Angevin empire and
extract funds from it for his Crusade.
He thus released his mother and her supporters in a
gesture of conciliation.
He radiated Majesty at his coronation in Sept 1189 but the
limits of his power were exposed by his inability to
prevent a hideous massacre of the Jews in England caused
by crusading hysteria immediately afterwards.
He attempted to stabilise his new throne in his impeding
absence by massively enriching his brother John and
banishing him for three years whilst making his nephew
Arthur of Brittany Archbishop of York thereby debarring
him from succession.
Journey to the Holy Land
• Richard emptied the royal treasury
(£75,000) and sold every office he could to
raise funds for the Crusade. He is reported
to have said ‘I would sell London if I could
find anyone rich enough to buy it’. This
deprived the monarchy of any financial
reserve and was to have grave
implications for his successor.
• He and his ally Phillip Augustus departed
for the Holy Land in July 1190, en route
discovering that the third partner,
Frederich Barbarossa had drowned en
route leaving them as joint leaders.
The Third Crusade
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Richard’s progress was spectacular – he recaptured
Cyprus for the Byzantine Empire, captured the vital port
of Acre, defeated the Moslem’s leader Saladin at the
Battle of Arsuf and recaptured most of the Crusader
Kingdom of Jerusalem. The Holy City alone eluded him.
Two diplomatic gaffs blemished Richard’s record however
– ordering his men to tear down Leopold of Austria’s
banner at Acre led to a grudge that was to have far
reaching consequences, whilst a quarrel over candidates
for the throne of Jerusalem led to Phillip Augustus’ early
departure from the Crusade in 1191 back to France where
he conspired with Richard’s adversaries including his
brother John.
Because of the later situation Richard was obliged to
depart in October 1192 leaving the capture of Jerusalem
for another crusade which in fact he never made.
Chaos and imprisonment 1191-3
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Richard had left control of England to Justiciar and Bishop
of Ely William Longchamp. However at his mother’s urging
he relented on exiling John and as a result a power
struggle between the two developed in Richard's absence.
A botched attempt by Longchamp to arrest Geoffrey
Plantagenet, Archbishop of York caused the former to be
driven into exile and replaced by the more conciliatory
Walter of Coutances.
However Richard’s capture by Leopold of Austria on his
way home plunged the Angevins into a fresh crisis. John,
stirred up by Phillip Augustus attempted to depose
Richard, offering Vexin, Gisors and a pledge of fealty in
return for support. Ultimately his failure to convince
Eleanor, Coutances and most barons that his brother was
dead doomed his attempt.
Bargaining and release 1193-94
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Richard found himself at the centre of a bizarre bargaining
process in which Coutances and Eleanor in one party and
Phillip Augustus and John on the other both bid against
each other to purchase him off the Holy Roman Emperor
Henry VI, the former to relapse him, the latter to
incarcerate him permanently.
In the meantime the French seized Gisors and were only
prevented from taking the rest of Normandy by the
determined resistance of its capital Rouen. John
meanwhile found himself besieged in Windsor castle by
troops loyal to Richard.
Finally Richard was relapsed into Eleanor's custody on the
payment of 34 tonnes of silver and the nominal
enfeoffement of England to Emperor Henry IV who
demanded a yearly rent of 5,000 marks henceforth.
An already weakened Angevin treasury was thus left
deeply indebted, a situation not helped by the pogrom of
many of the Jewish money lenders of England in 1189.
Richard returned to England in March 1194.
Consolidation and reconquest 1194
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All John’s fortresses save Nottingham surrendered immediately on
Richard’s return, the siege of the former and the time thus spent
in the vicinity of Sherwood forest may account for part of the
Robin Hood legend.
In April 1194 Richard reaffirmed his authority at a ‘crown wearing’
ceremony in which he informed office holders that they had
merely leased their positions and would have to buy them again.
Thus plus huge taxes levied by Hubert Walter, Justiciar and
Archbishop of Canterbury refinanced the Angevin treasury to the
extent that Richard was able to return to Normandy tor recover
the lands lost to Phillip Augustus.
The 1194 campaign saw him achieve his objectives, defeat and
almost kill Phillip at the Battle of Freteval and effect a
reconciliation with John who deserted Philip in July.
Richard also captured documents revealing the names of rebel
barons in Angevin France. In a rapid campaign in the summer of
1194 the chief rebel strongholds in Poitou and Angouleme were
overrun and 40,000 prisoners taken.
War with France 1194-99
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To eliminate his enemy Phillip Augustus, Richard
undertook a series of diplomatic inanities designed to
isolate the French king. Using funds from jousts
Richard persuaded the Rhineland princes to do him
homage thereby threatening France’s eastern border.
Similarly he gained the support of the south by
marrying his sister Joan to Count Raymond of
Toulouse. He used economic embargo to force Baldwin
of Flanders to change sides too, completing the
encirclement.
Richard was also able to recruit papal support from
Innocent III in return for managing a campaign against
the election of one of the over-mighty Hohenstaufen
family to the Imperial throne in 1197.
Having thus isolated Phillip Augustus, Richard built the
great fortress of Chateau Gaillard in just two years
from 1196-98 thereby closing the gap in Norman
defences opened by the capture of Gisors.
Phillip resorted to guerrilla warfare but having nearly
been captured at Courcelles-les-Gisors in September
1198 he accepted a truce in 1199.
Death and legacy 1199
• The Angevin empire was in a strong position in 1199, peace promised sufficient
prosperity for tax and war ravaged land to recover behind Richard’s defensive
network of castles.
• Richard lost his life unexpectedly in March 1199 over a petty quarrel with the lord
of Chalus aged 41. He had reigned for less than ten years.
• Although the Angevin Empire was on the offensive in 1199, it would almost
entirely collapse just five years afterwards. Like his father, Richard did not give the
Empire any innate strength, it was at heart still a faction ridden collection of
states loosely bound by personal union. Only a strong ruler could bind it together,
and Richard’s successor John was not such a man. Richard’s neglect of his wife
Berengaria and consequent failure to provide an heir may thus be counted as his
greatest failing.
John
‘Softsword’
King of England
Duke of
Normandy, Brittany,
Anjou, Maine, Tourraine,
Gascony and Aquitaine,
Count of Poitou
1199- 1214
King of England and
Duke of Gascony
thereafter to 1216
Character
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Heavily condemned by contemporaries, the character of
John has been obscured.
His plotting against his father and his brother Richard
indicate a deceitful side to his character, but his brothers
were just the same.
He inherited his father’s energy and was a good solider;
although not as able as his brother; and a very able
administrator
His failings were in his relationships with individuals – he
alienated the Church, mishandled his barons and
allowed himself to be politically outmanoeuvred by
Phillip Augustus. He also possessed his father’s temper
and had a cruel streak.
His dire reputation is perhaps because he died at the
climax of his misfortunes – had he lived another 10 years
at least a partial rehabilitation seems likely.
Succession and Coronation
• Richard I’s sudden death meant that John’s
succession was not guaranteed, the
alternative eyeing Arthur of Brittany. John
succeeded because of the support of the
two most powerful men in the empire –
Archbishop Hubert Walter and statesman
William Marshal who believed Arthur
would be unacceptable to the English.
• However the central French provinces of
the empire declared for Arthur meaning
that even at his coronation in 1198 John
faced a divided empire.
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Calm in France 1200
John sought a lasting peace in France, persuading Arthur to
be content with the Duchy of Brittany and opening peace
negotiations with Phillip Augustus. He underestimated the
latter however, who only wanted peace to give him chance
to build up his forces.
The Treaty of Le Goulet thus confirmed John’s possessions in
France except for strategically significant parts of eastern
Normandy in return for a succession duty of 20,000 marks
and the marriage of John’s niece Blanche to Louis the
Dauphin.
As a further step in the process of consolidation, John
invalidated his first childless marriage and took a second wife
from Aquitaine – Isabella of Angouleme.
October 1200 saw a joint coronation and a progress around
England during which he secured the homage of William the
Lion, King of Scots.
He was criticised for the peaceful nature of his diplomacy
during this period which his barons said made him look
weak, hence ‘Softsword’, but there was nothing in 1200 that
suggested disaster was looming.
Deterioration in France 1201-2
• John’s problems began with his wife’s ex-fiancée's
family, the Lusignans who rose in rebellion in
Aquitaine.
• After initial conciliation, John invited they Lusignans to
trial by combat and as suzerain Phillip Augustus
stepped in, John refused to accept his mediation and in
May 1201 war broke out between the Angevins and
the French.
• Phillip Augustus made an alliance with Arthur of
Brittany and the two attacked the Angevin Empire –
Philippe assaulting Normandy and Arthur Aquitaine in
1202.
• John was hard pressed but managed to restore the
situation by the end of 1202 by capturing Arthur and
the leading Lusignans causing Philip Augustus to
retreat to his own territory.
The collapse of Angevin consensus winter
1202-3
• The winter of 1202 saw John lose his initiative
by a series of political misjudgements. He
quarrelled with and attempted to unseat
William des Roches, the leading Angevin
general who responded by rebelling and
seizing Angers and Tours.
• He also had Arthur of Brittany murdered
which caused Brittany to rise in rebellion and
gave Phillip Augustus a diplomatic gift.
• Although John balanced this by reaching an
accommodation with the Lusignans he
entered the 1203 campaigning season at a
disadvantage.
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1203-1204:
Philippe's
offensive
Philippe Augustus combined a gift for diplomacy with
military skills. Accordingly when he attacked Normandy
in spring 1203 John was attacked form several sides at
once as many Norman barons switched sides and
declared for the French.
John had to cancel a counter-attack when Chateau
Gaillard was placed under siege – William Marshall’s
failed attempt to relieve it plus yet more rebellion
caused by his sacking of the Breton town of Dol caused
John to retreat to England in December 1204 to gather
resources.
He was successful in this, persuading the barons at
Oxford to donate a sizeable tax but before he could
return to Normandy in March 1204 Chateau Gaillard
fell to the French. Normandy was open to invasion.
A combined Breton/French attack assailed Normandy
from both sides and it fell, the capital Rouen
surrendering last in June 1204. Only the Channel
islands remained in Angevin hands.
1204-6: Stabilisation
• With the fall of Normandy and Brittany both
Aquitaine and England were threatened with
invasion. Large taxes were levied and the
entire male populations enlisted for the
militia. The navy was also built up. These
measures were successful but they did
deprive John of the means to mount a
planned counter-invasion of northern France
in 1205.
• Despite this John was able to mount a
reasonably successful campaign in central
France which regained the frontier fortresses
of Aquitaine in summer 1206.
1207-11: The Papal Interdict
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The death of Hubert Walter in 1205 was a major setback to John, and
he tried to get his secretary John de Gray elected, but an argument
with the monks of Canterbury who had their own candidate Prior
Reginald led to intervention by Pope Innocent III, re-opening the
controversy over jurisdiction that had so damaged Henry II.
Stephen Langton, a compromise candidate put forward by Innocent
was rejected by John who enflamed the situation by seizing the assets
of Canterbury and driving its monks into exile. This direct challenge to
papal authority led Innocent to pronounce an Interdict over England
in March 1208.
John responded with financial penalties against the clergy for which
he was excommunicated in November 1211. Excommunication was
more dangerous than Interdiction as it formally absolved all of John’s
subjects from obedience to him allowing rebellious barons and
Philippe Augustus to attack him without fear of reprisal.
All bar one bishop, faced with an impossible situation, fled into exile
leaving the English Church paralysed.
Effects of the Interdict
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The interdict and excommunication did not affect John as greatly
as was once thought. There were indeed murmurs of rebellion in
Ireland and Nottingham but John was able to put them down. He
only faced outright defiance from one individual, the hermit Peter
of Wakefield and he was put to death.
John lost the standoff in 1212 when the Papacy threatened its
ultimate weapon – a letter of deposition ordering Philippe
Augustus to depose John and requiring John’s nobility to support
him.
On William Marshal’s advice John submitted to the papal demands
to acknowledge Langton, allow his bishops to be reinstated, to pay
a fine of 100,000 marks and indeed went further. When he met
Legate Pandulf at Dover on Ascension Day 2013 he offered an oath
of fealty to the Pope for England which he received as an
enfeoffment on payment of 1,000 marks annually. Innocent
immediately called off the intended French invasion and
vigorously supported both the reigns of John and his son Henry III.
Ironically within two years Langton had been suspended by the
Pope.
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British wars 1209-1212
Despite his homage to John, William the lion of Scotland still agitated for possession
of Northumberland, Cumberland and Westmoreland. Accordingly in 1209 John
resolved to confront a now aging William. William backed down, renewed his
homage and and allowed his son and heir Alexander and two daughters to become
John’s hostages. In return John ensured the peaceful succession of Alexander II in
1214 and prevented an Irish backed pretender from invading.
In 1210 John faced defiance from the Norman Lords of western Ireland including the
usually faithful William Marshall. Marshall was defeated and gave up two sons as
surety for good behaviour. William de Braose was more problematic because John
refused to pardon the family for an unknown reason, instead a large Angevin army
landed in Ireland in June 1210 and systematically deprived de Braose and his allies of
their castles.
This plus the building of a new royal castle in Dublin marked the formal submission
of semi-independent Ireland to the Angevin crown, a major achievement on John’s
part.
John undid much of his success by his malicious conduct towards the de Braose
family. His wife Matilda and eldest son were imprisoned in Windsor castle where
they died, possibly starved to death on John’s orders. William de Braose died a
heartbroken exile. This treatment was intended to terrify the barons, in fact it
incensed them.
John did similarly well in Wales in 1210. Here the normally divided princes had been
unified under Llewellyn of Gwynedd ‘the Great’, fearing this power John invaded and
trapped Llewellyn in the high ground around Carmarthenshire in 1212. Only the
rebellion of the English barons saved him as John was obliged to withdraw.
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French
wars
renewed
1213-14
Both John and Philippe Augustus were spoiling for war in 1213, the former for
revenge the latter wanting to invade England.
• John attempted to rekindle the encircling alliance of duchies that Richard I had
used to restrain France making alliances with both Flanders and Boulogne. Flanders
was savagely attacked by the French in July 1212 and in support of his ally John
invaded with a huge fleet of 500 ships. John’s forces scored a great victory,
surprising and destroying the French fleet at anchor in the Battle of Damme lifting
the French siege of Bruges.
• John followed this up with an alliance with Holy Roman emperor Otto IV and
intended to march inland in the direction of Poitou.
• However in his moment of victory the English barons’ patience snapped and they
refused either to send troops or pay further scutage.
Why did John fall out with the English barons?
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As previously mentioned, John’s unprecedented savagery to the de Braose family, one of the oldest Norman
dynasties; made the other nobles feel threatened.
John was something of a micromanager – her travelled more extensively around his realm than any other
monarch. He presided over his father’s efficient and reformist Chancery system of government and he had a
particular concern for justice, in many cases acting as a judge himself. This had the effect of bringing him into
direct conflict with the nobility who resented the fines he exacted and praecipe writs (formal orders such as
arrest warrants).
John also levied large and regular taxes; in many ways circumstances meant he had no choice; particularly
scutage ‘shield tax’ – a cash payment in return for the abrogation of armed service. Henry II levied only eight
scutages in 35 years, Richard two in 9 years – John levied 11 in 15 years. They were also higher than his
predecessors owing to 300% inflation in the preceding 50 years. Other additional taxes included tallages on
royally controlled manors, property taxes known as ‘gracious aids’ and in both 1203 and 1207 a tax on
moveable goods and revenues. Finally in 1212 he instituted an inquiry into how much land was held by the
Crown, which his noble subjects interpreted as an attempt to resume control over alienated land.
Had this vast revenue bought victory the noble sense of grievance would have been lessened; indeed the
ransoms and spoil of victory might have made the war pay for itself; but his war record was at best one of
costly stalemate. As a result resentment grew. Ironically it was only after he finally achieved victory at Damme
in 1213 that resentment actually turned to defiance.
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The Bouvines Campaign 1214
John met his barons at Oxford and the impasse was resolved – some sort
of compromise agreement was reached, possibly in the form of a charter
limited terms of service and payment of scutage, a proto-Magna Carta. But
he realised that he could no longer compel them to serve him in France;
many of them had a conflict of interest as vassals of Philippe Augustus in
any case; and thus his army was largely mercenary.
Despite this John enjoyed relative success. As part of a two-pronged
campaign with his ally Otto IV John raided former Angevin territory in
Poitou, Anjou and Brittany bringing renewed oaths of fealty from local
lords including the rebellions Lusignans and occupying much of Poitou.
However he was stalled at the siege of Roiche-au-Moine castle. This
enabled Philippe Augustus to transfer all his field army eastwards to
confront Otto IV.
Otto and Philippe met at the Battle of Bouvines. Here a composite
Flemish, German and English army was defeated and destroyed effectively
bringing the war to an end. John concluded a relatively honourable truce
negotiated by the Papacy who wanted to organise a fresh crusade.
The indirect effect of Bouvines on John was catastrophic. He attempted to
raise funds for another war by payment of scutage from all the tenants in
chief who had refused to fight in France. This plus the appointment of
abrasive Frenchman Peter des Roches as Justiciar pushed the barons into
outright rebellion.
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Baronial Rebellion 1214-15
Led by a faction of northern nobles who felt particularly resentful over scutage, many English nobles
simply refused to pay it.
John attempted to resolve the situation in London in January 1215 by meeting the ringleaders. They
demanded the affirmation of Henry I’s coronation charter and Edward the Confessor’s laws; an early use
of precedent to reinforce their case; but John prevaricated. He was waiting for his suzerain Innocent III’s
response.
Innocent, keen to start a new crusade, demanded that the barons pay scutage in April 1215. They did
not and instead began arming themselves for war.
Anxious to prevent this, John agreed to a meeting at Wallingford in April. Here his emissaries and those
of the rebels conferred, when the latter learned John would not agree to their demands they renounced
their fealty and defied him openly, occupying Bedford in a gesture of defiance.
By May the country was in a state of civil war. Lacking clear boundaries, the war initially seemed to be
going in John’s favour until the rebels captured and looted London on 17 May.
A stand-off emerged, the rebels in positions of strength in London, the south west and the midlands, but
John threatened them from Windsor with a growing army of mercenaries plus the promise of papal
support.
Runnymede and Magna Carta
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The Great Charter ‘Magna Carta’ was the result of
negotiation by William Marshal and Stephen Langton
between the two sides who met at the neutral ground
of Runnymede meadow on 15 June 1215.
The Magna Carta was extremely ambitious in
conception – binding not only the king but tenants-inchief to treat their vassals fairly, establishing a counsel
of 25 barons who could vet all future royal demands
for taxation and there was to be no arbitrary
imprisonment without trial.
Crucially if John failed to keep to its principles, the
barons reserved the right of rebellion and would
confiscate John's castles and wealth until he desisted.
The Magna Carta was also publicised on an
unprecedented scale – on John’s instructions copies
were sent to every shire.
Key Clauses
• 1 – The English Church is to be free – origin of freedom of
religion
• 7-8 – Widows allowed to retain their dowry on the death
of their husband and not forced to remarry – the first
ever declaration of women’s rights.
• 13- The right of self government of London and other
incorporated towns and cities is upheld.
• 39 – No imprisonment without trial ‘by the lawful
judgement of his peers’ - the origin of juries.
• 61- A council of 25 barons established to scrutinise royal
government – the ancestor of Parliament.
Short term – marginal significance?
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John appeared sincere in the weeks after Magna Carta,
even instructing his sheriffs to swear fealty to the Barons’
Council.
However an extreme baronial faction led by Geoffrey de
Mandeville wanted further concessions including control of
the Tower of London. This plus the refusal of the barons to
leave London gave John the pretext he needed to renounce
Magna Carta with the support of his suzerain Innocent
annulled Magna Carta in September just three months
after its creation. The objurate barons were threatened
with excommunication and a new field army was formed.
A brief and brutal siege of Rochester castle in autumn 1215
brought the surrender of most rebels. De Mandeville and
his clique fled to France and offered the English throne to
Philippe's son Louis. In the ensuing First Barons’ War
Magna Carta was largely forgotten.
Long term: the foundation of liberty?
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More than its provisions, what made Magna Carta unique was its universality – its provisions
covered everyone in England and it laid down for the first time formal limits to the power of
monarchy.
Crucially Henry III reissued Magna Carta in 1225 and during his long reign it was ingrained as
the foundation of English law. Part of it is still in force today.
It thus set a precedent for universally applied law and representative government – the
bedrock of the modern state. Although not immediately apparent, these sentiments would
mark the end of the arbitrary, strictly divided world of the Norman and Angevin kings. In the
future England would become increasingly homogenous, the divide between Norman and
Englishman would lessen then evaporate in the 14th century, national spirit would revive
and the notion of representative government would steadily grow in importance until it
assumed pre-eminence over monarchy at the end of the 17th century.
Epitaph – John’s last year
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In May 1216 John was under tremendous pressure – a French
invasion fleet had landed in England; the first and only time since
1066; Alexander II of Scotland had invaded northern England and
two thirds of barons deserted and did homage to Louis.
As a result Louis was able to occupy London in June. John was
leading a successful counteroffensive in October when he was
struck by two final disasters – his treasure was lost in the Wash and
he contracted fatal dysentery, dying on 19 October 1216.
A government headed by the aging William Marshal expelled Louis
and ensured the succession of John’s young son Henry III.
Although not without its troubles, Henry III’s reign saw a restoration
of stability and prosperity in England and her surviving province of
Gascony.
Meanwhile Philippe Augustus cemented control of what would
become modern France. John’s successors would fight the longest
war in history in the 14th and 15th centuries in a doomed bid to get it
back.