The History of England

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<p><b><font size="4">This Sceptred Isle, Volume 2: 1087-1327 The Making of the Nation (Unabridged)</font></b></p>
<p><font size="2">Volume 2 covers the years 1087 to 1327, a time of wars between the English and the Scots, of Crusades and of civil war....</font></p>
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59 Magna Carta and the Death of a Tyrant

Bouvines wasn't the cause of the Baronial revolt, but it probably was John's last chance to avoid it. In 1215 at Runymede Magna Carta was signed. It's extremely unlikely that John ever intended to allow the treaty to survive - and his untimely death at Newark was the biggest single factor in Magna Carta's survival.

59 Magna Carta and the Death of a Tyrant

 

 

The Road to Runymede

When John arrived back from France in October 1214 he found England close to open revolt. The combination of John's capricious rule, his Justiciar's attempt to levy a tax and the defeat at Bouvines together made a volatile and inflammable mix. John was this time simply overwhelmed. It seems very unlikely that John had any intention of sticking by the Carter - for him it was probably just a way of slowing the barons down until he could get an army together. 

Magna Carta

The 60 clauses of Magna Carta don't have many grand or stirring words. But somehow it manages to be massively significant, and keystone in the development of the democratic state. 

A lot has been written about Magna Carta, so I'm not going to repeat them here. But excitingly enough here you will find a complete text of the 1215 version of the charter. The Charter is replaced by a revised version  in 1217, and then a final version in 1225 - but this is the original, the attempt at a peace treaty. 

Download The Great Charter of Liberties of King John 1215

The Coronation Charter of Liberties of Henry I also had an enormous influence on Magna Carta. So for you real keenies, here is that charter for you to pour over. 

Download Charter of liberties of Henry I

And finally, to take the keeness to the ultimate level, Magna Carta is so called not becuase it's particularly long, but becuase in 1217 the smaller Forest Charter was created to deal specifically with the bits of the original charter that dealt with the much hated royal forest. and so here is an annotated version of that as well. Your cup runneth over. 

Download The Forest Charter

The Civil War

John did not negotiate in good faith, because frankly he had no good faith available. By September the two sides were again at war. John soon had the upper hand; he assembled his mercenaries from abroad in Kent, and took Dover castle. His loyal castellans held over 150 royal castles against the rebels. The rebels had no siege train and essentially got stuck in London. 

Then in 1216, the Barons invited Louis, son of the king of France to help them. He landed with 1200 knights and for a moment it looked all over. The Earls of Surrey, Arundel and Salisbury abandoned John. But in fact John retained his freedom of action, and his castles held - hius problem was that he failed to deliver a knock out blow. 

The Death of a Tyrant

In October 1216, John arrived at Lynn on the north coast of Norfolk. There he caught dysentery. As he crossed the Wash to on his way to Lincoln, he famously lost some of his baggage in his hurry, though it was nothing like as much of a disaster as Roger of Wendover would have us believe. 

He reached Newark where he died in the night of 18/19th October, after dictating his will. His body was taken to Worcester Cathedral by his mercenaries, where you can still see his effigy. 

 

58 Tyranny and Defeat

From 1213 to 1214, John seemed to have got his problems more under control, and had built an alliance that looked to be capable of taking on Philip. There was trouble in the background caused by the tyranny of his rule and relationship with his barons, but his reconciliation with the Papacy and his international alliance held it at bay. But his hopes died on the field of Bouvines.

58 Tyranny and Defeat

 

 

Reconciliation with Rome

In 1213 John was worried; he had discovered a plot led by Robert FitzWalter and Eustace de Vesci, and had to delay his attack on Wales tyo deal with it; there was a religious madman going around saying John would not live out the year, and the rumours were that the Pope was going to declare him deposed.

So he met the Papal legate. And not only did he agree to take Stephen Langton as the Archbishop of Canterbury, he agreed to pay back 100,000 marks to the church, and to pay homage to the Pope for his lands - so England was now a papal fief. He was also later to take the cross. All of this gave John the ethusiastic support both to allow him to build an anti-French coalition, and in the coming struggle against the barons. 

Tyranny

John was truly incompetent where it really mattered - in managing his barons. All he wanted was to rule like his father and brother, but he was incapable of building trust with his barons. Here's brief list of why so many  barons  had grown to hate John's rule: 

• he kept trying to drag them off into wars they didn't care about in France
• he taxed them mercilessly - 11 scutages for example
• He was predatory - he charged high 'reliefs' (the charge to take over your inheritance) , he fined them at the drop of a hat (you had to pay to marry who you wanted to, you had to grease the king's palm to get his 'goodwill')
• He didn't trust the barons - he surrounded himself with foreign household knights rather than relying on the magnates for advice

Bouvines and the campaign of 1214

John had assembled powerful allies against Phillip Augustus - Ferrand of Flanders, Renaud of Boulogne, Otto IVth, the Holy Roman Emperor. 

John invaded Poitou in south west France and did well - but in Anjou his Poitevin barons would go no further, and not attack the king of France; John was forced to retreat back to the coast. 

Meanwhile on July 27th, Phillip Augustus with 15,000 men was facing the allied army in northern France at Bouvines. The allied army was in the order of 25,000 men, though the French were probably stronger in cavalry.

The traditional 3 battles of the allies were held by Renaud of Boulogne on the right, Otto in the centre, and Count Ferrand of Flanders on the allied left. Against them Philip unfurled the oriflamme, the symbol of the French king at war.

The battle started with a confused struggle of Cavalry, but on the allied left, the Flemings were defeated and put to flight, and Ferrand captured. In the centre the best infantry of Europe, the Brabanters, were pushing the French centre back. Philip counter attacked with his cavalry, only to be met by Otto and his cavalry, and in the melee Phillip himself was unhorsed. The situation was saved for France by the returning cavalry from the right wing; it was now Otto’s turn to be unhorsed, and he was barely able to escape with a few attendants to run back to Germany. The battle wasn’t over; Renaud of Boulogne organised a stand of 700 Pikemen, in the organisation that would cause the English so many problems at Bannockburn. From behind the group he and a group of knights made continuous cavalry charges, while the French cavalry were unable to break the screen of defending mercenaries. Eventually, 3,000 men at arms simply overwhelmed, and Renaud and the king’s bastard son William of Salisbury were captured

John signed a 5 year truce with Phillip, and in October 1214 returned to England to face rebellion and the road to Runnymede. 

57 The Excommunicate

John took a detailed interest in administration, and made effective changes to the way things worked. Partly his interest was motivated by the need to raise money - as inflation ate away at his earnings, and his desire to reconquer France magnified his need. The break with the church from 1208 to 1213 actually helped his need for money, and doesn't appear to have materially damaged his reputation in England

57 The Excommunicate rm

 

The break with Rome, 1208-1213

Neither John nor Pope Innocent III expected or wanted any trouble. The crisis was sparked by the monks of Canterbury. 

When Hubert Walter died, the monks of Canterbury, jealous of their rights, secretly elected one of their number - Reginald, and off he hopped to Rome. John was livid - and forced the monks to elect John de Gray. In all the kerfuffle, Innocent III ending up imposing Stephen Langton on John as his new Archbishop of Canterbury.

Innocent had a clear view of Papal supremacy, as expressed in one of his letters thus: 

Now just as the moon derives its light from the sun and is indeed lower than it in quantity and quality, in position and in power, so too the royal power derives the splendor of its dignity from the pontifical authority

However, in practice he would normally accept that the king's consent and approval was also required. The crisis was caused by a rather unfortunate concatenation of events.

John made the most of the crisis. He took the revenue from church lands for a while, and then when he realised he didn't have the men to administer them, made the Abbots and Bishops buy the land back. There appears to have been little reactin from Barons or anyone else to the Interdict and Excommunication. The crisis would only be resolved when other political problems forced John to seek allies.

56 The History of Medieval Europe, Part 2

The Holy Roman Empire to the death of Barbarossa, the briefest of histories of Norway, Denmark and Spain, and the 4th Crusade. It's action packed. 

56 The History of Medieval Europe Part 2 rm

 

The Investiture Crisis - Gregory VII and Henry IVth

Hildebrand, or Gregory VIIth to use his Papal name, was a reformer and Pope between 1073 and 1085. He firmly believed that the church should be independent from the influence of the material world, and unlike other Popes before and after him he was not prepared to compromise. He believed that the Papacy should be free of the influence of the Emperor, and indeed superior. 

Henry IVth meanwhile was the descendant of Otto the Great. He believed in a system based on what he saw as the ancient right of the Roman Emperor to appoint the Pope. The system of government he inherited depended on him being able to choose churchmen he could trust to help him govern. He was utterly convinced in his right to 'invest' bishops and churchmen with the symbols of their office. 

At the same time Henry IVth had to struggle with opposition from within German, w hose Princes

fought to establish their independence and liberties within the rule of the Emperor. In the struggle's most dramatic moment, beset by rebels allied with Gregory, Henry camped outside Gregory's palace in Canossa, in the robes of a penitent and pleaded to  be accepted back into the Pope's favour. Gregory was forced to accept, and by so doing betrayed the rebels, who were then crushed by Henry. The Emperor established his own anti-Pope and ejected Gregory from Rome, who dies in exile in Sicily, lamenting

I have loved justice and hated iniquity - and therefore I die in exile

Frederick Barbarossa, Holy Roman Emperor, 1152 - 1190

Gregory thought he had lost - but in fact the long term victory was his. The Emperor's anti-pope was never accepted, and the idea of the Emperor's supremacy over the Pope lost. Despite the outward glory of Barbarossa's reign, in fact by the end of his reign the basis of the Emperor's power was sorely eroded. Frederick lost control of the northern Italian cities. he was forced himself to prostrate himself before Pope Alexander III. He held enormous power in Germany, but at the cost of a new deal with the German nobility that accepted that they were a closed, hereditary circle, with power over their own lands, while the Emperor remained elective. Under Emperors weaker than Barbarossa, the weakness of the Emperor's real power would be exposed. 

 

Medieval Spain and La Reconquista

Spain had been largely overrun by the Arabs by the 9th Century, leaving 3 small Christian states surviving in the north - Leon in the North West, Navarre in the north and Aragorn in the north east. 

By 1210, and the map shows, Spain was once again largely Christian, though far from completely. Despite periodic setbacks as new Caliphates tried to re-establish the old Islamic dominance, such as the Almoravids and Almohads, disunity among the Arab states allowed the kingdom of Castille to lead the fight back. The fall of Toledo in 1085 and victory at the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212 would prove decisive. By 1252, the last Muslim kingdom of Granada was a vassal of Castille, and would finally cease to exist in 1492.

Byzantium, the 4th Crusade, and the fall of Constantinople in 1204

After the death of Emperor Manuel Comnenos it is hard to find a Byzantine Emperor of any great talent. But the event which tore the heart out of the Empire came not from the East and the Islam world, but from the Christian west. 

The evil genius is Enrico Dandolo, the Doge of Venice. Enrico uses the fee he is owed from transporting the Crusaders  to force the crusade away from the objective of Egypt to first recapture the city of Zara. Then Alexius Angelos, a man with a claim to the throne of Byzantium, and persuades the Crusaders to help him gain the throne - for a fee of course. But once in place, he changes his mind about the fee - having looked first at the state of the Imperial treasury. As a result, the Crusaders attacked and took Constantinople, and submitted it to the traditional 3 day sack. 

Here's a contemporary account which gives a flavour of the sacking: 

How shall I begin to tell of the deeds wrought by these nefarious men ! Alas, the images, which ought to have been adored, were trodden under foot ! Alas, the relics of the holy martyrs were thrown into unclean places ! Then was seen what one shudders to hear, namely, the divine body and blood of Christ was spilled upon the ground or thrown about. They snatched the precious reliquaries, thrust into their bosoms the ornaments which these contained, and used the broken remnants for pans and drinking cups,-precursors of Antichrist, authors and heralds of his nefarious deeds which we momentarily expect. Manifestly, indeed, by that race then, just as formerly, Christ was robbed and insulted and His garments were divided by lot; only one thing was lacking, that His side, pierced by a spear, should pour rivers of divine blood on the ground.

Nor can the violation of the Great Church be listened to with equanimity. For the sacred altar, formed of all kinds of precious materials and admired by the whole world, was broken into bits and distributed among the soldiers, as was all the other sacred wealth of so great and infinite splendor.

When the sacred vases and utensils of unsurpassable art and grace and rare material, and the fine silver, wrought with gold, which encircled the screen of the tribunal and the ambo, of admirable workmanship, and the door and many other ornaments, were to be borne away as booty, mules and saddled horses were led to the very sanctuary of the temple. Some of these which were unable to keep their footing on the splendid and slippery pavement, were stabbed when they fell, so that the sacred pavement was polluted with blood and filth.

For Venice it was a triumph - they captured the right to the trade of the Empire. For Byzantium it was a disaster. 

The Empire split into a small Latin Empire and several Greek Empires - as you can see from the map below. Although the Latin Empire lasts only 57 years, and is eventually reconquered, Byzantium never recovers its strength. 

 

55 The History of Medieval Europe, Part I

From Charles Martel and the battle of Tours in 732, through Charlemagne and Otto the Great, the first installment concentrates on France, Germany and Italy and takes us to the shores of Gregory VIIth.

55 The History of Medieval Europe Part 1 rm

 

The Battle of Tours, 732

It is hotly debated as to whether or not Charles Martel's victory over the Muslim armies in central France was the occasion that caused the Muslim tide to recede. Probably it's not the cause but the event that marks it, but how ever you look at it the victory of probably 30,000 Franks over 75,000 previously unstoppable Muslim forces was hugely significant. Martel had prepared and trained his soldiers for this event, and his victory founded his dynasty - the Carolingian dynasty - which led to Charles the Great, Charlemagne.

The Empire of Charlemagne

Charlemagne's Empire was a conscious attempt to re-create the glories of the Roman Empire of the west. Charlemagne put as much effort into reviving learning and spreading Christianity as he did into territorial expansion. None the less his Empire was huge, as the map shows (thanks to EB...). 

Charlemagne was crowned as the Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo in 800. Charlemagne's view of this event was very much that his servant, the Pope, was adding his support to his kingship. Pope Leo was trying to establish that Emperors only became Emperors when the Pope said so. This is an argument that will run and run. 

Charlemagne becomes one of the touchstones of medieval Europe - just as he referred back to the Roman Empire,  so future kings would refer back to the glories of Charlemagne. 

Otto the Great and the Holy Roman Empire

After Charlemagne, his empire splits into three (see the small inset box map in map above). France, under  Charles the Bald and his descendants, fragments under the pressure of Viking raids and communication into a series of semi-independant states. The French king concentrates on the development of his own power within the Ile de France, and maintaining some lip service to their legal supremacy over the rest of the Western Franks. In the end, it's a strategy that pays handsome dividends under Phillip Augustus. 

The Eastern Franks choose a different route. Otto the Great took up the mantle of Charlemagne, and fought to maintain a new Roman, and Holy Empire. He defeated the Magyars at Lechfeld in 955, and finally put an end to the chaos. He brought the warring leaders of the German 'Stem Duchies under royal control. He chose a unique way of ruling this still huge and disparate empire. The Ottonian system relied on the church to be partners in ruling his empire. Prince Bishops would not try to establish dynasties, for example, to break away from the Empire. For over 100 years, Otto's system works beautifully, and his Empire dominates Germany and much of Italy. But it relied on control of church appointments and control of the Popes. Local churchmen, by and large, were happy enough - the Pope was not. 

 

 

54 Fighting Back - A Bit

John immediately launched attempts to get his lands back - and ran into the Barons. He does run up a pretty good Navy though. And we hear of Roland the Farter.

54 Fighting Back - A Bit

 

The Barons Refuse to fight, 1205

1205 gave John a sneak preview of what life would be like later. Despite his begging and pleading, the Barons would not go to France with him in 1205 to fight for the French lands. There was a genuine feeling that they should not be made to fight abroad. There was also a general feeling of distrust between King and his barons. John relied on his household knights and servants, and was too paranoid to build any trust with his great magnates.

1206 Campaign

But after a winter of travelling round England, John managed to persuade his Barons to fight the following year. And the 1206 campaign is quite successful; John manages to re-establish his authority in most of Poitou. 

The English Navy

Under John, the strategic situation changed back to the way it had ben under the Anglo Saxons - now the English Channel was no longer just a river between Angevin lands. To be safe, the king must control the channel. And to give him his due, John does just this. New Galleys are commissioned, squadrons formed, seamen employed, and an administration out around the Navy under William of Wrotham. 

53 Torn Apart - Loss of an Empire

After the defection of William des Roches the military situation was poor for John but not irretrievable. Unfortunately, John failed to provide the leadership needed.  He distrusted his barons; he panicked and had no coherent strategy. When he killed Arthur, he pushed the self destruct button, and Normandy collapsed from with - the Barons no longer supported the descendants of William the Bastard.

53 Torn Apart - the loss of an Empire

 

The Murder of Arthur

It is not possible to definitively prove that John killed Arthur. But a bit like Richard III and the Princes in the tower, his failure to produce Arthur at any stage seems incomprehensible unless he did. The story is that John killed him at Rouen in a fit of drunken rage as the war turned against him. It was disastrous for John's reputation. 

The Fall of Normandy

Normany fell because John's barons no longer cared to support him. John panicked, and had no coherent strategy. He distrusted his barons, and in return they distrusted him. He put vicious mercenaries like Lupescar in control of whole regions, and surrounded himself with household knights - not powerful barons who could make a difference. 

In 1203, John ran for it. It is probably true that he intended to gather support from the English Barons, but he left it to late. On 6th March, Chateau Gaillard surrendered. After a triumphant march through Western Normandy, Phillipo returned to Rouen and on 26th April he entered the Norman capital. 

 

 

52a Eleanor of Aquitaine by Melisende

Eleanor of Aquitaine is one of the great names of the Middle Ages. Her life spanned almost all of the Angevin Empire, and her court at Poitiers became famous as the centre of courtly love. Much of her life was spent in conflict with her two husbands, but towards the end of her life she achieved the political influence she had earlier craved as the  trusted supporter of her sons.

 

52a Eleanor of Aquitaine

 

 

This episode is by Melisende of Outremer. You can find out more about women in history at Melisende's website womenofhistory.blogspot.com. 

 

52 John Softsword

As a younger man, John had been given the nickname Lackland because unlike his brothers he didn't have his own appanage. At the Treaty of Le Goulet in May 1200 he acquired the name Softsword - people couldn't understand why he'd signed away Gisors, parts of Berry, £20,000 and bent his knee to Phillip. On the other hand, John probably felt he'd had a good deal. Then John caused fury with the Lusignan by stealing their bride, they appealed to Phillip and and Phillip declared John to be stripped of his lands. But at the start of the war, John gets off to a flyer.

52 John Softsword

The Treaty of Le Goulet, May 1200

The main terms of the treaty were

• John recognised as Henry's heir
• Phillip receives some Norman fiefs and parts of Berry and £20,000
• John's niece Blanche of Castille and Phillip's son Louis will marry, and the dower will be the disputed Gisors
• John will do fealty to Phillip

It looked like a reasonable deal. In fact, it made it clear that the Angevins were subservient to the French king, which previously had just been a form of words. But John, from a commanding position in September 1199 was weaker in May 1200; his allies, the Counts of Flanders and Boulogne had left of crusade and John probably felt himself lucky. 

Marrriage and the Lusignan

In 1200 John rocked up at the castle of his troublesome vassal,  Aymer of

Angouleme. There he met the 12 year old Isabella of Angouleme, and was so smitten that he married her the same year at Westminster. Even in those days, marriage to a 12 year old was unusual - a betrothal would have been more normal - but the Count didn't seem to object. 

Now there were perfectly good reasons for marrying the girl, quite apart from her charms. Angouleme was a powerful count, had always been a problem to the Angevins, and this brought them inside the tent. But unfortunately Isabella was already betrothed to Hugh le Brun, count of Lusignan. 

John could have made it work - but he didn't. He sent sheriff's into their lands and goaded them. The Lusignans appealed to Paris for justice from John, and took up the sword. John tried to avoid giving them the justice they deserved  and in the end, Phillip was able to wade in on the Lusignans' side. So in 1203 it was war again. 

Victory at Mirebeau

 

Phillip's plan in the war was not new - Athur to attack the centre of he empire along hte Loire valley, while Phillip distracted John in Normandy. 

At first all went to plan; John's army was not ready, and Eleanor of Aquitaine was forced to flee ahead of Arthur's army, taking refuge in Mirebeau. 

Hugh de Lusignan (Hugh le Brun) and Arthur beseiged Eleanor and were confident of capturing her in a few days. 

John marched the 80 miles from Rouen to Mire beau in 2 days, picking up William des Roches and completely surprising Lusignan and Arthur at Mirebeau.

It was a complete victory. Arthur, the Lusignans and all their knights were captured and imprisoned. Here's John's letter home: 

"Know that by the grace of God we are safe and well and God's mercy had worked wonderfully with us, for on Tuesday before the feast of St Peter ad Vincula, when we were on the road to Chinon, we heard that the lady our mother was closely besieged at Mirebeau, and we hurried there as fast as we could, arriving on the feast of St Peter ad Vincula. And there we captured Arthur, whom William de Briouze delivered to us, and Geoffrey de Lusignan, Hugh le Brun, Andrew de Chauvigni, the viscount of Chateleraut, Raymond Thouars, Savary de Mauleon, Hugh Bauge and all our other Poitevin enemies, and none escaped. Therefore God be paraised for our happy success"

If John had not managed to upset and lose the loyalty of William des Roches almost immediately, history could have been very different.  But he did. Arthur was sent to Rouen instead of being in des Roches's custody, and William rebelled, taking maine and Anjou with him. 

51 The Fouler Presence of John?

In 1199, Richard the Lion Heart died after being shot by a cook outside the castle of Chalus in the Limousin. The Empire was split between supporters of Arthur and supporters of John. Philip was for himself, with a bit for Arthur. That year was one of John's best years, where he showed that he could be effective.

51 The Fouler Presence

 

The Death of Richard the Lion Heart

The legend is that Richard went to Chalus in the Limousin because a treasure trove had been found, the local lord refused to hand it over, and Richard was going down there to get his hands on it. It's much more likely that in fact this was part of a wider campaign against the rebellious Count of Angouleme and Viscount of Limoges. 

Whatever the reason, Richard was on the verge of takin the castle when he went for a wander round hte castle, without armour but with a shield carried by a man at arms. On the tower was a lone man with a crossbow, using a frying pan as a shield. He shot towards Richard who applauded the shor - and so ducked too late. He was hit between neck and shoulder. back in his tent, Richard couldn't pull the whole thing out so a surgeon was called, who made even more of a mess of it. 3 days later Richard was dead. 

The accession of John

Public opinion was split - Arthur, the son of Geoffrey of Brittany or John, son of the old king? England and Normany declared for John; Maine Anjou and Touraine for Arthur. Aquitaine wasn't a problem - it belonged to Eleanor. John was decisive. He talked round the key nobleman of greater Anjou, William des Roches. His defection too all the wind out of Arthur's sails. John took the fealty of 15 counts - including the crucial allies, the Counts of Flanders and Boulogne. Phillip had attacked eastern Normandy and Evreux, but now realised he could make little headway - and agreed to a truce. 

50 Defence of the Empire

The war between Richard and Phillip went on from 1194-1198 in fits and starts ; usually there was no more than 3 months of fighting before a truce came along. But the general flow was steadily in Richard's favour when in 1198 they agreed to make peace. Meanwhile in England Hubert Walter ran an efficient administration that fed Richard with troops and arms.

50 Defence of the Empire

 

The campaigns of 1194-1198

Normandy

There were two main theatres of war; Phillip concentretaed on Normandy and the Vexin, but also stirred up trouble on the Loire valley in Anjou, Maine and Tourraine. 

In Normandy, from May 1194 Phillip slowly lost territory. In the Autimn of 1194 he was forced to retreat from Verneuil, and with John's defection back to his brother's side, he lost Evreux as well. 

Then he lost the support of his recently won allies, the Counts of Flanders and Boulogne, and as a consequence the Border lords in the north east of Normandy came over to Richard as well. 

In 1198, Richard suprised Phillip and his army near Gisors, and won a minor victory. He cried 'Dieu et mon Droit' as he attacked 'like a starving lion attacking his prey', the phrase that was to become the motto of the kings of England from Henry Vth's days. Poor old Phillip ran like a hare for the castle at Gisors, only to have the drawbridge break under them and end up in the drink. 

 The South

Richard  mauled Phillips at Freteval in 1194; and although again it can only count as a skirmish, it gave him a free hand in the south. When Richard's mercenary capatain Mercadier captured the Auverge in 1195, it was pretty clear that Richard had the upper hand.  

Peace at last

In 1198 peace was finally discussed in earnest. In essence, Phillip was to give up pretty much everything he had won except for Gisors. The Truce was agreed by Christmas, and while the peace treaty was being drawn up, Richard went off to settle some scores at Chalus in the Limousin...

Hubert Walter

Back home Hubert Walter was one of the Middle Ages' most competent administrators. Justiciar for 5 years, he introduced reforms to the legal system, that probably led to the post of Justice of the Peace and Cornoer. More importantly from Richard's point of view he get the money and troops coming to feed Richard's war. 

48 Richard and The Third Crusade

Was the Third Crusade a success or a failure? While it failed to achieve its objective, it was the most successful after the First Crusade. It rescued Outremer from an eradication that looked all too likely in 1190. The Crusade was controversial even at the time - in the eyes of most of Christendom it made Richard a hero - the victor of Acre and Arsuf. But to Philip's friends, Richard had failed, and betrayed Christendom to the Turk. To my mind it gave Outremer another century of life until the fall of Acre in 1291. 

48 Richard and the Third Crusade

 

The Fall of Acre

 

  It's a bit of a push to give Richard the credit for the fall of Acre - after all, Conrad and Guy had been working on it for the best part of 18 months when he arrived.  But Philip and Richard's men did transform the situation, and by 12th July 1190 the city had fallen. The whole event was marred by the massacre of 2,700 of the inhabitants outside the walls of Acre on 20th August. While there's no doubt that Richard ordered the massacre, it's equally clear that Saladin was playing for time in his negotiation, and had missed the deadline for delivery of half the agreed money by 11th August. Richard could not afford to be tied down an Acre. Richard raised the Royal Standard. We are not sure exactly what it looked like then, but from 1198 it was - Gules three lions passant guardant in pale Or armed and langued Azure - as above. 

The Battle of Arsuf, 7th September 1191

The objective was to march down the coast and take the port of Jaffa. Throughout the march, Saladin's army harried the Crusaders, trying to get them to break ranks - allowing themselves to be isolated and destroyed piecemeal. But Richard's discipline held, and Saladin knew he had to commit his whole army to stop the march. 

He did this at Arsuf. Time and again his mounted archers and skirmishers goaded the Crusader line, time and again richard refused the pleas to break ranks and commit a cavalry charge. Until eventually at mid afternoon, the Grand Master of the Hospitallers lost his patience and ordered the charge with cries of 'St George!'. Immediately Richard ordered a general charge, holding the English and Normans in reserve. 

Saladin's army retreated in disarray; but Tariq al Din counter charged with 700 elite bodyguard, on to be met by the English and Normans. The day belonged to Richard, and 700 of the Muslim army were killed. 

 

 

 

 

 

Success or failure? 

Richard left the Holy Land in October 1193. He had captured Acre, Jaffa, Ascalon (though the fortifications had to be destroyed) and Darum. His treaty with Saladin gave Christian pilgrims access to the holy places. But despite having got within 12 miles of Jerusalem he had failed to capture the city, and that had after all been the objective. 

But he left behind a viable state that was able to defend itself, which had been on the point of collapse. The Third Crusade achieved more than any other except the First, and did this against a unified Muslim leader of enormous talent. 

In addition of course, he left behind Cyprus, and uniquely important source of resources and support for Outremer, ruled by Guy of Lusignan. 

By most standards the crusade was a success, and one where Richard had demonstrated both his military and diplomatic talent. 

 

 

49 Travel Chaos

Richard set off from Outremer right at the end of the sailing season - October. He knew the Duke of Austria, the Holy Roman Emperor, Count of Toulouse and King of France were out to get him, so very sensibly tried to slip across their lands in disguise. Rubbish plan, predictable result. Meanwhile back in England John was making a bit for power, Phillip making his first attempt to bring down the Angevin Empire - and Robin Hood might have been hanging out in Sherwood Forest. Richard eventually arrived home at the start of 1194.

49 Travel Chaos

 

Taken Hostage

Richard's scheme to travel across Europe under disguise sounds like the act of a madman, or of a king suffering from delusional levels of confidence. But in point of fact Richard had little choice, and lots of bad luck. He couldn't just sail straight to England - no one would sail on the Atlantic at that time of year. The Count of Toulouse had a reception party ready for him if he came back the way he went. So really his options were linited. And the odd shipwreck or two reduced any chances he might have had. 

Once he'd been caught in a village outside Vienna, Leopold of Austria took him to Durnstein Castle. The legend of Blondel (Blondel de Nesle? Jean de Nesle?) is that Blondel toured round all the castles looking for Richard by singng a song only he and Richard knew. At last outside Durnstein, he heard Richard signing the  second verse. For a flavour of the songs of Blondel, here's a handy YouTube link. 

Meanwhile Eleanor strived might and main to get him released. There's a superb letter from her toi the Pope, which you can read on my Historical Documents site. 

In point of fact there was no secret about where Richard was.  Henry VIth, Holy Roman Emperor, was beside himself with joy, and soon too, Richard from Leopold. It's a remarkable situation - the most poerful King of Western Europe held to ransom. After a year, Richard was finally released for 100,000 marks, just possibly £2bn in today's money. Throughout the period, Richard was said to be calm and affable. 

John's Treachery

Brother John was keen to take control of England, and had 2 goes at it. In 1191, John positioned himself as the leader of baronial England against the upsatart Justiciar William Longchamps. So much so, that William is run out of town. The replacement though is not John but Walter  of Coutances, who came with letters from Richard and ran the country with Eleanor and a council of the realm. 

The second attempt is 1193-4 while Richard is in prison. John makes an agreement with Philip Augustus of France, and raises the standard of rebellion while Phillip attacks into Normandy. Phillip is quite successful, being joined by several barons from the north and East of Normandy, and taking the castle of Gisors. But  John is a loser, with no English Barons of note joining him. 

Richard's return

Richard comes back in March 1194. He immediately reduces the last of John's castles holding out against him - which is, you guessed it, Nottingham. John has feld to Normandy, and a council of the realm stripped him of all his land as a rebel. Richard focusses on preparing his army, and rebuilding Portsmout as his supply line ot France; and then in May sets sail for Normandy and war. 

The Legend of Robin Hood

It is entirely possible that there was an equivalent of Robin Hood in the 1190's but we'll probably never know. All that we do know is that the legend has changed and evolved to mee the needs of different centuries, and in that regard all the stories are valid. 

But for a good website with all the facts, go to Boldoutlaw. 

And for my favourite bit of my favourtite Robin Hood movie, click on this link to Alan Rickman

 

47 The Fall of Jerusalem

For 50 or so years after the capture of Jerusalem, Outremer was a part of the political and military dance between Christian and Muslim states. Then in 1144, signs of Muslim unity begin to appear through Nur ed Din when Edessa falls, and by 1150 one of the states is wiped off the map. Outremer has passed its high point. But it's not until the 1170's that Saladin, as leader of unified empire that included Egypt and Syria, was able to really threaten the Christian states. In 1187, after the dramatic battle of Hattin, Jerusalem and most of Outremer falls and is left with just a few toe holds on the coast. In 1190, Saladin's army is looking to finish the job when Richard and Phillip arrive at Acre.

47 The Fall of Jerusalem

 

 

 

Suggested links and books

If you want a good simple overview of all the Crusades, there's  the Crusades site by Skip Knox at Boise State University. 

See recommended books in the Bookshop. I'd recommend: 

Steven Runciman 'The History of the First Crusade and the Foundation of the Kingdom of Jerusalem' which treads the perfect line between scholarship and a good story, or 

Jonathan Riley Smith 'The Crusades: A History' which gives a brilliant modern and balanced overview. 

Outremer at its height

There were 4 Crusader states of Outremer at their height. 3 of the states (the Principality of Antioch, County of Edessa and County of Tripoli)  in theory owed allegiance to the King of Jerusalem. According to the Emperor in Constantinople the states owed allegiance to him. 

Meanwhile in Cilicia, i.e. the southern edge of Asia Minor, the Armenians had established a kingdom that despite the best efforts of the Empire managed to create a significant level of independence. 

Great fortresses such as Kerak and Montreal (pictured below) defended the frontiers of all the states. 

 

 

 

 

The Fall of Jerusalem, 1187 and its aftermath

Outremer's existence was made possible by the disunity of the Muslim states, and the strength of the Empire. Slowly these things began to change. In 1144 Zengi took the city of Eedessa, and by 1150 the whole county was no more. Nur ed Din arose as a leader that ruled both Syria and Egypt. His Nephew, was Salah ed Din, who spent many years consolidating his rule until he was ready to rub out the Christian states in a holy war. 

Meanwhile, Manuel Comnenus was defeated at Myriocephalum in 1176, and the strength of the Empire was never to recover. 

Despite Saladin's superiority in numbers, the capture of Jerusalem was not  a foregone conclusion. At the battle of Montgisard in 1177 for example, Saladin's army was surprised and defeated by King Baldwin IV, and Saladin had many distractions from areas such as Mosul. But the crucial blow came at the Horns of Hattin. 

The Horns of Hattin

in June 1187, Saladin's army besieged Tiberias on the sea of Galillee.  According to Raymond of Tripoli, the Crusader army should stay safe at Acre, despite the fact that his wife was trapped at Tiberias. The heat would surely eventually  force him to withdraw. But Reynald of Chatillon and Gerard de Ridefort (Grand Master of the Templars) persuaded the king, Guy of Lusignan to attack. 

On 2nd July, the Crusader army arrived at Sephoria (Saforie on the map). There was water there and a strong position - once again Raymond tried to  avoid disaster, arguing it would be madness to go further. But Guy was persuaded to attack. 

Constant attack from Saladin's horse archers slowed the march. The wells at Turan were dry. By the afternoon of the 3rd July, the Crusader army had done no more that reach Hattin. The Templars begged for an end to the day's march, and when Guy agreed Raymond cried out that the kingdom was lost. 

The army camped at Hattin, where two low hills were called the 'Horns of Hattin. They expected to find water - but again the wells were dry, and by the morning they were surrounded. In their desperation, discipline deserted the Christian army. Thirst drove the Christian footmen to surge towards the road that led to the sea of Galilee and water  and they were cut to pieces.  The knights retreated to a hill, where time and again they drove the Muslim army back until at last they were forced to surrender. 

The defeat was catastrophic. Outremer had always suffered from a shortage of men, and now they had been killed or captured - there was no one left to defend the kingdom. 

The Fall of the Kingdom

On 2nd October 1187 Balian of Ibelin was forced to surrender Jerusalem to Saladin. From there, Saladin swept through most of the kingdom and almost all of the great fortresses fell to him - Ascalon, Montreal, Kerak, Safed, Sidon, Beirut. The exception that saved the Kingdom was Tyre, which was held by the newly arrived Conrad of Montferrat. 

By 1190, Outremer was reduced to a precarious series of toeholds and fortresses - Tyre, Beaufort, Krak des Chevalier, Antioch. Even the leadership was unclear, with Conrad of Montferrat and Guy of Lusignan each claiming the throne. 

Remarkably, Guy and Conrad took the initiative, scraped together a force at besieged Acre in August 1189. At first, outnumbered, their position was precarious. But slowly they were joined by men from abroad, and when Richard arrived in June 1191 the siege was already 18 months old. 

46 Richard and the Road to Outremer

Richard set off from Sicily probably intending to go straight to the Holy Land. But a chance storm enforced a landing at Cyprus, where the locals were not friendly. Which meant that Richard ended up conquering the place in it's entirety, putting it's ruler Isaac Comnenus in chains of silver, and selling the island to the Templars. 

 46 Richard and the Road to Outremer

 Download 46 Richard and the Road to Outremer

An uncomfortable arrival in Sicily 

Well, bringing 25 ships full of soldiers to Messina was probably always going to cause problems - and so it proved, with a series of running battles with the locals. But Richard didn't want trouble on this occasion, so he managed to get things calmed down. He built a wooden castle called Mategriffon - which alloed him to be safe, but also allowed him to stockpile provisions for his army, so they didn't go stealing off the locals. So tempers were eased - though since Nategriffon meant 'Death to the Greeks' I doubt this was the basis for a new, loving relationship...

Sorting out the housekeeping in Sicily

Richard had a few bits of housekeeping to sort out in Sicily when he arrived there in 1190: 

• Get the army ready - his men spent 4 months building siege engines. They grumbled. 
• Sort things out with Philip of France - the Treay of Messina 1190. Richard finally 'fessed up to the fact that he had no intention of marrying Philip's sister Alice; and swore that he could bring any number of witnesses who would prove that Alice had not only been sleeping with Henry, but had had his child. Philip was forced to release him. But he made sure he got off the island before Richard's new betrothed arrived, Berengaria of Navarre. 
• Bring Tancred to book: Tancred was the ruler of Sicily, usurping the throne after the death of the previous ruler William. Richard had no beef with a bit of usurpation - but as it happens, William had been married to Richard's sister Joan, and Tancred had refused to return her dower. So Tancred agreed to repay. 

The conquest of Cyprus

Part of Richard's fleet got lost in a storm, and took refuge in Cyprus. The locals were not friendly; they imprisonned all who landed and took their possessions. 

Richad was having none of that. He turned his part of the fleet around, landed with some knights and laid about him until Isaac and his army ran. In for a penny and so on, so Richard then proceeded to conquer all the coastal towns, with the locals deserting the unpopular Isaac in droves. 

Isaac though wasn't fussed, becuase he had a plan. Richard was on his way to the Holy Land - so as long as he could sit things out safely somewhere he could just wait for Richard to leave. Cyprus is blessed with plenty of impregnable mountain castles...

But Isaac had figured without his daughter - she was captured in Kyrenia castle. Now Isaac might have been a vicious tyrant, but he qs a big softie when it came to his daughter, so he threw himself on Richard's mercy, and surrendered on condition that Richard didn't clap him in irons. 

So Richard had a silver chain made for him. How Isaac laughed. 

It's not clear if Richard evey planned to conquer Cyprus. But it's conquest was a significant part of the succes of the Third Crusade. It remained in Christian hands for 4 centuries, and be a vital source of support for Outremer. Initially Richard sold it to the Templars, but later sold it instead to the ousted King of Jerusalem, Guy de Lusignan. 

Marriage with Berengaria

Richard and Berengaria were married in May 1191 in the chapel of St George in Limassol, and then she was crowned by the Bishop of Evreux. There's no evidence of any great romance here - and of course no children. But equally there's no evidence to suggest that the couple didn't get on. Berengaria is quoted as being the only queen of England never to set foot in England, since she set up shop in Le Mans. I mean why would she visit, it's wet there afterall. It may be that she did visit England  after Richard's death... but that measn she still qualifies. Good pub quiz question. 

45 Packing the Bags

Richard came into the lands of his father and was crowned at Westminster in 1189.  For the next 6 months he was packing his bags,  cleaning the fridge and getting ready to go. He sets up his administration, makes sure his borders are safe and sets off for Sicily. So was Richard a feckless warrior who had no interest in administration ? We talk also about the Jewish communities in England.

45 Packing the bags

 

Did Richard strip England bare of money and desert her without a thought? 

Yes, yes he did.  But he did nothing exceptional, nothing anyone had done before. Take one example; he fires 22 of the 27 sheriffs of Henry's reign, and makes anyone who wants to replace them pay for the job. This sounds bad; but it's all perfectly normal, this is what has happened for ages. And the men who Richard appointed have all been shown to be experienced administrations, not chinless rich fly by nights. So yes he gathered as much money as he could - but then he was raising an army for the greater good of Christendom. But no, he didn't just wander off without making sure the fridge was clean before he left. He left trusted administrators in place. 

Defending the borders

Richard makes arrangements to deal with all his external enemies: 

• Philip of France: Of course I'll marry your sister Alice. And you'llk be with me on Crusade anyway, so that's fine. 
• William the Lion of Scotland: I'll make youhappy by giving you your country back (see the Quit Claim of Canterbury here)

Download The Quitclaim of Canterbury 1190

• Lord Rhys of Deheubarth: You're trying the stitch things up with my brother John, so do your worst (see the map).
• Raymond of Toulouse: I'll marry the daughter of your enemy, Sancho of Navarre, who'll keep an eye on you.l But not until Philip's left for Crusade, and I can afford to tell him I'm not marrying Alice. 
• My Brother John: I'll make you Count of Mortain, Earl of Gloucester and give you so much wealth you'll have no desire to make any trouble. 

 The Jewish communities of England

There were probably no more than 5,000 Jewish living in England at the time of Richard II in 21 cities around England. While the coronation of Richard was going on, the Jewish community came forward to give him a gift. The Christians didn't like this - and riot started. Although the Jews did not live formally in a ghetto, they lived in close communities - and they burned. 

Richard was furious. The Jews had a special relationship with the King - they were under his special protection. They enjoyed their own laws and rights under the king. But they paid a heavy price. Richard may or may not have been cross at the bigotry and violence - but mainly he was worried because the Jews were a major source of Income for him. He levied special taxes from them, and used them for credit. 

So Richard sent stern notes to all the shires warning against any violence, and punished the offenders in London. But none of this prevented the worst of England's pogroms- in 1190 in York. Essentially, 150 Jews took refuge in Clifford's Tower in York. But the mob surrounded the castle, and most of the Jews decided to kill themselves and their families rather than be taken, with hideous echoes of Massada in 70 AD. The rest were offered safe conduct by trhe Christians if they came out - and then were slaughtered when they did. Oddly, the mob then moved on to burn all the Jews' documents - including the record of their debts.  

The Jewish community was isolated by religion and race and profession, and were terribly vulnerable. For a while they at least had the king's protection - but when the kings had finally sucked them dry their last defence would be gone. 

44 Introducing the Lion Heart

To most contemporaries, Richard I was a hero. Since then his reputation has suffered badly, until even Winston Churchill describes him as the worst of our Richards - which given the other two is going some. So we look at how history has treated the guy, his early years, and what he was like. And we look at how to behave in medieval company

44 Introducing Richard I

Richard the Lion Heart in History

 

Ok, the trick is to match the quote with the commentator:

1. ‘all allowances being made for him he was a bad ruler’
2. ‘Richard was not a good king. He cared only for his soldiers’.
3. ‘a bad son, a bad husband and a bad king’
4. ‘Queen of kingdoms while Richard lives…your king is the star under whose radiance you shine.’
5. ‘the worst of all the Richards we ever had…an ill son an ill father an ill brother and a worse king’
6. ‘Whenever he returned to England he always set out again immediately for the Mediterranean and was therefore known as Richard Gare du Lyon’
7. 'If heroism be confined to brutal and ferocious valour, Richard will stand high among the heroes of the age’
8. Above all he possesses three fine qualities: first, exceptional courage and energy, second great generosity and courtliness and thirdly firmness of purpose both in thought and word.

• Edward Gibbon (1737-1794)
• William Stubbs (1825-1901)
• Stephen Runciman (1903-2000)
• Gerald de Barri (Gerald of Wales) (1146-1223)
• Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
• 1066 and all That (1930-)
• Ladybird Histories (um...1960s?)
• Geoffrey Vinsauf (c.1200)

The prize for the winner will be a free boxed set of the History of England and supper with me dressed as the historical figure of your choice (not really).

Richard's Music and Poetry

Richard was steeped in the troubadour culture of South West France; and he is (I think) one of only two monarchs of which we have songs. There are two songs surviving attributed to Richard - sadly I can only find one of them, which is below. Anyone who can send me the other would be very nice. 

 No prisoner ever tells his story objectively; rather, it is cloaked in sorrow. To comfort himself, however, he may write a song: I have many friends, but their gifts are few. Dishonor will be theirs if I remain in prison these two winters; my ransom unpaid. My men and my barons, from England, Normandy, Poitou, and Gascony, know that I would never forsake even the least of my friends. I do no say this as a reproach. Still... I remain a prisoner.

You can also see them performed - here are two links...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_M8sIkCXP8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DczZ_ZKbr_s

And then here's a little something about Bertran de Bourn, a famous troubadour. It's a bit horrible.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ud0Nn0YQdgw

Daniel of Beccles

Daniel wrote his courtesy book at the beginning of the 13th Century with some superb practical advice - some jolly sensible ('Do not hunt for fleas on your arms or bosom in front of the patron or in front of the servants in the hall') and some frankly poorly thought through (Don't attack your enemy while he's on the toilet). If you want to know more, here's a link to a good website.

 http://www.foxearth.org.uk/daniel_of_beccles.html

43 The Greatest of all Monarchs

In 1173-4 Henry was faced by a revolt by his wife, children and many of his leading barons. 1183 to his death in 1189 were years where Henry was increasingly beset by his enemies until at the age of 56 he died, faced with the treachery and disloyalty of his family.

43 The Greatest of all Monarchs

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The Great Revolt, 1173-4

Henry the Young King slipped away from his father's side at Chinon and fled to Louis in Paris. Louis at once recognised him as the rightful king. Eleanor and her teenage sons, Richard and Geoffrey also declared for the young Henry, and rode to Paris to join him. Barons across the empire rose in revolt against Henry's firm control; in Britain, the Earls of Chester, Leicester, Derby and Norfolk were joined by William the Lion of Scotland. 

All were outdone by Henry's speed, his small but effective hardened army of mercenaries, and the support from his royal officials such as Richard de Lucy, Justiciar of England. By August 1174, Henry had subdued the English barons and chased away a humiliated Louis from the walls of Rouen. 

You can pick up the main picture from the map here, or go to this website which has great maps of the war in England. 

At the Treaty of Montlouis, Henry was not vindictive; we tried to solve the problems. Henry the Young King was given a pension to maintain himself; Geoffrey given Brittany and Richard Aquitaine. But Eleanor was to remain in prison for 10 years. William the Lion had to accept Scotland back as a fief of the English Crown - just like an English Earl. 

New Technology and the seige train

One of the reasons Henry was so successful was that unlike the rebels he had an effective siege train. And one of the reasons for this was the Trebuchet, which comes into regular use at this time. The trebuchet, as opposed to the  less powerful Mangonel, used a counterweight to generate it's energy rather than torsion. And of course Henry had a team of experts to help him use the technology effectively. 

Humiliation and Death

In 1180 Phillip II Augustus came the throne of France. His 43 year reign was to transform the map of France. Phillip was helped and supported by Henry during his early years - but Phillip had no intention of returning the  favour, and schemed for Henry's downfall, exploiting the divisions among Henry's sons. In 1182 Henry the Young King died, and in 1186 Geoffrey died. The person who bears the most to blame for Henry's final defeat was Richard, who conspired with Philip and joined in attacks down the Loire in 1188. 

Henry simply refused to fight back. Tired, ill and feverish, Phillip dictated terms to Henry near Chinon. Ill though he was, Henry was furious with his son  he whispered in Richard's ear ‘May the Lord spare me until I have taken vengeance on you’. 

What finished Henry was the news, smugly delivered by Phillip, that his favourite son, John, had joined the revolt against him . Henry died at the age of 56 on 6th July 1189. He had reigned for 34 years and was buried at Fontevraud. 

42 English Justice and The Irish Invasion

Henry's far sighted reform of justice; and Richard Strongbow and Norman invasion of Ireland

So here are two completely unconnected subjects then! Henry is responsible for reforms to the process of English justice that had a long lasting impact on English Justice - including the development of Common law and the Jury system. OK, so he wasn't thinking about the long term futuire, all he wanted to do was to bring more royal revenue in, and more quickly; but none the less, a long term impact he had. The events of his reign would also have a long term impact on Irish politics and society. in 1169. Richard  'Strongbow'  FitzGilbert arrived on the coast of Ireland with the Gaelic king of Leinster, and the Anglo Norman invasion was on.

42 English Justice and Norman Ireland

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The Norman Invasion of Ireland

The Irish political structure in the early 12th Century was composed of a number of Kingdoms. Kingship was based on the Celtic tribal tradition of fealty, and the kings competed for the political supremacy in the form of the High King. Added to that were the areas that had been invaded and ruled by the Norweigians, which now consisted of 5 towns, including Dublin. 

In addition to the secular authority of the crown, Irish society was governed by the Brehon, who interpreted a complex system of customary law, and the the church - in the form of the Abbots of the major monasteries. The Papacy strongly disapproved of the Irish church, whose custom and practice were  not in line with the Gregorian reforms. 

In the mid 11th Century, a struggle for supremacy arose between Rory O'Connor of Connaught and Dermot MacMurroch of Leinster and their respective allies. When Dermot lost out, he sought out Henry in Aquitaine in 1166 and asked for help. Henry didn't have the time - but he allowed Dermot to look for men in England to help him. 

Dermot found Richard FitzGilbert, Earl of Pembroke and Striguil, head of the De Clare family. He would be known to history as Richard Strongbow. In 1170, Strongbow landed near Wexford, and together they re-captured Dublin by 1171 and defeated the High King Rory O'Connor. At which point Henry arrived to make sure the English king wasn't cut out of the deal. 

At the treaty of Windsor in 1175, the basic structure was set; Rory O'Connor was to rule Munster, Connaught, and Ulster, giving fealty to Henry. The English crown was to rule Leinster, the towns and Meath directly through a Justiciar. It sounded logical but was soon blown apart by Norman aggression in 1177 in Munster and East Ulster that set up further Anglo Irish lordships.  Henry had no intention of creating a new empire in Ireland; but the effect of his reign was to set up a partition of Ireland and struggle for control that would have an impact for many centuries. 

The Development of English Justice

 Henry's reforms had a massive impact on Justice. It's true to say that one of his main motivations was to increase the profits the crown made from justice, but he also believed in greater efficiency and consistency. The biggest impact of the great assizes of Clarendon (1166) and Northampton (1176) were:

• The implementation of a system of Royal Justices in Eyre. These itinerant justices saw the rapid development of English common law, and the move away from Baronial justice of variable quality to a centralised system of royal justice
• The development of the Jury 
• A faster, cheaper more effective system of royal writs that drove specific legal processes

 If you want to see the text of the Assize of Clarendon just click here 

 

41 Murder in the Cathedral

After Thomas recanted from his signature of the Constitutions of Clarendon, things got really nasty. Before long, Thomas was in exile, and Henry couldn't care less. But by 1167 the political situation had changed - Henry wanted to crown his son, and the Archbishop of Canterbury wasn't around to do it. 

41 Murder in the Cathedral

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 Thomas escapes

In 1164, Henry decided the gloves were off, and he seriously needed to get rid of his Archbishop. So he called Thomas into court at Northampton, and brought he great council together to hear accusations against him of embezzlement when a Chancellor. Thomas refused to yield. the Bishops panicked and abandoned Thomas. The Barons declared Thomas guilty, but Thomas fled to France

Exile

And there Becket stayed for 6 years, supported by King Louis, shielded by the Pope, largely ignored by Henry and even the English Bishops. Until 1167, when diplomatic activity starts again. Henry was under pressure from the vassals f the empire, and he needed to crown his son. And to do that he needed the Archbishop of Canterbury. 

Henry and Thomas met 3 times before 1170 - at Montmiral, Monmartre and  at Freteval. Basically Henry got nowhere. By the time of this last meeting, at Freteval, Henry had gone ahead and got the Archbishop of York to crown his son, which made Thomas thoroughly resentful. But Henry wanted the dispute finished. So at Freteval he behaved like an old friend, pardoned Thomas and his household and invited him back over. Significantly, Thomas didn't do the same. 

Anathema and the End

Thomas arrived back to an unfriendly welcome. And one of his first acts was highly inflammatory - despite Henry's hard work to heal the breach, Thomas excommunicated the Archbishop of York. You can see here's how Richard Burton saw this fateful event by going to You tube... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ym6Qgj55e3Y.

This is when Henry, at court in Bayeux, said his famous words: 

‘What miserable drones and traitors have I nourished and brought up in my household who allow their lord to be treated in this shameful contempt by a low born cleric!’ 

4 knights  - Reginald fitzUrse, William de Tracy, Richard le Bret and Hugh de Morville set sail for England. On 29^th December, they burst into the Thomas's  palace with their platoon of 12 knights, where the AB was having his supper. They  demanded that Thomas go to Windsor to account for his actions before the young king.

Thomas calmly went into the cathedral. He made no attempt at all to avoid confrontation – he didn’t bolt the door into the church, he made no attempt to negotiate. These minor household knights were nonplussed and confused. In the church, they tried to manhandle him out, but Thomas was strong enough to resist. He yelled insults at the knights – calling them ‘Pimps !’. It was too much for the knights – nothing was going as planned. One of them hacked at Thomas, cutting through the arm of his attendant and into the crown of Becket’s head.

At this point, Thomas is supposed to have resided to the ground saying

For the name of Jesus and the protection of the church I am ready to embrace death.

Personally, I doubt it. I think if you’ve had the crown of your head sliced off, you have little time to do anything more than say ‘ouch’ and then crash to the floor, but I could be wrong. The knights kept at it, just to make absolutely sure – one of them hacked the head right off, another smeared the archiepiscopal brains across the Cathedral floor. 

Aftermath

The murder shocked Christendom. And Henry. Thomas was canonised in 1174 and Canterbury became a place of pilgrimmage. Henry was force to lie in front of the altar in a hairshirt being whipped by his Bishops to atone. But in the background, Pope Alexander and Henry quietly agreed 3 changes to the Constitutions of Clarendon, and then that was that. So what had all the fuss been about? 

Thomas achieved very little. Yes the 'benefit of the clergy' survives to the 19th century, but most of the Constitutions are implemented. But most of all Thomas achieved his favourite thing - fame and notoriety. 

 

40 Bishop Trouble

The 1160's. A time of consolidation of the Angevin Empire, still ruled by a dynamic, young and aggressive Henry. But mainly remembered for the start of the  struggle between church and state - or more accurately, the struggle between Henry and Thomas Becket. We start that well trodden paths, with a bit about 12th Education and Brittany thrown in for good measure

40 Bishop Trouble

The Beckets

Gilbert and Matilda Becket were Normans, who came to London to make their fortunes. Gilbert at first suceeded handsomely, being able to afford a grand house between ironmongers Street and Old Jewry. Young Thomas was given an academic education, but according to all it was the physical life that appealed to him as a young man. He hunted and hawked at the estates of Roger L'aigle, and he loved all forms of sports.

Thomas's early career

Gilbert's business started to struggle, so Thomas would have to earn his keep. After a stint in the household of a family friend, Thomas was placed int eh household of Theobald of Bec, the Archbishop of Canterbury. This was something of a coup, and Thomas made the most of it, rising to become an Archdeacon. Then, Theobald decided he needed a placeman in the houshold of the king; so when the Chancellorship of England came up, Theobald went and spoke to the king

Chancellor

Henry and Thomas got on like a house on fire by all accounts - giggling and playing like children, Thomas kept a magnificant household, dressed in the grandest of clothes, advocated the most aggressive of foreign adventures - and generally just seemed to be a man of the material rather than spiritual world.

Archbishop

But oh dear, when he put on the robes of the Archbishop he also donned the hairshirt. His appointment was not well received by the Bishops, who knew full well they were getting Henry's man. So Thomas set out to prove his independence, by opposing the king at every turn. It came to a head at Westminister when Thomas led the Bishops in opposing an unconditional oath to support the customs of the realm. Henry was livid.

The Constitutions of Clarendon

Henry wanted to clarity about process of justice and the relationship between church and state. The Consitutions were meant to do this - a writing down of the English customs. He also wanted to push Thomas's nose in it, by forcing him to submit. Thomas and the English bishops were subjected to 3 days of abuse and pressure from Henry and the lay barons, but they stood up to it. Then Thomas bottled it, and signed them - leaving his bishops leaderless,

But, on the road outside, Thomas recanted. I suspect he only signed the thing to get out of Clarendon. Henry was now out to get rid of his Archbishop.

You can download the Constitutions of Clarendon below. I have put some notes into the text for explanation.

Download The Constitutions of Clarendon

Medieval Education

School: was quite common, but revolved often around there being a local priest or monastery with a passion to provide the school. The curriculum was focussed on the acquisition of Latin as it's main aim

University: from 1096, Oxford is clearly one of the leading centres of higher education in England. But Universities as we think of them don't yet exist; what we have is towns with a concentration of Masters. The basic curriculum is the trivium, i.e. grammar, logic and rhetoric, and the quadrivium, i.e. arithmetic, geometry, music and astronomy. You could keep going and get into law, theology or medicine. 

39 Ruling the Angevin Empire

Bear in mind at all times that Henry, while being a Good King, was a tyrant. Still, he was a tyrant who ran a mean administrative system for the time. This week, the nature of the Angevin empire, how it was ruled, and a bit about travel and economy.

39 Ruling the Angevin Empire

The Character of Henry II

We are blessed with many descriptions of Henry, and many excellent chroniclers for the period. Here's just one of those descriptions, from a man called Peter of Blois. Peter himself is an interesting character; he probably wrote some of the latin seuqneces that are used in Carl Orf's fantastic 'Carmins Brana'. He serves as a diplomat and secretary under William Rufus, Henry II and Eleanor, and died in 1211. The description is a long one, so I have saved it as a PDF here. 

Download Peter of Blois on Henry II 

The Nature of the Angevin Empire

Think of it in 4 bits: 

The Anglo Norman State: Normandy and England. By and large loyal to Henry, well administered. Key flash point along the river Seine, with French and Norman Vexin being 'badlands' between the French and Norman monarchies. 

Anjou: Traditional homeland of the Angevins, and again very loyal to Henry. Three countries, Anjou, Main and Touraine. The big castles along the Loire - Tours, Chinon - are another flash point. 

Brittany: Claimed by Henry as an overlord, and William the Conqueror and his sons had also. But this is not without dispute and engages Henry in frequent trouble.

Aquitaine: A vast inheritance, loyal to Eleanor but only if she leaves them alone to to their thing. Very suspicious of the Angevins in their attempt to impose some order on them. And there are plenty of internal arguments going on between the various counts and families. Key flash point is the county of Berry, which had a critical confluence of roads and which was disputed between the Franch and Angevin kings. 

The Cog

Work  horse of the early medieval carrying trade. The Cog replaced the existing Viking style ships during the 12th Century. It's advantages were the stern rudder; the flat bottom which allowed easy loading at low tide; and the high sides which made it easier to defend from pirates. Plus, crucially, it had a greater carrying capacity. The Cog was used for war and trade. 

38 Born of the Devil - the Angevins

Geniuses, devils, spoilt brats, villains, heroes; war, sex, violence, bravery, treachery, peace, reform... the Angevins that founded the Plantagenet dynasty have it all, in spades. Not so much history, as soap opera. This week we kick things off with the arrival of Henry II and Eleanor on the English throne.

38 Born of the Devil - The Angevins

 

The marriage of the millennium

In 1152, Henry of Anjou and Eleanor of Aquitaine married at the Cathedral of St Peter in Poitiers. The church you see there is not the one - Henry started a new church in 1162.

Eleanor of Aquitaine split opinion across Christendom. One half of them saw the queen of culture and sophistication ; the other saw her as irresponsible, wild and undisciplined. Gervase of Canterbury described her as 'an exceedingly shrewd woman... but fickle'. So maybe  both sides were right. 

Eleanor was married to Louis VII of France in 1137. Louis was wild for her, but he was something of an odd fish. Nice enough you understand, but very affected by the burning by his troops of a church full of women and children - which isn't so very odd. But as he had his head shaved to make him look like a monk and became increasingly devout, Eleanor began to tire. She behaved badly on crusade - taking a gaggle of noble ladies and then suspected of having an affair with her uncle. Plus, the ultimate crime, she only gave Louis 2 girls as children. Louis needed a male heir and to his pain and distress had the marriage annulled by the Pope. 

8 weeks later she was married to Henry. She met him in Paris once; she needed a protector to keep all those eager suitors away from her door; and if you were going to jump ship from the King of France and stay at the same level, your options were limited anyway. 

The political map transformed

The marriage transformed the political map. In 1150, Louis was the dominant power in western europe. Look at the map here based on the situation after the marriage. Add back all the lands of Aquitaine to the French lands - i.e. everything south of Anjou and Tourraine except Toulouse and you'll see what I mean. 

The New Kingdom

Henry was crowned king of England in 1154. He then spent the first few years of his life establishing his new kingdom. This meant this thing really: 

1. Getting the English barons back into line - down within a few years
2. Sorting out his brothers Geoffrey and William - likewise
3. Getting even more territory if he could

Coronation Charter

However, that's not what he said on his coronation. Henry was in a strong position when he came to the throne - so he didn't have to give too much away...

Download Charter of Liberties of Henry II 1154

A scandalous marriage

Henry and Louis tried to play nice, and Henry's eldest son Henry was betrothed to Marguerite, daughter of Louis. Oh, Henry was 3, Marguerite 6 months old. The dowry was significant - the all-important Vexin, key to Normandy, given away by Geoffrey Plantagenet. But Louis wasn't worried - hey, it was years away. But Henry tricked him - in 1160 he had the Pope allow him to go ahead with the marriage, and took the castles back. Now Henry's empire looked secure and complete. 

Clothing

Lot's of rather formless material is the super-summary. Women, long dresses down to the floor, hung from the shoulders, lots of sashes and ties to keep it all together. Hanky (wimple rather) on the head. Blokes, very much the same - soft leather slipper, long tunic covering everything up. Plus fashions didn't change quickly in the way the y do today - so it'll take us some time before things get more exciting. 

37 12th Century Life - Village, Town and Trade

12th Century England was envied for it's fertility and yes it's climate. Any during the 12th century, the population of England and its towns and villages expand. But by and large, this is expansion without growth, and for many average income falls. 

 

37 12th C Life - Village Town and Trade

Population growth

...is difficult to calculate. But let's take the higher end estimates: 

• 1086: 2.25 million
• 1215: 5.7m 
• 1348: 7m 

And you know what happens next !

The 12th Century society and village

What defined your status in medieval England was whether you were free or unfree, and how much land you had. 

Some rough proportions: About - 

• 15% of people were free
• 40% of people were Villani (villeins) - they had substantial land (c. 30 acres) but owed service
• 35% were cottars or bordars - unfree, less land
• 10% were slaves or as near as darn it

Not all villages were the nucleated village that we think of today - but it's far and away the most common model. Each village was composed of a number of tofts (or crofts) - areas of 1/4 - 1 Acre, rented from the lord. each croft held the medieval house - typically 24 x 12 feet, 2 rooms, 5+ people and not a lot else. 

An original source - The Manor of Elton

Somewhere between 1154 and 1189, the Abbot of Ramsey had a survey completed of the Manor of Elton in East Anglia. Attached, is the porigianl text, which compared the people, income and service of the people in time of Henry 1 and present day (i.e. HenryII). I though you might be interested to see it, so I have retyped it, with some notes. 

Download Survey of the Manor of Elton

Towns and Trade

The wealth of England was based on wool - something that's not going to change for a number of centuries. During the 12th century the number of  towns grows - possibly doubles in fact, as every Norman lord tries to make a bit of cash. Other key trades included the wine trade from Rouen and increasingly Gascony in South West France, and the export of Tin from Cornwall.