And now, the man, the myth, the legend... Richard the Lionheart... one of the WORST kings of England. (Yeah, didn't expect that, did you?)
Richard usurped power from his father, more or less in the name of his mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine. He had no love for England. In fact, he spoke almost no English at all. His passion was war. It's pretty much all he did.
- Was the middle son of five, but his two older brothers died before the war with their father was finished and resolved, leaving Richard the prime candidate.
- Was usually considered the favorite son of his mother, and embraced her ideals of a "chivalric knight in shining armor."
- Was incredibly popular with women as a teenager.
- Was named "Coeur de Leon" or "Lionheart" due to his love of battle and tactics.
- Was well over 6 feet tall, which was freakishly tall for the times. (By contrast, his brother John was about 5 foot 5.)
- Was rumored to be anti-jew, when in fact, he was not. The rumor gained so much traction that a panic ensued in London. People thought the King had ordered the murder of all jews in England, and set forth to convert or kill. When Richard heard about this, he put the perpetrators of the violence to death instead. This had a reverse effect of making people hate the jews even more, and killings occurred fairly regularly.
- Started his own crusade. It was pretty much a continual failure, with Saladin thwarting him again and again. Although he reached Jerusalem, he never took it. However, his tactics in small unit combat were considered brilliant.
- Used England as a piggy bank, draining its funds dry solely to fund his adventures.
- Gained a begrudging respect from the Muslims for his terseness and tenacity. His reputation and bravery were enough for Saladin to make a deal, ending the 3rd crusade.
- Stupidly decided to have an "adventure" on the way home. Traveled alone and in disguise. Got captured by an enemy, Henry du Leon. England had to literally pay a "King's Ransom" to get King Richard back.
- His mother taxed the people ridiculously to raise the money. The King of France and Richard's brother John offered money to NOT free him, instead.... he wound up being held for 2 years.
- In the meantime, his brother John rebelled and took over the realm. (You might remember this as the plot of Disney's "Robin Hood.") England descended into chaos.... again.
- Upon his return, instead of ruling England, he immediately started a war against a french rebel baron and left England, again.
- Bravely decided to walk around the outside of a besieged castle, observing the damage his sappers had done. While one archer was distracting him with a frying pan, (literally,) another archer shot Richard in the neck with his crossbow. The surgeon botched the operation to remove it, and Richard died.
- His last wishes were to pardon the boy who had shot him. Rather than listening to his final wishes, Richard's men flayed the boy alive.
- Spent no more than 6 or 7 months in England, ever. He considered himself French, and detested England.
- Still somehow became a hero in the eyes of his people... the barons especially liked him, because they got to rule in the name of their absentee king.
- Was succeeded by John, his youngest brother
Richard usurped power from his father, more or less in the name of his mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine. He had no love for England. In fact, he spoke almost no English at all. His passion was war. It's pretty much all he did.
- Was the middle son of five, but his two older brothers died before the war with their father was finished and resolved, leaving Richard the prime candidate.
- Was usually considered the favorite son of his mother, and embraced her ideals of a "chivalric knight in shining armor."
- Was incredibly popular with women as a teenager.
- Was named "Coeur de Leon" or "Lionheart" due to his love of battle and tactics.
- Was well over 6 feet tall, which was freakishly tall for the times. (By contrast, his brother John was about 5 foot 5.)
- Was rumored to be anti-jew, when in fact, he was not. The rumor gained so much traction that a panic ensued in London. People thought the King had ordered the murder of all jews in England, and set forth to convert or kill. When Richard heard about this, he put the perpetrators of the violence to death instead. This had a reverse effect of making people hate the jews even more, and killings occurred fairly regularly.
- Started his own crusade. It was pretty much a continual failure, with Saladin thwarting him again and again. Although he reached Jerusalem, he never took it. However, his tactics in small unit combat were considered brilliant.
- Used England as a piggy bank, draining its funds dry solely to fund his adventures.
- Gained a begrudging respect from the Muslims for his terseness and tenacity. His reputation and bravery were enough for Saladin to make a deal, ending the 3rd crusade.
- Stupidly decided to have an "adventure" on the way home. Traveled alone and in disguise. Got captured by an enemy, Henry du Leon. England had to literally pay a "King's Ransom" to get King Richard back.
- His mother taxed the people ridiculously to raise the money. The King of France and Richard's brother John offered money to NOT free him, instead.... he wound up being held for 2 years.
- In the meantime, his brother John rebelled and took over the realm. (You might remember this as the plot of Disney's "Robin Hood.") England descended into chaos.... again.
- Upon his return, instead of ruling England, he immediately started a war against a french rebel baron and left England, again.
- Bravely decided to walk around the outside of a besieged castle, observing the damage his sappers had done. While one archer was distracting him with a frying pan, (literally,) another archer shot Richard in the neck with his crossbow. The surgeon botched the operation to remove it, and Richard died.
- His last wishes were to pardon the boy who had shot him. Rather than listening to his final wishes, Richard's men flayed the boy alive.
- Spent no more than 6 or 7 months in England, ever. He considered himself French, and detested England.
- Still somehow became a hero in the eyes of his people... the barons especially liked him, because they got to rule in the name of their absentee king.
- Was succeeded by John, his youngest brother