Shortly after becoming king, Richard The Lionheart began to make preparations for The Third Crusade.Among many considerations Richard had to think about was his one remaining brother, John. To keep John content, Richard gave his brother the counties of Cornwall, Devon, Nottinghamshire and Lancashire. John was also made the Count of Mortain and, on top of this, a marriage was arranged for him to Isabella of Gloucester, the daughter of the Earl of Gloucester. On Richard’s part, this was extremely generous. But why? William of Newburgh claimed it was because of Richard’s deep affection for John. Richard did have some brotherly affection for John but his motives go beyond that. Richard didn’t trust John and these gifts of lands and a wife was essentially a bribe. And given Richard’s own behaviour during the reign of his and John’s father, Henry II, to expect loyalty from John now would be naive. Far from dissuading John from making a power grab, Richard only added to John’s greed.
Richard, despite whatever fears and suspicions he may have had, set off for the Crusade where he would establish a reputation as one of the greatest generals that the Medieval world had ever seen or ever would see. So feared did Richard become that Muslim parents would warn their children, if they didn’t behave, then the King of England would get them. Despite his brilliance and numerous gains on the Crusade, ultimately the success of the venture was limited. The end goal of retaking Jerusalem, which had fallen back into Muslim hands in 1187, failed with Richard reluctant to launch an assault on the Holy City despite the urgings of many around him. Richard felt he lacked the manpower to retake Jerusalem. But, in the king of England’s mind, other factors were at play. One of them was John.
One of the Crusade’s achievements was capturing the City of Acre. The siege was threatening to drag on aimlessly until Richard’s arrival which swung things in favour of the Christians. Once the capture was complete, the French king, Philip II, decided that now was the right time for him to return home. This did not go down well with Richard who smelled a rat. Richard, thanks to his father, held significant lands in France and it was plain that they were under threat if Philip did indeed return home and Richard remained in the East. Despite Richard’s pleas, Philip abandoned the Crusade, leaving Richard, fuming, to lead the Crusade by himself. Potentially, the king of England could have followed the French king westwards but, in his eyes, the Crusade was God’s work and that took priority over any earthly possessions.
When Richard did leave the Crusade, in 1192, he encountered more serious problems on the way home. He was kidnapped by the Archduke of Austria before being handed over to the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI. This now potentially left the path clear for an alliance between John and Philip. However, despite being far away from his kingdom and now being a captive, Richard still maintained a strong grip on his kingship and he wrote to the church in regarding the vacant archbishopric of Canterbury. Despite his current predicament, Richard still managed to assert his authority as king. Richard also had another trump card up his sleeve. His energetic and formidable mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine, with whom he’d always been close. It was Eleanor who kept John, and a potential alliance with Philip, in check and Eleanor was pivotal in raising the money required to get Richard released. When it was announced, in 1194, that the king was to be freed, Eleanor travelled to Germany to make sure it was done. Despite John’s plots and plans, Richard, on his return, made it clear to his brother that he forgave him, calling John “just a child”, despite the fact that John was, by now, in his late 20s. Although John remained loyal to Richard for the rest of his reign, it was clear that he would struggle to govern a realm if presented the chance. He was treacherous, greedy, vindictive, self serving and, at times, cruel. Richard, however, made John his heir despite having a nephew who ranked higher up in the succession then John. And it was John who took the crown. His reign would change the course of English history forever.
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I've always been rather puzzled by Richard's decision to make John his heir rather than his nephew, Arthur of Brittany. Actually, I'm a little puzzled as to why Richard just didn't execute John as soon as he returned to England. I'm not aware that Richard had any particular affection or respect for his brother. The only reason I can see is the fact that John was already a grown man when Richard died and Arthur was a boy of 12. Surely, Richard didn't expect to die so young. I'm not sure, did Richard only name John as heir when on his deathbed? Thanks again for another interesting blog.
ReplyDeleteRichard's decision to make John his heir makes absolutely zero sense. He certainly did have affection for John but he almost treated him like a child. Richard would have known better than anybody that John couldn't be trusted. Perhaps he felt guilty that John, as the youngest son, had spent much of his early life being overlooked and lacked lands and power. But even that's just a guess. Making John his heir is another blemish on Richard's already patchy record.
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