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William Shakespeare,E. A. J. Honigmann | 256 pages | 24 Mar 2010 | Bloomsbury Publishing PLC | 9781903436097 | English | London, United Kingdom 10 Facts About King John – History Hit

John unsuccessfully attempted a rebellion against the royal administrators of his brother, King Richard, whilst Richard was participating in the , but he was proclaimed king after Richard died in He came to an agreement with Philip II of to recognise John's possession of the continental Angevin lands at the peace treaty of Le Goulet in When war with France broke out again in , John achieved early victories, but shortages of military resources and his treatment of Norman , Breton , and nobles resulted in the collapse of his empire in northern France in He spent much of the next decade attempting to regain these lands, raising huge revenues, reforming his armed forces and rebuilding continental alliances. His judicial reforms had a lasting effect on the English common law system, as well as providing an additional source of revenue. John's attempt to defeat Philip in failed because of the French victory over John's allies at the battle of . When he returned to England, John faced a rebellion by many of his barons, who were unhappy with his fiscal policies and his treatment of many of England's most powerful nobles. Although both John and the barons agreed to the peace treaty in , neither side complied with its conditions. It soon descended into a stalemate. John died of contracted whilst on campaign in eastern England during late ; supporters of his son Henry III went on to achieve victory over Louis and the rebel barons the following year. Contemporary chroniclers were mostly critical of John's performance as king, and his reign has since been the subject of significant debate and periodic revision by historians from the 16th century onwards. Historian Jim Bradbury has summarised the current historical opinion of John's positive qualities, observing that John is today usually considered a "hard-working administrator, an able man, an able general". John was born on 24 December Some of the traditional ties between parts of the empire such as and England were slowly dissolving over time. Although the custom of primogeniture , under which an eldest son would inherit all his father's lands, was slowly becoming more widespread across , it was less popular amongst the Norman kings of England. Henry had often allied himself with the against France, making the feudal relationship even more challenging. Shortly after his birth, John was passed from Eleanor into the care of a wet nurse , a traditional practice for medieval noble families. During John's early years, Henry attempted to resolve the question of his succession. had been crowned King of England in , but was not given any formal powers by his father; he was also promised Normandy and Anjou as part of his future inheritance. His brother Richard was to be appointed the Count of Poitou with control of , whilst his brother Geoffrey was to become the Duke of Brittany. In John's elder brothers, backed by Eleanor, rose in revolt against Henry in the short-lived rebellion of to Growing irritated with his subordinate position to Henry II and increasingly worried that John might be given additional lands and castles at his expense, [21] Henry the Young King travelled to and allied himself with Louis VII. John had spent the conflict travelling alongside his father, and was given widespread possessions across the as part of the Montlouis settlement; from then onwards, most observers regarded John as Henry II's favourite child, although he was the furthest removed in terms of the royal succession. In he appropriated the estates of the late Earl of Cornwall and gave them to John. Henry the Young King fought a short war with his brother Richard in over the status of England, Normandy and Aquitaine. In John made his first visit to Ireland , accompanied by knights and a team of administrators. Ireland had only recently been conquered by Anglo-Norman forces, and tensions were still rife between Henry II, the new settlers and the existing inhabitants. The problems amongst John's wider family continued to grow. His elder brother Geoffrey died during a tournament in , leaving a posthumous son, Arthur , and an elder daughter, Eleanor. Richard began discussions about a potential alliance with Philip II in Paris during , and the next year Richard gave to Philip in exchange for support for a war against Henry. When Richard became king in September , he had already declared his intention of joining the Third Crusade. The King named his four-year-old nephew Arthur as his heir. The political situation in England rapidly began to deteriorate. Longchamp refused to work with Puiset and became unpopular with the English nobility and clergy. The political turmoil continued. John hoped to acquire Normandy, Anjou and the other lands in France held by Richard in exchange for allying himself with Philip. He agreed to set aside his wife, Isabella of Gloucester, and marry Philip's sister, Alys , in exchange for Philip's support. For the remaining years of Richard's reign, John supported his brother on the continent, apparently loyally. After Richard's death on 6 April there were two potential claimants to the Angevin throne: John, whose claim rested on being the sole surviving son of Henry II, and young Arthur I of Brittany, who held a claim as the son of John's elder brother Geoffrey. Arthur was supported by the majority of the Breton, and Anjou nobles and received the support of Philip II, who remained committed to breaking up the Angevin territories on the continent. Warfare in Normandy at the time was shaped by the defensive potential of castles and the increasing costs of conducting campaigns. After his , John moved south into France with military forces and adopted a defensive posture along the eastern and southern Normandy borders. John and Philip negotiated the May Treaty of Le Goulet ; by this treaty, Philip recognised John as the rightful heir to Richard in respect to his French possessions, temporarily abandoning the wider claims of his client, Arthur. In order to remarry, John first needed to abandon his wife Isabella, Countess of Gloucester; the King accomplished this by arguing that he had failed to get the necessary papal dispensation to marry the Countess in the first place — as a cousin, John could not have legally wed her without this. Contemporary chroniclers argued that John had fallen deeply in love with her, and John may have been motivated by desire for an apparently beautiful, if rather young, girl. Isabella, however, was already engaged to Hugh IX of Lusignan , an important member of a key Poitou noble family and brother of Raoul I, Count of Eu , who possessed lands along the sensitive eastern Normandy border. Although John was the Count of Poitou and therefore the rightful feudal lord over the Lusignans, they could legitimately appeal John's actions in France to his own feudal lord, Philip. He argued that he need not attend Philip's court because of his special status as the , who was exempt by feudal tradition from being called to the French court. John initially adopted a defensive posture similar to that of avoiding open battle and carefully defending his key castles. Accompanied by William de Roches, his seneschal in Anjou, he swung his mercenary army rapidly south to protect her. John's position in France was considerably strengthened by the victory at Mirebeau, but John's treatment of his new prisoners and of his ally, William de Roches, quickly undermined these gains. De Roches was a powerful Anjou noble, but John largely ignored him, causing considerable offence, whilst the King kept the rebel leaders in such bad conditions that twenty-two of them died. Further desertions of John's local allies at the beginning of steadily reduced his freedom to manoeuvre in the region. After this, Arthur's fate remains uncertain, but modern historians believe he was murdered by John. The eastern border region of Normandy had been extensively cultivated by Philip and his predecessors for several years, whilst Angevin authority in the south had been undermined by Richard's giving away of various key castles some years before. John's mother Eleanor died the following month. The nature of government under the Angevin monarchs was ill-defined and uncertain. John's predecessors had ruled using the principle of vis et voluntas "force and will" , taking executive and sometimes arbitrary decisions, often justified on the basis that a king was above the law. John inherited a sophisticated system of administration in England, with a range of royal agents answering to the Royal Household: the Chancery kept written records and communications; the Treasury and the Exchequer dealt with income and expenditure respectively; and various judges were deployed to deliver justice around the kingdom. The administration of justice was of particular importance to John. Several new processes had been introduced to English law under Henry II, including novel disseisin and mort d'ancestor. One of John's principal challenges was acquiring the large sums of money needed for his proposed campaigns to reclaim Normandy. Revenue from the royal demesne was inflexible and had been diminishing slowly since the Norman conquest. Matters were not helped by Richard's sale of many royal properties in , and taxation played a much smaller role in royal income than in later centuries. English kings had widespread feudal rights which could be used to generate income, including the scutage system, in which feudal military service was avoided by a cash payment to the King. He derived income from fines, court fees and the sale of charters and other privileges. The result was a sequence of innovative but unpopular financial measures. At the start of John's reign there was a sudden change in prices , as bad harvests and high demand for food resulted in much higher prices for grain and animals. This inflationary pressure was to continue for the rest of the and had long-term economic consequences for England. The result was political unrest across the country. John's royal household was based around several groups of followers. One group was the familiares regis , his immediate friends and knights who travelled around the country with him. They also played an important role in organising and leading military campaigns. This intensified under John's rule, with many lesser nobles arriving from the continent to take up positions at court; many were mercenary leaders from Poitou. This trend for the King to rely on his own men at the expense of the barons was exacerbated by the tradition of Angevin royal ira et malevolentia "anger and ill-will" and John's own personality. John was deeply suspicious of the barons, particularly those with sufficient power and wealth to potentially challenge the King. John's personal life greatly affected his reign. Contemporary chroniclers state that John was sinfully lustful and lacking in piety. None of his known illegitimate children were born after he remarried, and there is no actual documentary proof of adultery after that point, although John certainly had female friends amongst the court throughout the period. John married Isabella whilst she was relatively young — her exact date of birth is uncertain, and estimates place her between at most 15 and more probably towards nine years old at the time of her marriage. Chroniclers recorded that John had a "mad infatuation" with Isabella, and certainly the King and Queen had conjugal relationships between at least and ; they had five children. John's lack of religious conviction has been noted by contemporary chroniclers and later historians, with some suspecting that he was at best impious, or even atheistic , a very serious issue at the time. They commented on the paucity of John's charitable donations to the Church. During the remainder of his reign, John focused on trying to retake Normandy. John spent much of securing England against a potential French invasion. John had already begun to improve his Channel forces before the loss of Normandy and he rapidly built up further maritime capabilities after its collapse. Most of these ships were placed along the Cinque Ports , but Portsmouth was also enlarged. During the truce of —, John focused on building up his financial and military resources in preparation for another attempt to recapture Normandy. He launched his new fleet to attack the French at the harbour of Damme. In the late 12th and early 13th centuries the border and political relationship between England and Scotland was disputed, with the kings of Scotland claiming parts of what is now northern England. He refused William's request for the earldom of Northumbria , but did not intervene in Scotland itself and focused on his continental problems. John remained Lord of Ireland throughout his reign. He drew on the country for resources to fight his war with Philip on the continent. Simmering tensions remained with the native Irish leaders even after John left for England. Royal power in Wales was unevenly applied, with the country divided between the marcher lords along the borders, royal territories in Pembrokeshire and the more independent native Welsh lords of North Wales. John took a close interest in Wales and knew the country well, visiting every year between and and marrying his illegitimate daughter, Joan , to the Welsh prince . Llywelyn came to terms that included an expansion of John's power across much of Wales, albeit only temporarily. The Norman and Angevin kings had traditionally exercised a great deal of power over the church within their territories. From the s onwards, however, successive popes had put forward a reforming message that emphasised the importance of the Church being "governed more coherently and more hierarchically from the centre" and established "its own sphere of authority and jurisdiction, separate from and independent of that of the lay ruler", in the words of historian Richard Huscroft. John wanted , the Bishop of Norwich and one of his own supporters, to be appointed Archbishop of Canterbury, but the cathedral chapter for Canterbury Cathedral claimed the exclusive right to elect the Archbishop. They favoured Reginald , the chapter's sub-prior. John refused Innocent's request that he consent to Langton's appointment, but the Pope consecrated Langton anyway in June John was incensed about what he perceived as an abrogation of his customary right as monarch to influence the election. Innocent then placed an on England in March , prohibiting clergy from conducting religious services, with the exception of baptisms for the young, and confessions and absolutions for the dying. John treated the interdict as "the equivalent of a papal declaration of war". Innocent gave some dispensations as the crisis progressed. By , though, John was increasingly worried about the threat of French invasion. Under mounting political pressure, John finally negotiated terms for a reconciliation, and the papal terms for submission were accepted in the presence of the papal legate Pandulf Verraccio in May at the Templar Church at Dover. This resolution produced mixed responses. Although some chroniclers felt that John had been humiliated by the sequence of events, there was little public reaction. Tensions between John and the barons had been growing for several years, as demonstrated by the plot against the King. John, increasingly weak and uncertain, grows ill. Only the Bastard fights on until news comes that John has been poisoned by a traitorous monk. After Prince Henry arrives to care for his dying father and accept his imminent accession to the throne, the Bastard at last accepts that peace is at hand and pledges fealty to the new king. King John Article Additional Info. Home Literature Plays. Print Cite. Facebook Twitter. Give Feedback External Websites. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article requires login. External Websites. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. He was also granted the lordship of Ireland , which he visited from April to late , committing youthful political indiscretions from which he acquired a reputation for reckless irresponsibility. For obscure reasons, John deserted Henry for Richard. On receiving the news in January that Richard, on his way back from the Crusade, had been imprisoned in Germany, John allied himself with King Philip II Augustus of France and attempted unsuccessfully to seize control of England. He was reconciled to Richard in May and recovered some of his estates, including Mortain and Ireland, in , but his full rehabilitation came only after the Bretons had surrendered Arthur to Philip II in This led Richard to recognize John as his heir. His first wife, Isabella of Gloucester, was never crowned, and in the marriage was dissolved on grounds of , both parties being great-grandchildren of Henry I. This politically conceived marriage provoked the Lusignans into rebellion the next year; they appealed to Philip II, who summoned John to appear before his court. In the general war that followed his failure to answer this summons, John had a temporary success at Mirebeau in August , when Arthur of Brittany was captured, but Normandy was quickly lost These failures, foreshadowed under Henry II and Richard, were brought about by the superiority of French resources and the increasing strain on those of England and Normandy. This factor, coinciding with the death of the chancellor and archbishop of Canterbury , , gave his government a much more personal stamp, which was accentuated by the promotion of members of his household to important office. John, King of England - Wikipedia

He had to fight and negotiate, and he was challenged by his nephew Arthur. This would have a crucial impact later in the reign. The marriage to Isabella of Gloucester was dissolved because of alleged consanguinity, and John looked for a new bride. But, while marrying Isabella was a provocation to Hugh, John continued to snub and anger the man, pushing his rebellion. In his position as French King, Philip ordered John to his court as he could any other noble who held lands from him , but John refused. John began by capturing a mass of the leading rebels who were sieging his mother but threw the advantage away. However, one of the prisoners, his nephew Arthur of Brittany, mysteriously died, leading most to conclude murder by John. John was in danger of losing all the lands his predecessors had gained on the continent, although he managed small gains during to stabilize things. After being forced both to reside in England more permanently and to produce more money from his kingdom for war, John proceeded to develop and strengthen the royal administration. On the one hand, this provided the crown with more resources and strengthened royal power, on the other it upset nobles and made John, already a military failure, even more unpopular. John toured extensively within England, hearing many court cases in person: he had a great personal interest in, and a great ability for, the administration of his kingdom, although the goal was always more money for the crown. John objected, citing traditional English rights, but in the following argument, Innocent excommunicated John. The latter now started draining the church of funds, raising a large sum he partly spent on a new navy — John has been called the founder of the English navy - before conceding that the pope would be a useful ally against the French and coming to an agreement in John then handed his kingdom over to the Pope, who bestowed it on John as a vassal for a thousand marks a year. While this might seem curious, it was really a cunning way to get Papal support against both France, and against the rebel barons of By the end of , John had succeeded in mending his bridges with the top of the church, but his actions had alienated many further down and his lords. It also angered the monastic chroniclers and writers historians have to use and may be one reason why so many of the modern histories have been so critical of King John, while the modern historians are increasingly peeling criticism away. Well, not all of them. While many lords of England had grown discontented with John, only a few had rebelled against him, despite widespread baronial discontent stretching back to before John took the throne. However, in John returned to France with an army and failed to do any damage except gain a truce, having once more been let down by vacillating barons and the failures of allies. When he returned a minority of barons took the chance to rebel and demand a charter of rights, and when they were able to take London in , John was forced into negotiations as he looked for a solution. These talks took place at Runnymede, and on June 15, , an agreement was made on the Articles of the Barons. Later known as Magna Carta, this became one of the pivotal documents in English, and to some extents western, history. In the short term, Magna Carta lasted just three months before the war between John and the rebels continued. This allowed time for the rebels to appeal to Prince Louis of France, for him to gather an army, and for a successful landing to take place. As John retreated north again rather than fight Louis, he may have lost a portion of his treasury and definitely fell ill and died. Until the revisionism of the twentieth century, John was rarely well regarded by writers and historians. He lost wars and land and is seen as the loser by giving the Magna Carta. But John had a keen, incisive mind, which he applied well to government. Unfortunately, this was negated by an insecurity about people who could challenge him, by his attempts to control barons through fear and debt rather than conciliation, through his lack of magnanimity and insults. It is difficult to be positive about a man who lost generations of royal expansion, which will always be clearly chartable. The title figure provides the central focus of the play and is surrounded by many contrasting characters—each able to influence him, each bringing irresolvable and individual problems into dramatic focus. As the play begins, King John, with the aid of his mother, has usurped the royal title of his nephew Arthur; the king of France, on threat of war, has demanded that Arthur be placed on the throne. Two brothers, Philip and Robert Faulconbridge, enter arguing over their inheritance. Eleanor recognizes the resemblance between Philip and her late son King Richard Coeur-de-lion. An English victory delivers young Arthur into the hands of King John. John orders Hubert de Burgh to kill the captive Arthur. After Hubert finds that he cannot carry out such an inhumane command and allows the child to survive, Arthur dies in a tragic fall while trying to escape. Cardinal Pandulph, having urged the French to support the papacy against the rebellious John, does succeed in encouraging a French invasion of England only to discover, when John has reluctantly submitted to the papacy, that the French dauphin will not agree to call off his invading forces. The war thus becomes an exercise in futility on all sides. John, increasingly weak and uncertain, grows ill. Only the Bastard fights on until news comes that John has been poisoned by a traitorous monk. After Prince Henry arrives to care for his dying father and accept his imminent accession to the throne, the Bastard at last accepts that peace is at hand and pledges fealty to the new king. King John Article Additional Info. Home Literature Plays. Print Cite. Facebook Twitter. A Biography of King John of England

After Hubert finds that he cannot carry out such an inhumane command and allows the child to survive, Arthur dies in a tragic fall while trying to escape. Cardinal Pandulph, having urged the French to support the papacy against the rebellious John, does succeed in encouraging a French invasion of England only to discover, when John has reluctantly submitted to the papacy, that the French dauphin will not agree to call off his invading forces. The war thus becomes an exercise in futility on all sides. John, increasingly weak and uncertain, grows ill. Only the Bastard fights on until news comes that John has been poisoned by a traitorous monk. After Prince Henry arrives to care for his dying father and accept his imminent accession to the throne, the Bastard at last accepts that peace is at hand and pledges fealty to the new king. King John Article Additional Info. Home Literature Plays. Print Cite. Facebook Twitter. Give Feedback External Websites. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article requires login. External Websites. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. World authority on Shakespeare. Editor of The Complete Here are 10 facts about him:. John was given this nickname by his father, Henry II, of all people! It was a reference to the fact that he was unlikely to ever inherit substantial lands. Richard proved remarkably forgiving. Richard himself had only won the the English crown in after revolting against his father. On his deathbed in , Richard named John his successor. Facing a rebellion in , John launched a surprise counter-attack, capturing all of the rebels and their leaders — among them Arthur. John was urged by some of his supporters to treat his captives well but it appears he refused. A rumour spread that he had killed his year-old nephew while in a drunken rage and thrown him in the . The well-connected Essex lord accused John of attempting to rape his daughter, Matilda, and made death threats against the king. Fitzwalter later led a group of discontented barons in an uprising against John, which resulted in the peace agreement known as the Magna Carta. After trying to force the Church to accept his candidate for the Archbishop of Canterbury one of his supporters , John so angered Pope Innocent III that the pontiff excommunicated him between and They later patched thing up, however, with the pope backing John in his efforts to get out of the Magna Carta in

John I of Portugal - Wikipedia

They later patched thing up, however, with the pope backing John in his efforts to get out of the Magna Carta in Ten years later, in , John launched a huge campaign to get it back but was badly defeated. What is more, for the first time in England it attempted to create a mechanism by which a monarch would be compelled to adhere to such curbs on their power. The document was reissued several times and by several kings before it stuck but it would go on to serve as the inspiration for both the English Civil War and the American War of Independence. John may have died during the civil war of his making but it was not on the battlefield. Accounts circulated soon after his death that he had been killed by poisoned ale or fruits but these were most likely fictitious. TV A new online only channel for history lovers. Sign Me Up. In appearance, John was nothing like his tall and majestic brother Richard. He was five feet five inches in height, as opposed to Richard's six feet four inches. Although his height may be considered short by modern standards, it was not considered so in his own time, when men were considerably shorter. He was stockily built as his father had been. He is reputed to have spent a fortune on rich clothing and jewels. John succeeded to the throne at the age of thirty-two, on the death of Richard the Lionheart in Arthur of Brittany, the son of his deceased elder brother, Geoffrey, Duke of Brittany had an arguably better claim, but Richard was reported to have announced John his heir on his deathbed. John acted promptly, siezing the royal treasury at . His coronation took place on Ascension Day, The shrewd Phillip Augustus, in accordance with his policy of weakening the Angevin Empire by creating division amongst the Plantagenets, supported Arthur's claim and attacked Normandy. John incurred further opposition through his infatuation with Isabella of Angouleme, the twelve year old daughter of Count Aymer of Angouleme and Alix de Courtenay. She had been betrothed to Hugh de Lusignan, although the marriage had been delayed because of her extreme youth. The unprincipled John stole the enchanting Isabella from under Hugh's very nose. His first marriage to Isabella of Gloucester had been declared invalid, since they were related within the prohibited degrees. Hugh de Lusignan, incensed, joined forces with Phillip and Arthur, forming a coalition against the King of England. It was said that John was so besotted with his young bride that he refused to rise from bed until well after noon. In attempt to take Anjou and Maine, the teenage Arthur of Brittany besieged his octagenarian grandmother, , at Mirabeau. Eleanor sent an urgent message for aid to her son John and succeeded in drawing out the negotiations for as long as possible. John responded with uncharacteristic speed and came to her rescue, in the process taking both Arthur and Hugh prisoner. Arthur was imprisoned at Falaise Castle in Normandy. King John attempted to make peace with his young nephew, on a visit to in , he promised Arthur honours if he would separate himself from Phillip Augustus and adopt his uncle's cause. Arthur, proud, indignant and unbowed by his imprisonment, responded by demanding his rightful inheritance and unwisely warned John that he would never give him a moments peace for the rest of his life. John "much troubled", responded by ordered him to be blinded and castrated, an order which Hubert de Burgh, Arthur's custodian, refused to carry out. By late rumours were circulating that the young Duke was dead. Phillip, seeing an opportunity to create further trouble, demanded that Arthur be produced. It appears that by this time Arthur was already dead, said to have been killed by John himself in a drunken rage. A contemporary chronicler states 'After King John had captured Arthur and kept him alive in prison in the castle of Rouen When John was drunk and possessed by the devil, he slew Arthur with his own hand and tying a heavy stone to the body, cast it into the Seine. She was to remain a prisoner for the rest of her life. Hugh de Lusignan, the slighted fiancee of Isabella of Angouleme had sought redress from his overlord Phillip Augustus, who promptly summoned John to the French court to answer for his actions. John refused to comply and accordingly, Phillip, acting under feudal law, claimed those territories ruled by John as Count of Poitou and declaring all John's French territories except Gascony forfeit, he invaded Normandy. Chateau Gaillard, Richard's impregnable castle, fell to the French after a long siege in , it was followed by the rest of Normandy. John was appointed the Lord of Ireland in and given lands in England and on the continent. John unsuccessfully attempted a rebellion against the royal administrators of his brother, King Richard, whilst Richard was participating in the Third Crusade , but he was proclaimed king after Richard died in He came to an agreement with Philip II of France to recognise John's possession of the continental Angevin lands at the peace treaty of Le Goulet in When war with France broke out again in , John achieved early victories, but shortages of military resources and his treatment of Norman , Breton , and Anjou nobles resulted in the collapse of his empire in northern France in He spent much of the next decade attempting to regain these lands, raising huge revenues, reforming his armed forces and rebuilding continental alliances. His judicial reforms had a lasting effect on the English common law system, as well as providing an additional source of revenue. John's attempt to defeat Philip in failed because of the French victory over John's allies at the . When he returned to England, John faced a rebellion by many of his barons, who were unhappy with his fiscal policies and his treatment of many of England's most powerful nobles. Although both John and the barons agreed to the Magna Carta peace treaty in , neither side complied with its conditions. It soon descended into a stalemate. John died of dysentery contracted whilst on campaign in eastern England during late ; supporters of his son Henry III went on to achieve victory over Louis and the rebel barons the following year. Contemporary chroniclers were mostly critical of John's performance as king, and his reign has since been the subject of significant debate and periodic revision by historians from the 16th century onwards. Historian Jim Bradbury has summarised the current historical opinion of John's positive qualities, observing that John is today usually considered a "hard-working administrator, an able man, an able general". John was born on 24 December Some of the traditional ties between parts of the empire such as Normandy and England were slowly dissolving over time. Although the custom of primogeniture , under which an eldest son would inherit all his father's lands, was slowly becoming more widespread across Europe, it was less popular amongst the Norman kings of England. Henry had often allied himself with the Holy Roman Emperor against France, making the feudal relationship even more challenging. Shortly after his birth, John was passed from Eleanor into the care of a wet nurse , a traditional practice for medieval noble families. During John's early years, Henry attempted to resolve the question of his succession. Henry the Young King had been crowned King of England in , but was not given any formal powers by his father; he was also promised Normandy and Anjou as part of his future inheritance. His brother Richard was to be appointed the Count of Poitou with control of Aquitaine, whilst his brother Geoffrey was to become the Duke of Brittany. In John's elder brothers, backed by Eleanor, rose in revolt against Henry in the short-lived rebellion of to Growing irritated with his subordinate position to Henry II and increasingly worried that John might be given additional lands and castles at his expense, [21] Henry the Young King travelled to Paris and allied himself with Louis VII. John had spent the conflict travelling alongside his father, and was given widespread possessions across the Angevin empire as part of the Montlouis settlement; from then onwards, most observers regarded John as Henry II's favourite child, although he was the furthest removed in terms of the royal succession. In he appropriated the estates of the late Earl of Cornwall and gave them to John. Henry the Young King fought a short war with his brother Richard in over the status of England, Normandy and Aquitaine. In John made his first visit to Ireland , accompanied by knights and a team of administrators. Ireland had only recently been conquered by Anglo-Norman forces, and tensions were still rife between Henry II, the new settlers and the existing inhabitants. The problems amongst John's wider family continued to grow. His elder brother Geoffrey died during a tournament in , leaving a posthumous son, Arthur , and an elder daughter, Eleanor. Richard began discussions about a potential alliance with Philip II in Paris during , and the next year Richard gave homage to Philip in exchange for support for a war against Henry. When Richard became king in September , he had already declared his intention of joining the Third Crusade. The King named his four-year-old nephew Arthur as his heir. The political situation in England rapidly began to deteriorate. Longchamp refused to work with Puiset and became unpopular with the English nobility and clergy. The political turmoil continued. John hoped to acquire Normandy, Anjou and the other lands in France held by Richard in exchange for allying himself with Philip. He agreed to set aside his wife, Isabella of Gloucester, and marry Philip's sister, Alys , in exchange for Philip's support. For the remaining years of Richard's reign, John supported his brother on the continent, apparently loyally. After Richard's death on 6 April there were two potential claimants to the Angevin throne: John, whose claim rested on being the sole surviving son of Henry II, and young Arthur I of Brittany, who held a claim as the son of John's elder brother Geoffrey. Arthur was supported by the majority of the Breton, Maine and Anjou nobles and received the support of Philip II, who remained committed to breaking up the Angevin territories on the continent. Warfare in Normandy at the time was shaped by the defensive potential of castles and the increasing costs of conducting campaigns. After his coronation, John moved south into France with military forces and adopted a defensive posture along the eastern and southern Normandy borders. John and Philip negotiated the May Treaty of Le Goulet ; by this treaty, Philip recognised John as the rightful heir to Richard in respect to his French possessions, temporarily abandoning the wider claims of his client, Arthur. In order to remarry, John first needed to abandon his wife Isabella, Countess of Gloucester; the King accomplished this by arguing that he had failed to get the necessary papal dispensation to marry the Countess in the first place — as a cousin, John could not have legally wed her without this. Contemporary chroniclers argued that John had fallen deeply in love with her, and John may have been motivated by desire for an apparently beautiful, if rather young, girl. Isabella, however, was already engaged to Hugh IX of Lusignan , an important member of a key Poitou noble family and brother of Raoul I, Count of Eu , who possessed lands along the sensitive eastern Normandy border. Although John was the Count of Poitou and therefore the rightful feudal lord over the Lusignans, they could legitimately appeal John's actions in France to his own feudal lord, Philip. He argued that he need not attend Philip's court because of his special status as the Duke of Normandy, who was exempt by feudal tradition from being called to the French court. John initially adopted a defensive posture similar to that of avoiding open battle and carefully defending his key castles. Accompanied by William de Roches, his seneschal in Anjou, he swung his mercenary army rapidly south to protect her. John's position in France was considerably strengthened by the victory at Mirebeau, but John's treatment of his new prisoners and of his ally, William de Roches, quickly undermined these gains. De Roches was a powerful Anjou noble, but John largely ignored him, causing considerable offence, whilst the King kept the rebel leaders in such bad conditions that twenty-two of them died. Further desertions of John's local allies at the beginning of steadily reduced his freedom to manoeuvre in the region. After this, Arthur's fate remains uncertain, but modern historians believe he was murdered by John. The eastern border region of Normandy had been extensively cultivated by Philip and his predecessors for several years, whilst Angevin authority in the south had been undermined by Richard's giving away of various key castles some years before. John's mother Eleanor died the following month. The nature of government under the Angevin monarchs was ill-defined and uncertain. John's predecessors had ruled using the principle of vis et voluntas "force and will" , taking executive and sometimes arbitrary decisions, often justified on the basis that a king was above the law. John inherited a sophisticated system of administration in England, with a range of royal agents answering to the Royal Household: the Chancery kept written records and communications; the Treasury and the Exchequer dealt with income and expenditure respectively; and various judges were deployed to deliver justice around the kingdom. The administration of justice was of particular importance to John. Several new processes had been introduced to English law under Henry II, including novel disseisin and mort d'ancestor. One of John's principal challenges was acquiring the large sums of money needed for his proposed campaigns to reclaim Normandy. Revenue from the royal demesne was inflexible and had been diminishing slowly since the Norman conquest. Matters were not helped by Richard's sale of many royal properties in , and taxation played a much smaller role in royal income than in later centuries. English kings had widespread feudal rights which could be used to generate income, including the scutage system, in which feudal military service was avoided by a cash payment to the King. He derived income from fines, court fees and the sale of charters and other privileges. The result was a sequence of innovative but unpopular financial measures. At the start of John's reign there was a sudden change in prices , as bad harvests and high demand for food resulted in much higher prices for grain and animals. This inflationary pressure was to continue for the rest of the 13th century and had long-term economic consequences for England. The result was political unrest across the country. John's royal household was based around several groups of followers. One group was the familiares regis , his immediate friends and knights who travelled around the country with him. They also played an important role in organising and leading military campaigns. This intensified under John's rule, with many lesser nobles arriving from the continent to take up positions at court; many were mercenary leaders from Poitou. This trend for the King to rely on his own men at the expense of the barons was exacerbated by the tradition of Angevin royal ira et malevolentia "anger and ill-will" and John's own personality. John was deeply suspicious of the barons, particularly those with sufficient power and wealth to potentially challenge the King. John's personal life greatly affected his reign. Contemporary chroniclers state that John was sinfully lustful and lacking in piety. None of his known illegitimate children were born after he remarried, and there is no actual documentary proof of adultery after that point, although John certainly had female friends amongst the court throughout the period. John married Isabella whilst she was relatively young — her exact date of birth is uncertain, and estimates place her between at most 15 and more probably towards nine years old at the time of her marriage. Chroniclers recorded that John had a "mad infatuation" with Isabella, and certainly the King and Queen had conjugal relationships between at least and ; they had five children. John's lack of religious conviction has been noted by contemporary chroniclers and later historians, with some suspecting that he was at best impious, or even atheistic , a very serious issue at the time. They commented on the paucity of John's charitable donations to the Church. During the remainder of his reign, John focused on trying to retake Normandy. John spent much of securing England against a potential French invasion. John had already begun to improve his Channel forces before the loss of Normandy and he rapidly built up further maritime capabilities after its collapse. Most of these ships were placed along the Cinque Ports , but Portsmouth was also enlarged. During the truce of —, John focused on building up his financial and military resources in preparation for another attempt to recapture Normandy. He launched his new fleet to attack the French at the harbour of Damme. In the late 12th and early 13th centuries the border and political relationship between England and Scotland was disputed, with the kings of Scotland claiming parts of what is now northern England. He refused William's request for the earldom of Northumbria , but did not intervene in Scotland itself and focused on his continental problems. John remained Lord of Ireland throughout his reign. He drew on the country for resources to fight his war with Philip on the continent. Simmering tensions remained with the native Irish leaders even after John left for England. Royal power in Wales was unevenly applied, with the country divided between the marcher lords along the borders, royal territories in Pembrokeshire and the more independent native Welsh lords of North Wales. John took a close interest in Wales and knew the country well, visiting every year between and and marrying his illegitimate daughter, Joan , to the Welsh prince Llywelyn the Great. Llywelyn came to terms that included an expansion of John's power across much of Wales, albeit only temporarily. The Norman and Angevin kings had traditionally exercised a great deal of power over the church within their territories. From the s onwards, however, successive popes had put forward a reforming message that emphasised the importance of the Church being "governed more coherently and more hierarchically from the centre" and established "its own sphere of authority and jurisdiction, separate from and independent of that of the lay ruler", in the words of historian Richard Huscroft. John wanted John de Gray , the Bishop of Norwich and one of his own supporters, to be appointed Archbishop of Canterbury, but the cathedral chapter for Canterbury Cathedral claimed the exclusive right to elect the Archbishop. They favoured Reginald , the chapter's sub-prior. John refused Innocent's request that he consent to Langton's appointment, but the Pope consecrated Langton anyway in June John was incensed about what he perceived as an abrogation of his customary right as monarch to influence the election. Innocent then placed an interdict on England in March , prohibiting clergy from conducting religious services, with the exception of baptisms for the young, and confessions and absolutions for the dying. John treated the interdict as "the equivalent of a papal declaration of war". Innocent gave some dispensations as the crisis progressed. By , though, John was increasingly worried about the threat of French invasion. Under mounting political pressure, John finally negotiated terms for a reconciliation, and the papal terms for submission were accepted in the presence of the papal legate Pandulf Verraccio in May at the Templar Church at Dover. This resolution produced mixed responses. Although some chroniclers felt that John had been humiliated by the sequence of events, there was little public reaction.

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