Entry taken from the book The Plantagenets
When we hear the name of Richard the Lionheart, the chivalrous figure of the great warrior and famous king of England who fought in the Third Crusade against Saladin and who played a leading role in the adventures of legendary characters such as Robin immediately comes to mind. Hood and Ivanhoe.
However, a more detailed approach to the historical figure of this famous character forces us to differentiate between Richard the Lionheart, warrior and military leader, and Richard I, King of England. In the first of the two facets, our protagonist has more than earned his fame from him; however, as King of England, Richard I is far from being on the list of the most significant or outstanding monarchs in the history of the British country.
Born in Oxford in 1157 and the son of the formidable marriage of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine, Richard was not originally destined to inherit the English crown; This honor corresponded to the first-born male of the marriage, his brother Enrique “the Younger”, whom his father came to associate in life with the English throne. Ricardo was expected as an inheritance to part of the family possessions in French territory, specifically the county of Aquitaine.
The tumultuous character of the Plantagenet family led Ricardo and his brothers to engage in open conflict with his father, all with the support of his mother Eleanor. The rebellion began in 1173 due to the discontent of Henry "the Younger", who understood that despite his coronation and association with the crown of England and the promise to inherit Normandy and Anjou, his father was denying him the exercise of any power. real. When Henry II gave three important castles as a wedding present to his younger brother Juan "landless", Henry "the Younger" felt that he was being denied part of the inheritance to which he was entitled and rebelled against his father by joining the king of France; His brothers Godofredo and Ricardo joined him.
At that time Ricardo was barely fifteen years old, but he soon began to demonstrate his skills on the battlefield. The situation of family confrontation continued throughout the years, although the premature deaths of Enrique and Godofredo left Ricardo as leader of the faction that opposed his father, as well as as heir to the English throne and the rest of the extensive family possessions. in France, some of which had already been secured by force of arms.
When Henry II dies in 1189, Richard lands in England to be crowned in London. However, his stay in the country is brief, he only spends three months in England; Jerusalem had fallen to Saladin's armies and the Third Crusade had been called to reclaim it for Christendom.
Richard was eager to take up the cross, and the three months he spent in England were devoted almost exclusively to raising funds for his trip to the Holy Land:he collected taxes, borrowed money, and sold royal estates ("I'd sell London if I could find a buyer," it is said). who came to comment). This vision of England as a source of income to be exploited to obtain funds to finance his adventures in the Holy Land and France is a constant in Richard's reign and is what leads many English historians such as Peter Ackroyd, Matthew Ward or Roy Strong to deny Ricardo a significant role in the history of the country, beyond his merits as a soldier outside of England.
Be that as it may, Ricardo set sail for the Crusade, although before that he had to make a prolonged stop in France; Several matters had to be resolved before they could set sail for the Holy Land. Some concerned the relationship between Richard and the French King Philip, who was also to take the cross; It was necessary to ensure that neither one was going to take advantage of the situation to alter the delicate relationship between the two kingdoms, so a truce was signed.
But Ricardo had other concerns that he needed to resolve before leaving for the Holy Land. Neither his brother Juan sin Tierra nor his stepbrother Godofredo, Archbishop of York, were going to participate in the crusade and Ricardo did not trust them (rightly as it would later be seen). The king obtained a commitment from John and Godfrey not to set foot on English soil for a period of three years.
His affairs in Europe put in order, Ricardo sailed from France with the idea of meeting in Crete with his sister Joan and his fiancée Berengaria of Navarre. However, bad weather meant that the fleet carrying the two women had to divert to Cyprus, then under Byzantine rule. Ricardo flew into a rage at the ignominious treatment that was granted in Cyprus to both women and their entourage, he headed to the island, took it militarily and once conquered, as it was of no use to him, he sold it to the Order of the Temple, thus obtaining more funds for his army. In Limasol he married Berengaria, although both never led a married life. In fact, the Navarrese is the only English queen who never set foot on the island.
Ricardo then continued his journey to the Holy Land and joined the army that, under the command of Philip of France, laid siege to Acre. Although the defenses of the city and the spirits of its inhabitants were already badly damaged by the prolonged siege, it was the arrival of Richard and his powerful army that caused Acre to finally fall into Christian hands on July 5, 1191. the legend of the Lionheart warrior.
This caused not a little envy in the crusader army; Philip of France declared that his mission as a crusader was accomplished and he returned to his country with his army; Richard also provoked the wrath of Duke Leopold of Austria, by ripping his flag from the walls of Acre, which would have consequences for him in the future.
Ricardo continued to advance through the Holy Land, without further support, and took the important enclave of Jaffa, the port of Jerusalem. However, later the Third Crusade entered a stalemate, with various skirmishes between the armies of Richard and Saladin but without a battle to decide the contest. Richard recaptured the port of Jaffa from Muslim hands again in a daring coup, but soon found that he lacked the strength to take Jerusalem. In addition, serious news reached him of what was happening in Europe, where both Philip of France and Juan sin Tierra were taking advantage of his absence to endanger their domains in both France and England.
Ricardo was forced to return from the Holy Land without completing his task; On September 2, 1192, he signed a three-year truce with Saladin, who retained Jerusalem, although allowing a limited number of Christians to make pilgrimages to the city each year.
The Lionheart set out to return to Europe and put things in order, although it would not be easy for him. We will dedicate the second entry of this series to narrating what happened since he set sail for Europe and for the rest of his life.