Crusades: King Richard I the Lionheart of England
Early life of Richard the Lionheart
Born on September 8, 1157, Richard was the third legitimate son of Henry II of England. It is often believed that he was the favorite son of his mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine. He had two older brothers and a sister: William (died in infancy), Henry and Matilda, as well as four younger brothers and sisters - Geoffrey, Eleanor, Joanna and John. Like many of the English rulers of the Plantagenet dynasty, Richard was essentially French, and paid more attention to family lands in France than in England. After his parents divorced in 1167, Richard was granted the Duchy of Aquitaine.
Well educated and energetic, Richard quickly demonstrated his skill in military matters and personified his father's power in the French lands. In 1174, at the instigation of his mother, Richard, Henry (the Young King) and Geoffrey (Duke of Brittany) rebelled against their father. Quickly reacting to the uprising, Henry II crushed it and captured Eleanor. Together with the defeated brothers, Richard obeyed the will of his father and asked for forgiveness. His ambition for more was curbed and Richard turned his full attention to maintaining his dominance in Aquitaine and controlling its nobles.
Ruling with an iron fist, Richard was forced to put down the serious revolts of the barons in 1179 and 1181-1182. During this time, tensions re-emerged between Richard and his father when he demanded that his son take homage (vassal oath) to his older brother Henry. Abandoning this, Richard was soon attacked by Henry the Young King and Geoffrey in 1183. Faced with this invasion and the mutiny of his own nobility, Richard was able to skillfully repel the attacks. After the death of Henry the Young King in June 1183, Henry II ordered John to continue this campaign.
In search of help, Richard in 1187 entered into an alliance with the French king Philip II Augustus. In exchange for Philip's help, Richard ceded the rights to Normandy and Anjou. That summer, on hearing of the defeat of the Christian forces at the Battle of Hattin, Richard and other members of the French nobility began to gather for a crusade. In 1189, Richard and Philip joined forces against Henry II and were victorious at Ballan on 4 July. Meeting with Richard, Henry agreed to proclaim him his heir. Two days later Henry II died and Richard ascended the throne. He was crowned at Westminster Abbey in September 1189.
Richard I - King of England
After the coronation of Richard I, a wave of anti-Semitic violence swept the country, as Jews were forbidden to attend this ceremony, but some wealthy Jews violated the ban. Having punished the perpetrators of the Jewish pogroms, Richard immediately began to make plans for a crusade to the Holy Land. Sometimes resorting to extreme measures to raise money for the army, he was finally able to raise an army of about 8,000 people. In the summer of 1190, having prepared the defense of the estates in his absence, Richard went on a campaign with an army. The campaign, later called the Third Crusade, was planned by Richard in cooperation with King Philip II Augustus of France and Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa.
Meeting with Philip in Sicily, Richard assisted in settling a dispute over the island's succession involving his sister Joanna and led a brief campaign against Messina. During this time, he proclaimed his nephew Arthur of Brittany as his heir, which prompted his brother John to begin planning for an uprising. Moving on, Richard landed in Cyprus to rescue his mother and future bride, Berengaria of Navarre. Having defeated the despot of the island, Isaac Komnenos, he completed the conquest of Cyprus and on May 12, 1191 married Berengaria. In the Holy Land, or rather near Acre, he arrived on June 8th.
Upon arrival, he supported Guy Lusignan, who fought with Conrad of Montferrat for power in the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Conrad, in turn, was supported by Philip and Duke Leopold V of Austria. Putting their differences aside, the crusaders captured Acre that summer. After the capture of the city, problems arose again, as Richard disputed Leopold's contribution to the crusade. Although he was not a king, Leopold led the troops of the Holy Roman Empire in the Holy Land after the death in 1190 of Frederick Barbarossa. After Richard's soldiers threw down Leopold's banner from the wall of Acre, the Austrian duke left the Holy Land in anger and returned home.
Shortly thereafter, Richard and Philip began a dispute over the status of Cyprus and the Kingdom of Jerusalem. While ill, Philip returned to France, leaving Richard in the face of Saladin's Muslim forces without allies. Moving south, Richard defeated Saladin's forces at the Battle of Arsuf on September 7, 1191, and then attempted to open peace negotiations. Initially rebuffed by Saladin, Richard spent the first months of 1192 rebuilding the fortifications of Ascalon. During the year, the positions of both Richard and Saladin began to weaken, and they were forced to enter into negotiations.
Knowing that he could not hold Jerusalem even if he took it, and that at home John and Philip were plotting against him, Richard decided to tear down the walls of Ascalon in exchange for a three-year truce of Christian access to the shrines in Jerusalem. After the agreement was signed on September 2, 1192, Richard went home. Having suffered a shipwreck along the way, Richard was forced to travel by land, and in December he was captured by Leopold of Austria, through whose lands he followed. Imprisoned first at Dürnstein and then at Trifels Castle in the Palatinate, Richard felt pretty comfortable in captivity. For his release, Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI demanded 150,000 marks.
Although Eleanor of Aquitaine tried to raise money, John and Philip offered Henry VI 80,000 marks to keep Richard captive at least until the day of Archangel Michael (September 29 in Catholic tradition) 1194. Having refused them, the emperor received a ransom and released Richard on February 4, 1194. Returning to England, he quickly forced John to submit to his will, but declared his brother his heir instead of Arthur's nephew. After settling the situation in England, Richard returned to France to deal with Philip.
Forging an alliance against his former friend, Richard won several victories over the French over the next five years. In March 1199, Richard laid siege to the small castle of Chalus-Chabrol. On the night of March 25, while walking along the siege fortifications, he was wounded by a crossbow bolt in his left shoulder (in the neck). He was unable to remove the arrow himself, so he called in a surgeon, who pulled the arrow out, but during the process greatly irritated the wound. Richard soon developed gangrene and the king died in his mother's arms on April 6, 1199.
The results of Richard's reign are largely inconsistent - some historians point to his military skill and willingness to go on a crusade, while others emphasize his cruelty and disregard for his state. Although he was king for ten years, he spent only about six months in England, and the rest of the time he was either in the French dominions or abroad. He was succeeded by his brother John, who became known as
The image of the English King Richard I the Lionheart is covered with an aura of romance and courage. His name was often mentioned in the medieval epic as the hero of legends and novels. But, if we turn to history, then everything is not so rosy. And the king received the nickname "Lionheart" not for outstanding courage, but for incredible cruelty. 
Fresco in the Cathedral of St. Radegundy in Chinon. Eleanor of Aquitaine and her husband Henry II.
Richard the Lionheart was the son of King Henry II of the Plantagenet dynasty and Eleanor of Aquitaine, one of the richest and most powerful women of that period. Mother actively interfered in the politics of England and France, which is why, over time, relations between the spouses became very strained. It got to the point that Eleanor of Aquitaine rebelled against the king and returned to her castle in Poitiers (Aquitaine). Henry II was supported by his three sons, and Richard chose to take the side of his mother. 
Eleanor of Aquitaine is the mother of King Richard the Lionheart.
Historical chronicles have preserved a lot of information about the strong connection between Richard the Lionheart and Eleanor of Aquitaine. The son was brought up under the influence of his mother and, being in adulthood, he always listened to her advice. Mother even went on a crusade with her son, although this was completely unusual for women of that time. 
English King Richard I the Lionheart.
When Richard the Lionheart came to the English throne (by the way, he did not even know English), he spent only six months in the country itself. The king immediately began to gather in the Third Crusade, a vow to participate in which he had given long before. While Richard earned his fame in battles on foreign soil, England suffered the most, because the inhabitants were forced to pay huge taxes in order to support the army. During the reign of Richard I, the country was practically ruined.
The English king became the hero of numerous literary works. So, in the novels of the XIV-XV centuries, his image is almost perfect. Allegedly in a fight with a lion, Richard put his hand into his mouth and pulled out a pulsating heart. But in fact, "Lionheart" he was nicknamed for a completely different reason. 
Richard the Lionheart took part in the Third Crusade.
During the Third Crusade, Richard I captured the city of Acre and negotiated with Saladin for a prisoner exchange. When the Muslim leader never exchanged anyone, Richard the Lionheart ordered the death of 2,700 prisoners. For this, the Muslims called him the Stone Heart. A little later, when the peace treaty was signed, the English king executed another 2,000 captured Saracens because the Muslim commander was in no hurry to fulfill all the terms of the treaty.
Another nickname for the king was Richard Yes-and-No. This is a kind of mockery of his subjects for the fact that he often changed his decisions, being influenced from outside. 
King of England Richard the Lionheart.
The English king had enough opponents not only among Muslims, but also among Christians. Intrigues and the struggle for influence in the European arena led to the fact that after returning from the Crusade, Richard was captured by the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI.
According to legend, at first no one knew that Richard was languishing in prison. But one day the troubadour Blondel passed by the prison and sang a song composed by the English king. And then suddenly a voice was heard from the prison window, which sang along with him.
The emperor requested 150,000 marks for the ransom of the king. This amount was the taxes of the British for two years. The first to rush to the rescue of the king was Eleanor of Aquitaine. She ordered that a quarter of their income be collected from the people. The English medieval historian William of Newburgh wrote that after Richard's release, Emperor Henry VI lamented that he had not left "a strong tyrant who truly menaced the whole world" languishing in prison. 
Tomb of Richard I at Fontevraud Abbey.
The king died during the next battle. It was the siege of the Châlus-Chabrol castle in Limousin. The king was wounded by a crossbow arrow. The cause of death was blood poisoning. Richard the Lionheart died in the presence of Eleanor of Aquitaine.
The mother of the king herself lived a long life. Eleanor of Aquitaine was adored by everyone except her husbands - the kings of England and France.
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Richard I the Lionheart (eng. Richard the Lionheart, fr. Cœur de Lion, 1157-1199) is an English king from the Plantagenet dynasty. Son of King Henry II Plantagenet of England and his wife, Duchess Eleanor of Aquitaine.
Titles: Duke of Aquitaine (1189-1199), Comte de Poitiers (1169-1189), King of England (1189-1199), Duke of Normandy (1189-1199), Count of Anjou, Tours and Maine (1189-1199)
early years
Richard was born on September 8, 1157 in Oxford. As the third legitimate son of Henry II, Richard formally had little chance of receiving the English crown. As a child, he went to France, where he inherited from his mother the duchy of Aquitaine and Poitiers. Simultaneously (in 1170), Richard's older brother, Henry, was crowned under the name of Henry III (in the historical literature he is usually called the "Young King", so as not to be confused with Henry III, the nephew of the "young" Henry and Richard, the son of John), but in fact never received real power.
Richard was well educated (he wrote poetry in French and Occitan) and very attractive - an estimated height of 1 meter 93 centimeters, blue eyes and blond hair. Most of all, he loved to fight - from childhood he showed remarkable political and military abilities, was known for his courage and successfully prevailed over his vassals.
Like his brothers, Richard idolized his mother and did not dislike his father for neglecting Eleanor. In the film "The Lion in Winter", where the role of the Queen was brilliantly played by Katharine Hepburn (the older sister of the more popular with us - Audrey), contradictory and largely unhealthy relationships in the Heinrich-Eleanor family are shown. What was the ill health? If you have heard of the theories of old Freud, you will understand what I mean. And if you have no idea about them, then it's too early for you to watch adult films.)))
In 1173, Richard, along with Henry's other sons, rebelled against him, but his father prevailed in this confrontation. Richard took part in the rebellion at the instigation of his mother, and also in connection with a personal grudge against his father - Richard was supposed to marry Alice, the daughter of Louis VII, but she, brought up at the English court, was Henry's mistress for seventeen years.
Richard got a chance at the English crown in 1183, after the death of the "Young King". Although after that he turned out to be the eldest living son of Henry, he decided to give Aquitaine to John. Having entered into an alliance with the French king Philip II, Richard defeated Henry as a result of a successful expedition in 1189. In the same year the king died. Richard was crowned at Westminster on 3 September 1189.
Governing body
Of the ten years of his reign, Richard spent only six months in England. His reign, which began with the Jewish pogroms in London and York (the perpetrators of which were punished by Richard), differed sharply from that of his father.
The new king became famous for his military exploits, but his consumerist attitude towards England reduced the government of the country mainly to levying huge taxes to finance the army and navy. He even released from the vassal oath of King William I of Scotland for the amount of 10,000 marks, and also began to trade in state lands and posts. All funds were used to prepare for the crusade.
Crusade
In 1190 the king set out on a third crusade, leaving the upstart William Longchamp as regent and chancellor. First, in September 1190, Richard and Philip II stopped in Sicily, where in 1189 William II, the former husband of Joanna, Richard's sister, died. William's nephew, Tancred I, put Joanna in prison and disinherited her.
On October 4, 1190, Richard captured Messina and plundered it, and in March 1191, Richard and Tancred signed a peace treaty, according to which Joanna was released, and Richard proclaimed his nephew Arthur of Brittany, son of Gottfried II, for whom Tancred promised give away one of his daughters in the future. As a result of this agreement, England's relations with the Holy Roman Empire worsened, and Richard's brother John, who himself wanted to become heir, rebelled.
In May 1191, Richard defeated the ruler of Cyprus, Isaac Komnenos, and began to rule the island himself, using it as a transshipment base for the crusaders, which was not threatened by raids. There he married Berengaria of Navarre. (He was betrothed to Alice, sister of Philip II, but her relationship with Henry II prevented her marriage to Richard for religious reasons, and Eleanor, Richard's mother, felt that the possession of Navarre, located south of Aquitaine, would secure her lands).
The marriage of Richard and Berengaria was childless - they spent very little time together, since Richard (as a typical representative of his generation) was much more interested in military victories than love ones. Which again and again confirms the fact that all these knightly courtship and the medieval beauty of carnal love are fiction. Rough ruffians dominated the women. And talking about a reverent attitude towards loved ones is a lie.
In June 1191, Richard finally arrived with his army in Palestine, where the fortress-port of Acre was under siege by the crusaders, who almost took the city, but were themselves surrounded by Saladin's troops. Richard disrupted negotiations between Conrad of Montferrat and Saladin, and after numerous crusader attacks, Acre surrendered on 12 July. Not having received, in violation of the agreements, the promised ransom for the garrison of Acre, as well as the True Tree of the Cross, captured by Saladdin at Hattin, on time, Richard ordered the execution of 2600 captives.
Despite this, the unusually respectful relationship between Richard and Saladin has become one of the best-known medieval romantic stories. Saladin sent Richard fresh fruit and ice, and once, when Richard's horse was killed, he gave him two stallions. Richard also responded with gifts. They even raised the issue of a wedding between Richard's sister Joanna and Saladin's brother Al-Adil.
Because of the strife over the division of Cyprus and leadership in the campaign, Richard soon left his allies, the Duke of Austria, Leopold V and Philip II (Philip also planned to take advantage of Richard's absence to annex his lands in France). As a result, Richard, although he came very close to Muslim-occupied Jerusalem, did not attack it and was forced to make peace with Saladin on September 2, 1192, demanding, in particular, for Christians freedom of access and residence in Jerusalem. Richard recognized Conrad of Montferrat as king of Jerusalem, who was soon killed by the Assassins, and his place was taken by Richard's nephew, Henry II of Champagne, which cast suspicion on Richard of Conrad's murder.
Captivity
On the way back, Richard's ship was forced to land on the Byzantine island of Corfu. Richard fled through Central Europe and was captured in December 1192 near Vienna by Leopold V, who blamed Richard for the death of Conrad, his cousin. Richard was handed over to Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor, who imprisoned him at Dürnstein Castle.
The emperor demanded a ransom of 150,000 marks - two years' income of the English crown, of which 100,000 marks were to be paid in advance. John and Philip II offered 80,000 marks for Richard to remain a prisoner, but the emperor rejected their offer. Eleanor of Aquitaine collected the required amount by levying exorbitant taxes, and on February 4, 1194, Richard was released. Philip II sent John a letter saying, “Be careful. Devil on the loose."
End of reign
Upon returning to England, Richard reconciled with John and appointed him heir, despite all the intrigues of his younger brother. But Richard did not intend to remain in peace and harmony for a long time. And he started a conflict with another brother - with Philip.
In 1197-1198. Richard built the castle of Gaillard in Normandy near Rouen, although under an agreement with Philip, he was not supposed to build castles.
On March 26, 1199, during the siege of the castle of Chalus-Chabrol in Limousin, he was wounded in the arm by a crossbow arrow. On April 6, Richard died due to blood poisoning in the arms of his 77-year-old loving mother Eleanor and wife Berengaria.
Richard the Lionheart is buried at Fontevraud Abbey in France next to his father.
Heritage
Since Richard was childless, the throne passed to his brother John. The French possessions of the Plantagenets initially wanted to see Richard's nephew Arthur of Brittany king, and with these succession disputes began the collapse of the "Empire of Anjou".
Other most important merits and simply consequences of Richard's reign are:
Cyprus, captured by Richard, supported the Frankish possessions in Palestine for a whole century.
Richard's inattention to the administration of the state led to the fact that the effective administration introduced by his father had time to become obsolete.
Richard's military exploits turned him into one of the most prominent figures in medieval history and literature. Richard is the hero of numerous legends. In particular, the legends about Robin Hood (although the heroes lived at different times), books (the most famous is Walter Scott's Ivanhoe), films (the highest-grossing one is The Lion in Winter) and computer games.
Marriages and children
The marriage was fruitless.
Extramarital affair NN - illegitimate son - Philip de Falconbridge (1175-1204), seigneur de Cognac; Amelia de Cognac (1164-1206).
Was it gay?
Some biased writers of pseudo-historical literature transparently allude to Richard's homosexual inclinations. Such bold (bold, because there is no damning evidence in favor of one version or in favor of the other version) conjectures we owe to Harveez's book The Plantagenets, 1948.
On 18 pages, the author briefly, without pretensions to scientificity and reliability, describes the character, behavior and vicissitudes of life of Richard. And these 18 pages, oddly enough, very seriously influenced the perception of the image of the English king.
But let's focus our attention on the facts. At the beginning of 1195, Richard was visited by a hermit who read instructions to him, to which he paid no attention. Shortly after this episode, the Lionheart went haywire, which, in turn, forced Richard to repent - not to joke with his health, albeit a heroic one. As in 1190 in Messina, for confession and punishment, he ordered the priests to appear.
Repentance through the wife's bedroom
Moreover, he committed an act that proves the sincerity of his repentance - he called his wife, whom he neglected for a long time, “and they became one flesh”! In what morals reigned - sex with a wife = sincere repentance and a step towards a healthy and spiritual lifestyle. Govden (one of those same pseudoscientific figures) also says that the king then refused unlawful sexual intercourse (“abiecto concubitu illicito”). Govden will convey the warnings of the hermit with the words: “Remember the destruction of Sodom, refrain from the forbidden; if you do not do this, then God's just punishment may come upon you. ("Esto memor subversionis Sodomae, et ab illicitis te abstine, sin autem, veniet super te ultio digna Dei").
Guesses, versions, assumptions
Gillingham (another historian) explains how the well-known at that time words of the Old Testament about the destruction of Sodom are misinterpreted: the picture of punishment - a consequence, not a cause, captured Govden's fantasy.
Certainly Govden did not claim that Richard was a Sodomite, and even in view of the predilection for allusions of the day, and Govden's probably deemed necessary restraint, the absence of the word "Sodomie" is a noteworthy distinction from to Wilhelm Rufus, to whom homosexuality has long been attributed.
We will not continue to follow on the heels of the reasoning of historians. Here are just a couple more facts and conclusions. And finally, let us return to Richard and his strange repentance.
It is hard to imagine that Richard, in the conditions of camp life, after a public confession in Messina and his time in captivity - always surrounded by enemies - could have thought out such an excellent alibi that incriminating facts would have eluded medieval PR technologists from a hostile camp.
Thanks to the vulgar campaign unleashed by the Duke of Burgundy at the end of the crusade and public moralizing, rumors of homosexuality should have become widespread. If nothing of the kind has come down to us, and Govden's "Sodom" has gone unnoticed by his contemporaries, then this must mean that it is a fiction, or something very similar to it.
But in modern sources, again and again, and with special relish and piquant (even outrageously) details, Richard's sensuality is confirmed. However, the same Govden gives such examples of Richard's sexual excesses that doubts about the king's homosexuality evaporate. The Poitunas (“Homines Pictaviae”) rebelled and demanded the overthrow of their overlord, largely because he (Richard, that is) raped the wives and daughters of his subjects, and then gave the “waste flesh” to his soldiers.
What is the truth: gay or not gay?
Although, on the other hand, it is also not worth arguing that Richard was 100% heterosexual. Firstly, because of the wild debauchery and free customs of the Middle Ages. Secondly, because only one of his illegitimate children is known for certain. Thirdly, the childlessness of Berengaria's wife is explained, rather, by his fidelity to her husband and his own unwillingness to fulfill his conjugal duty. So, perhaps, the rumors about Richard's male strength were greatly exaggerated.
What can not be said about his military prowess. Immortalized in books and films. What is Ivanhoe worth?
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Richard the Lionheart (Richard I) - English king from the Plantagenet dynasty, was born on September 8, 1157 in Beaumont Castle (Oxford). Richard was the third son of King Henry II of England and Duchess Eleanor of Aquitaine.
Since the elder brothers claimed the crown, Richard was not intended to be the heir and received from his mother the vast Duchy of Aquitaine. In his youth, he bore the title of Comte de Poitiers.
Richard was handsome - blue-eyed and fair-haired, and very tall - 193 centimeters, i.e. by the standards of the Middle Ages, a real giant. He knew how to write poetry and was well educated for his time. From childhood, he loved war and had the opportunity to train in the Duchy of Aquitaine on the rebellious and violent barons.
Perhaps it was precisely the fact that he was the youngest and was not intended to be the heir that strengthened Richard's chivalrous upbringing - he turned out to be a useless king, and a famous knight.
Richard did not respect the despotic father, dressed in royalty - as, indeed, and brothers. All the sons of Henry II were under the influence of their mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine, an outstanding and powerful woman.
In 1173, the sons of Henry II rebelled against him. Henry II, however, remained alive, his eldest son became his co-ruler. After the death of his older brothers, Richard began to suspect that his father wanted to pass the throne to his younger son, John. Then, having united with the French king, Richard undertook a campaign against his father and "restored justice." Henry II agreed to the coronation of Richard and other conditions, and soon died.
In 1189 Richard was crowned. In England, out of 10 years of his reign, he spent only six months, he treated the army as a source of income. Governance of the country was reduced to extortion of taxes, trade in state lands, posts and other "preparation" for the Crusade. Richard even freed the vassal of the Scottish king from the oath.
In 1190, Richard went on the Third Crusade, where he gained historical fame. That the fees for the campaign, that the return of the king-knight turned out to be exorbitant taxes for the people - but in the chivalric epic, Richard the Lionheart took one of the central places along with Roland and King Arthur.
During the siege of the castle on March 26, 1199, a crossbow bolt pierced his shoulder near the neck. The operation was unsuccessful, blood poisoning began. Eleven days later, on April 6, Richard died in the arms of his mother and wife - in full accordance with the heroism of his life.
Richard I of England (Lionheart). Biography.
The rise of Richard. Richard I (English) Lionheart was born in Oxford on September 8, 1157 in the family of Henry II Plantagenet and Eleanor (Eleanor) of Aquitaine (Guyenne). Richard was the third son in the family, so he was not considered as the direct heir of his father, and this left a certain imprint on his character and on the events of his youth.
While his elder brother Henry was crowned the English crown in 1170 and declared co-ruler of Henry II, Richard was proclaimed Duke of Aquitaine in 1172 and was considered the heir of Eleanor's mother. 
English King Henry II, father of Richard After that, until his coronation, the future king visited England only twice - at Easter in 1176 and at Christmas in 1184.
His reign in Aquitaine took place in constant clashes with local barons, accustomed to independence. Soon clashes with his father were added to the internal wars. At the very beginning of 1183, Henry II ordered Richard to take a fealty oath to his elder brother Henry. Richard flatly refused to do so, citing the fact that it was an unheard-of innovation. Henry Jr. invaded Aquitaine at the head of a mercenary army, began to ravage the country, but in the summer of that year he suddenly fell ill with a fever and died. The death of the older brother did not put an end to the quarrels between father and son. In September, Henry II ordered Richard to give Aquitaine to his younger brother John (John). Richard refused and the war continued. The younger brothers Geoffrey and John (John) attacked Poitou. Richard responded by invading Brittany. Seeing that nothing could be achieved by force, the king ordered the disputed duchy to be transferred to his mother. This time Richard complied. But although father and son reconciled. There was no trust between them. The closeness between the king and his youngest son John (John) seemed especially suspicious. There were rumors that Henry II, contrary to all custom, wants to make him his heir, removing the recalcitrant older sons from the throne. This made the relationship between father and Richard even more tense. Henry II was a tough and despotic man, Richard could expect any trick from him.
The French king was not slow to take advantage of the strife in the English royal house. In 1187, he showed Richard a secret letter from the English king, in which Henry II asked Philip to marry his sister Alice (already betrothed to Richard) to John (John) and transfer the duchies of Aquitaine and Anjou to the same John. 
Richard's younger brother John, the future king of England, John LandlessRichard felt a threat to himself in all this. A new rupture began to brew in the Plantagenet family. But Richard spoke openly against his father only in the autumn of 1188. Against his will, he reconciled at Bonmoulin with the French king and swore an oath to him. The following year they both captured Maine and Touraine. Henry II waged war against Richard and Philip, but without much success. In a few months, all continental possessions fell away from him, except for Normandy. Under Lehman, Henry II was almost captured by his son. In July 1189, Henry II had to agree to humiliating terms dictated to him by his enemies and died shortly thereafter. Richard arrived in England in August and was crowned at Westminster Abbey on September 3, 1189. Like his father, who spent most of his time not on the island, but in his continental possessions, he did not intend to stay in England for a long time. After the coronation, Richard I lived in his country for only four months, and then came here again for two months in 1194.
Preparations for the Third Crusade. Having assumed power, Richard began to fuss about organizing the Third Crusade, in which he made a vow to participate in 1187. Three of the most powerful monarchs responded to the call of Pope Clement III to participate in this campaign - the German emperor Frederick I Barbarossa, the French king Philip II Augustus and the English king Richard I. 
The German emperor Frederick I Barbarossa, who drowned in the river, having not reached the place of hostilities, the English king took into account the sad experience of the Second Crusade and insisted that a sea route be chosen to reach the Holy Land. This saved the crusaders from many hardships and unpleasant clashes with the Byzantine emperor. The campaign began in the spring of 1190, when masses of crusaders moved through France and Burgundy to the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. In the first days of July, Richard I of England met in Wesel with the French king Philip Augustus. The kings and troops greeted each other and continued marching south together with joyful songs. From Lyon, the French turned towards Genoa, and Richard moved to Marseille.
Having plunged here on ships, the British sailed east and on September 23 they were already in Messina in Sicily. Here the king was detained by the hostile actions of the local population. The Sicilians were very unfriendly to the English crusaders, among whom were many Normans. They not only showered them with ridicule and abuse, but at every opportunity they tried to kill unarmed crusaders. On October 3, a real war broke out due to an insignificant clash in the city market. The townspeople hurriedly armed themselves, locked the gates and took their place on the towers and walls. In response, the British, without hesitation, went on the assault. Richard, as much as he could, tried to keep his fellow tribesmen from ruining the Christian city. But the next day, during the peace negotiations, the townspeople suddenly made a bold sortie. Then the king stood at the head of his army, drove the enemies back into the city, seized the gates and executed a severe judgment on the vanquished. Until the evening, robberies, murders and violence against women raged in the city. At last Richard succeeded in restoring order.
Due to the late time, the continuation of the campaign was postponed until next year. This delay of many months had a very bad effect on the relations between the two monarchs. Every now and then, petty clashes took place between them, and if in the autumn of 1190 they arrived in Sicily as intimate friends, then in the spring of the following year they left it almost outright enemies. Philip went straight to Syria, and Richard made another forced stop in Cyprus.
Conquest of Cyprus by Richard I. It so happened that due to a storm, part of the English ships were thrown onto the coast of this island. Emperor Isaac Komnenos, who ruled Cyprus, took possession of them on the basis of coastal law. But on May 6, the entire crusader fleet entered the harbor of Limassol. The king demanded satisfaction from Isaac, and when he refused, he immediately attacked him. The galleys of the crusaders approached the shore, and the knights immediately began the battle. Richard, along with others, boldly jumped into the water, and then first stepped onto the enemy shore. The battle, however, did not last long - the Greeks could not withstand the blow and retreated. The next day, the battle resumed outside Limassol, but was just as unsuccessful for the Greeks. As on the previous day, Richard was ahead of the attackers and most distinguished by his valor. They write that he captured the banner of Isaac and even knocked the emperor himself off the horse with a spear.
On May 12, the wedding of King Richard and Berengaria of Navarre was celebrated with great pomp in the conquered city. Isaac, meanwhile, realized his miscalculations and struck up negotiations with Richard. The conditions of reconciliation were very difficult for him: in addition to a larger ransom, Isaac had to open all his fortresses to the crusaders and put up auxiliary troops to participate in the crusade.
With all this, Richard has not yet encroached on his power - the emperor himself gave a reason for events to take the worst turn for him. 
Richard I on the attack After everything seemed to be settled, Isaac suddenly fled to Famagusta and accused Richard of encroaching on his life. The enraged king declared Komnenos an oathbreaker, a peacebreaker and instructed his fleet to guard the coast so that he would not run away. He himself first captured Famagusta, and then moved to Nicosia. On the way to Tremifussia, another battle took place. Having won a third victory, Richard I solemnly entered the capital. Here he was detained for some time by illness.
Meanwhile, the Crusaders, led by King Guido of Jerusalem, took the strongest castles in the mountains of Cyprus. Among other captives, the only daughter of Isaac was captured. Broken by all these failures, the emperor surrendered to the victors on May 31. The only condition of the deposed monarch was a request not to burden him with iron chains. But this did not make his fate any easier, because Richard ordered him to be chained in silver shackles and exiled to one of the Syrian castles. Thus, as a result of a successful 25-day war, Richard I of England became the owner of a rich and flourishing island. He left half of their property to the inhabitants, and used the other half for the formation of destinies for that knighthood, which was supposed to take over the defense of the country. Having placed his garrisons in all cities and castles, Richard sailed for Syria on June 5. Three days later he was already in the Christian camp under the walls of the besieged Acre (now - Acre in Israel).
Richard I in Palestine and Syria. With the arrival of the British, siege work began to boil with renewed vigor. In a short time, towers, rams and catapults were built. Under protective roofs and through tunnels, the crusaders approached the enemy's fortifications. Soon, battle broke out everywhere near the breaches. The situation of the townspeople became hopeless, and on July 11 they entered into negotiations on the surrender of the city with the Christian kings. The Muslims had to promise that the Sultan would release all Christian captives and return the Life-Giving Cross. The garrison had the right to return to Saladin, but part of it, including one hundred noble people, were to remain hostages until the sultan paid the Christians 200,000 gold. The next day, the crusaders solemnly entered the city, which had been besieged for two years.
The joy of victory, however, was overshadowed by strong strife, which immediately flared up between the leaders of the crusaders. The dispute arose over the candidacy of the king of Jerusalem. Richard believed that Guido Lusignan (Guy of Loisian) should become it. But many Palestinian Christians could not forgive him for the fall of Jerusalem and preferred the hero of the defense of Tyre, Margrave Conrad of Montferrat. Philip August was also entirely on his side. This feud was superimposed by another high-profile scandal associated with the Austrian banner. 
Egyptian Sultan Saladin (Salah ad-Din), Richard's adversary in the Third Crusade As can be inferred from the conflicting accounts of this incident, shortly after the fall of the city, Duke Leopold of Austria ordered the Austrian standard to be raised over his house. Seeing this flag, Richard became furious, ordered to tear it down and throw it into the mud. His anger was apparently caused by the fact that Leopold occupied a house in the English part of the city, while he was an ally of Philip. After that, the king seriously offended the German emperor, driving a detachment of German knights from his army, depriving them of their property, weapons and horses. But be that as it may, this incident outraged all the crusaders, and for a long time they could not forget about it. At the end of July, Philip, as well as many French crusaders, left the Holy Land and set off on their return journey.
This weakened the strength of the crusaders, while the most difficult part of the war - for the return of Jerusalem - had not yet begun. True, with the departure of Philip, internal strife among Christians should have subsided, since Richard now remained the only leader of the crusading army. However, it was not clear. How difficult this role is for him. Many considered him a wayward and unbridled man, and he himself confirmed this unfavorable opinion about himself with his very first orders. Saladin could not, as soon as he was obliged, fulfill the conditions that the capitulation of Acre imposed on him: release all the captives and pay 200 thousand marks in gold. Richard came to immeasurable anger because of this and immediately, after the deadline agreed by Saladin - August 20 - had passed, he ordered more than 2 thousand Muslim hostages to be taken out and stabbed in front of the gates of Acre, for which he received the nickname "Lionheart". Of course, after that, the money was not paid at all, not a single Christian captive received freedom. And the Life-Giving Cross remained in the hands of the Muslims.
Three days after this massacre, Richard set out from Acre at the head of a large army of crusaders. Richard was determined to advance on Jerusalem. He rallied the multilingual armies of the crusaders (totaling about 50 thousand people) into a single army and went on a campaign, in which he proved to be an outstanding tactician, and also managed, thanks to his personal charisma, to achieve submission from rebellious knights and barons of different tribes. Accompanied by the fleet, he slowly advanced along the coast in short passages so as not to tire the army. On the flanks, there were continuous skirmishes with the army of Saladin, whose goal was to cut off the lagging behind from the main column or break the crusader army into several isolated detachments, as was done at Hattin. But Richard's march to Askelon was clearly planned and organized, and therefore such opportunities were not presented to Saladin. Richard strictly forbade the knights to get involved in skirmishes, and all attempts by Saladin to provoke a column of crusaders to break the formation on the march led to nothing. To prevent Saladin's mounted archers from approaching, Richard placed crossbowmen along the entire column.
Saladin tried to block the road. On the coast near Arsuf (Arzuf), the Egyptian sultan ambushed and then organized a powerful attack on the rear of Richard's column to force the crusader rearguard into battle. At first, Richard forbade any resistance, and the column stubbornly continued its march. Then, when the Mamluks were completely bolder, and the pressure on the rearguard became unbearable, Richard ordered the prearranged signal to attack to be blown. 
Medieval bas-relief depicting Richard I A well-organized counterattack took the unsuspecting Muslims by surprise. The battle was over in just a few minutes. Obeying the orders of Richard, they overcame the temptation to rush to pursue the defeated enemy. This brilliant Christian victory at Arzuf (Arsuf) occurred on September 7, 1191, during which Saladin's troops lost 7 thousand people, and the rest fled. The loss of the crusaders in this battle amounted to about 700 people. After this battle, Saladin never once dared to engage Richard in open battle. Richard was in the midst of the battle and helped with the success with his spear.
A few days later, the Crusaders arrived at the ruined Joppe and stopped here to rest. Saladin took advantage of their delay to completely destroy Askelon, which he now had no hope of holding. The news of this upset all the plans of the crusaders. Some of them began to restore Joppe, others occupied the ruins of Rimla and Lydda. Richard himself was involved in many skirmishes and often unnecessarily risked his life. At the same time, lively negotiations began between him and Saladin, which, however, did not lead to any results. In the winter of 1192, King Richard I of England announced a campaign against Jerusalem. However, the crusaders only reached Beitnub. They had to turn back due to rumors of strong fortifications around the Holy City. In the end, they returned to their original goal and, in bad weather - through a storm and rain - moved towards Askelon. This, until recently, a flourishing and rich city, appeared before the eyes of the crusaders in the form of a deserted heap of stones. The crusaders zealously set about restoring it. Richard encouraged the workers with cash gifts and, to set a good example for everyone, he himself carried stones on his shoulders. Ramparts, towers and houses were erected with extraordinary speed from the terrible garbage. In May, Richard stormed Daruma, a strong fortress south of Askelon. After that, it was decided to move again to Jerusalem. But, like last time, the crusaders only reached Beitnub. Here the army stopped for several weeks. A heated debate ensued between the leaders of the campaign about whether it was advisable or not to start the siege of such a powerful fortress now, or whether it was better to move to Damascus or Egypt. Due to disagreements, the trip had to be postponed. The crusaders began to leave Palestine. In August news came of Saladin's attack on Joppa. With the speed of lightning, Richard gathered the remaining military forces still at hand, sailed to Joppa. In the harbor, ahead of his men, he jumped from the ship into the water to reach the shore without delay. This not only saved the citadel, but also recaptured the city from the enemy. A few days later, Saladin tried again with superior forces to capture and crush the small detachment of the king. A battle took place near Joppa and in the city itself, the outcome of which fluctuated for a long time first in one direction, then in the other. Richard proved himself not only a brave, strong and steadfast, but also a reasonable commander, so that he not only held his position, but also inflicted heavy losses on the enemies.
The victory made it possible to start negotiations. Bad news came from England about the autocratic deeds of the king's younger brother John (John the Landless). Richard rushed home with restless haste, and this prompted him to make concessions. According to the agreement concluded in September, Jerusalem remained in the power of the Muslims, the Holy Cross was not issued; the captured Christians were left to their bitter fate at the hands of Saladin, Askelon was to be torn down by workers on both sides. Such an outcome nullified all the successes of Richard, but there was nothing to be done.
The return of Richard I to England and his capture. After concluding an agreement with Saladin, Richard lived in Acre for several weeks and sailed for his homeland in early October. This journey presented him with great difficulty. Apart from the sea route around Europe, which he obviously wanted to avoid, almost all other roads were closed to him. The sovereigns and peoples of Germany were for the most part hostile to Richard. His open enemy was the Austrian Duke Leopold. The German emperor Henry VI was an opponent of Richard because of the close relations of the English king with the Guelphs and Normans, the main enemies of the Hohenstaufen family. However, despite this, Richard decided to sail up the Adriatic Sea, apparently intending to go through southern Germany to Saxony under the protection of the Welfs. 
The German emperor Henry VI, who kept Richard in prison, with his son Conrad, near the coast between Aquileia and Venice, his ship ran aground. Richard left the sea with a few guides and, in disguise, rode through Friaul and Carinthia. Soon Duke Leopold became aware of his movement. Many of Richard's companions were captured, with one servant he reached the village of Erdberg near Vienna. The graceful appearance of his servant and the foreign money with which he made purchases attracted the attention of the locals. On December 21, Richard was captured and imprisoned in Dürenstein Castle.
As soon as the news of Richard's arrest reached the emperor, he immediately demanded his extradition. Leopold agreed after he was promised to pay 50 thousand marks of silver. After that, for more than a year, the English king became a prisoner of Henry VI. He bought his freedom only after he swore an oath to the emperor and promised to pay a ransom of 150 thousand marks of gold. In February 1194, Richard was released, and in mid-March he landed on the English coast. Supporters of John (John) did not dare to resist him and soon laid down their arms. London welcomed its king with magnificent celebrations. But two months later, Richard left England forever and sailed to Normandy. In Lizo, John appeared before him, whose unseemly behavior during the absence of his elder brother bordered on outright treason. Richard. However, he forgave him all the crimes.
War of Richard I with Philip II Augustus. In the absence of King Richard, the French King Philip II achieved some preponderance over the English on the Continent. Richard hastened to rectify the situation. He took Loches, one of the main fortresses of Touraine, took possession of Angouleme and forced the obedience of the inveterate rebel Count of Angouleme. The following year, Richard moved to Berry and was so successful there that he forced Philip to sign a peace. 
English King Richard I (Lionheart) The French had to give up eastern Normandy, but kept several important castles on the Seine. Therefore, the agreement could not be lasting. In 1198, Richard returned the Norman border possessions, and then approached the Chalus-Chabrol castle in Limousin (Viscountry of Limoges), the owner of which (Viscount Adémar of Limoges) was exposed in a secret connection with the French king. March 26, 1199 after dinner, at dusk, Richard went to the castle without armor, protected only by a helmet. During the battle, a crossbow arrow pierced deep into the king's shoulder, near the cervical spine. Without giving the appearance that he was wounded, Richard galloped to his camp. Not a single important organ was affected, but as a result of an unsuccessful operation, blood poisoning began. After being ill for eleven days, King Richard I of England died on April 6, 1199.
Characteristics of Richard I. His heroic life is known from novels and films - the Crusades, conquests and the like. But in reality things were somewhat different. Born in a turbulent time, Richard became a cruel and intolerant person. During his reign, rebellions constantly broke out in the country, which he suppressed with incredible cruelty. In the legends, he embodies the ideal image of a medieval knight who made many well-documented valiant campaigns. 
Monument to Richard I In addition, in the Third Crusade, he established himself as one of literally several brilliant military leaders throughout the Middle Ages. But according to the chronicler, "the king as often concluded conditions as he took them back, he constantly changed decisions already made or presented new difficulties, as soon as he gave his word, he took it back, and when he demanded that the secret be kept, he himself violated it" . Saladin's Muslims were under the impression that they were dealing with a sick man. Also, the situation of Richard was aggravated by the massacre arranged by him after Saladin did not have time to fulfill the conditions set for him. It must be said that Saladin, as a civilized person, resisted the retaliatory massacre and not a single European hostage was killed. Richard was a very mediocre ruler, since he spent almost the entire reign abroad: with the crusaders (1190 - 1191), in captivity in Austria (1192 - 1194), and then he fought for a long time with the French king Philip II Augustus (1194 - 1199) , and almost the entire war was reduced exclusively to the sieges of fortresses. Richard's only major victory in this war was the capture of Gisors near Paris in 1197. Richard did not manage England at all. In the memory of the descendants, Richard remained a fearless warrior who cared about personal glory more than about the well-being of his possessions.
References. 1. Regine Pernu. Richard the Lionheart. - Moscow: Young Guard, 2000.
2. World history of wars / otv. ed. R. Ernest and Trevor N. Dupuy. - Book One - Moscow: Polygon, 3. World History. Crusaders and Mongols. - Volume 8 - Minsk, 2000.
4. All the monarchs of the world. Western Europe / under the tutelage K. Ryzhova. - Moscow: Veche, 1999.
