Richard I was born in 1157 AD, and he is one of the most famous kings of England in the 12th century. He has been preoccupied with wars since assuming power in 1189 AD, to the extent that he spent only 6 months in his country during his 10-year reign, so he went to it at his coronation, and when he decided to collect money Crusade only.

He impoverished his countrymen with taxes to seize Jerusalem, and was killed in 1199 by an arrow from a child.

His name was associated in Arab-Islamic history with the commander Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi, when he was a military commander of the Third Crusade to seize Jerusalem.

The English king, who was bestowed upon by European historians with the adjectives of "courage and strength", had spent two years in the wars of the Crusades, then fled from them disguised as a monk, and spent nearly two years on the journey back to his country, while he was under captivity, and was liberated with a large ransom.

He was killed by an arrow fired by a young boy in retaliation for the death of his father. It was said about him, "The lion who was killed by an ant."

History continued to haunt him, sometimes describing him as a "great warrior" or "warrior king", "lion heart", "medieval king" and "poetic warrior", and at other times calling him a "war criminal" and the king who was killed by an "ant".

The life of the English-French king is full of adventures, conspiracies, and betrayals in which he participated against the people closest to him, as he fought wars against his brothers, rebelled against his father, and wrested the king from him, all the way to his strange end.

King Henry II of England preferred his eldest son "Henry the Wing" and hated his son Richard I for his greed for power (Getty Images)

Birth and upbringing

Richard Coeur de Lyon, known as "Richard I", was born on September 8, 1157 AD, in the Beaumont Palace, which was built by his great-grandfather Henry I in Oxford, and was known at the time as the "King's Houses".

He was the third son of King Henry II of England, from his wife Eleanor, Princess of Aquitaine, France (a province that extends between the Lour River in the north and the Pyrenees mountains in southern France), who was a former wife of King Louis VII, King of France.

The boy Richard grew up spoiled, in the care of his nurse and nanny, "Hedirna St. Albans", who did not forget her favor and gave her a great reward when he became king, as he was his mother's favorite because a witch claimed that his mother would be pleased with him among all her children.

A difficult childhood and a broken family

Richard lived a difficult childhood in a disjointed royal family. His mother was notorious and known for her luxurious life and sexual perversion. As for his father, he was known in history books for his multiple sexual relations with women, to the point where his subjects hid their daughters and wives whenever he approached their homes.

Richard was a victim of conflict between his parents, and when they divorced in 1167 AD, his mother chose him to stay with her, while his father preferred his younger brother John.

His father, Henry I, was not an ideal father, as he was constantly persecuting his children, in order to retain all power for himself, and he also used them to expand his kingdom and political alliances through marriage.

Statue of French Princess Eleanor of Aquitaine, mother of Richard I, who loved her son and made him duke of Aquitaine (Getty Images)

Engagement at the age of 4 years

In the year 1161 AD, when Richard was 4 years old, he was engaged to Princess Alice, daughter of the French King Louis VII, who was then 9 years old, and this was done in the framework of strengthening relations between the Plantagenet family that ruled England and large parts of France, and the kings of the French Capetian family in Paris.

It was agreed that Richard would marry the princess when she reached the age of majority, and that the fortress of Jessore and the lands around it would be a dowry for her, and it is said that the marriage did not take place despite her stay for 25 years in the palace of his father, King Henry, who treated her as his mistress.

Because of this, Richard's relationship with his father remained tense, because he made this marriage impossible, and forced him to give up the daughter of the French king.

Historian Douglas Boyd stated that this situation may have caused Richard's unwillingness to marry or have children in his life, as he died after years of his rule, without having an heir to the throne after him, as he had only an illegitimate son.

his qualities

According to the statements contained in his description, he was about 1.96 meters tall, had red to blond hair, and suffered from a nervous shiver from a young age due to a rare type of malaria fever.

Historical sources narrate that he was nervous, quick to anger, cruel, ruthless, immoral, and greedy in eating.

In the second half of the 20th century, some studies appeared saying that he was disturbed, deviant, and excessive in sexual behavior, and that he confessed and repented of this behavior twice, as stated by the American historian, "John Harf."

Statue of King Henry II, the eldest son of Henry I, who took power after his father but died of illness (Getty Images)

Scientific study and training

History did not mention sufficient information chronicling the level of education that Richard received, and what was mentioned was in the scope of his love for poetry, which he learned from his mother, as she was an educated woman who loved poetry and singing, and Richard used to attend gatherings, discussions of dissolute entertainment, and scandalous scenes at her court in "Aqtania".

At the age of eight, Richard learned the French language, and it was the language of his expression, as is the custom of the upper class of English society since William the French conqueror ruled England in 1066, imposing the French language as an official language of the country, and leaving “Middle English” as a language for the common people.

Richard spoke the language of "Oil" (Langues d'oïl), which is the dialect of the Gallo romance, in addition to the language of Aquitaine (French language used in romantic writings), which was widespread in southern France and its nearby regions, and the English politicians used to blame their king for not speaking English .

Richard was educated, by the standards of his time, as he studied the culture of "troubadour" poetry, and he composed poetry like his maternal great-grandfather, in French or in the language of the Occitan Provence region.

He was also passionate about music, writing songs, and led the choir in the church, and he used to sing with it sometimes.

Richard learned all about chivalry, and was involved from an early age in its traditions thanks to his mother, who is credited with creating and preserving many of the rituals of chivalry.

He also learned to fish, and was good at it.

He received thorough training in the arts of war, mastered the use of different types of weapons, and was fond of a bow that shoots fire, which he uses in the equestrian arena, although its use was immoral.

He also received education and training in governance and management methods, as his mother prepared him from a young age to be her successor in ruling the province of "Aquitaine", which she had inherited from her father, "William X".

John Lacand, who was chosen by Henry I of England to stay with him when he divorced his wife and left Richard I with his mother (Getty Images)

Duke Cotton

In 1169 AD, when Richard was 12 years old, he received the title of Duke of "Aquitaine", and in 1170, King Henry II divided his possessions among his sons, so his eldest son "Henry the Young" became the legitimate heir to the English throne and was called the "Little King". As for Richard, he was officially installed in 1172 as duke of "Aquitania", a position he inherited from his mother, while his younger brother John did not receive the inheritance, so he was called "John of the Landless" (John Lackland).

Richard was 15 years old when his mother made him swear allegiance to her ex-husband, the King of France, as the honorary ruler of all the French provinces, and she also made the nobles swear to him, in order to prevent his father, the king, from deposing him from this position.

And from what the history books remember, Richard paid attention to his training in combat during that period, and left the rule of the province to his mother, who cared about the political aspects, and she signed the decisions of her son, the duke, and reviewed and confirmed what he signed.

The path to the throne

When he reached the age of 16, Richard wanted to be more than a title holder, so he joined his brothers Henry and Geoffrey in 1173 in a public revolution against their father, the King of England, with the encouragement of their mother and her former husband, the King of France, and with the support of the disaffected nobles over his rule.

This family tragedy, which lasted 18 months, ended with the defeat of the sons, and the imprisonment of their mother for treason for 16 years, which increased Richard's anger, so he led a second rebellion against his father in 1174, and besieged some castles that owed him loyalty.

But his father punished him, stripping him of the title of duke, and making him one of his followers who carry out his orders and instructions only, so Richard declared repentance and obedience, and participated in the ceremonial pledge of allegiance to him in 1175.

The king's orders were to his son, Richard, in the next five years, to subdue the rebellious nobles of "Aquitaine" and "Gasconia" and to confiscate their property.

This mission had made Richard a military commander for the first time, so he increased in strength and violence, and after he seized the impregnable "Tilburg" castle in 1179, his father received him in England with all manifestations of hospitality and honor, and he received the title "Lionheart".

Between 1180 and 1187, tensions increased between Richard and his father, the king, when he refused to pledge allegiance to his older brother Henry over "Aquitania". Chaos and battles spread, and the nobles joined the rebellion, seeing young Henry as a tool to get rid of Richard and his power.

After the death of his two brothers Henry due to illness and Geoffrey in a duel, the king was unwilling to give any authority to his son Richard, and preferred his youngest son, "John", the least qualified of his children.

War broke out again between the two brothers, and Richard allied with King Philip of France against his father, and forced him in his last days to declare "Richard" heir to the throne.

Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi, the first sultan of Egypt and the Levant, conquered Jerusalem in 1187 AD, and Richard fought him immediately after he assumed power (Getty Images)

Saladin tax

In 1189, King Henry II died.

Historians say that he died of anguish after his defeat by his sons, and that none of them were near him when he died.

Richard officially became the King of England and Duke of Normandy and Anjou, so he released his mother from prison and appointed her as his deputy in power, and began planning to launch a crusade to occupy Jerusalem, after Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi liberated it in 1187 AD.

Richard is said to have organized duels after his coronation that lasted for 3 days to choose the bravest knights who would accompany him to the East, and swore to abandon his former evil, to show himself worthy of taking the cross.

10 months after assuming the throne, he joined the Third Crusade, "the largest military gathering" known in the Middle Ages, and was known as the campaign of kings, and the German King Frederick Barbarossa (who went to the Levant by land and drowned in the Basia Minor River and dispersed his forces) and the French King Philip II, who He made an agreement with him to share all the spoils that would be seized.

Richard had secured the financing of the campaign after offering high positions in the church, positions of honor, palaces, towns, and farms for sale, and he asked every city for two saddled horses to ride, and at that time he said his famous phrase as he gathered his army, "I would sell London if I found a buyer for it."

It also imposed on citizens, including the clergy (those with priestly ranks in the church), a direct tax known as the "Salah al-Din tax", a fee amounting to one-tenth of an individual's income, and collected over a period of 3 years.

Whoever joins the campaign is exempted from tax.

The burden of the tax on the citizens was so heavy that one of the horsemen sold his wife and all her property to pay his tax, and the English historian "Roger of Wendover" described the tax as "a violent violation that obscured the vice of greed behind the guise of righteousness and good deeds, and disturbed the priests and the people alike."

Richard succeeded in forming a huge army and navy, trained fighters to bear the pain of hunger and disease, and appointed the Bishop of Durham and his advisor William Longchamp as regent for England.

A scene from the Third Crusade in 1190 depicting the surrender of Acre to the armies of King Richard I (Getty Images)

Acre city massacre

Richard set out towards Acre on the eighth of June 1191 AD, and on his way stormed the Italian city of "Messina", in order to pressure the King of Sicily to bring sufficient funding for the crusade, and he stole 40 thousand ounces of gold.

Then he seized the island of Cyprus, and imposed exorbitant taxes on its inhabitants to complete the expenses of the campaign, and he married the daughter of "Satincho VI" the king of "Never" in Granada, and he headed with his fleet to the city of Acre, and there he met the king of France who preceded him to it, and they participated in its siege for a period of time. two years.

Richard, who was described by the author of the book "The Royal Anecdotes and the Yusufian Beauties" as "the damned," had betrayed the Muslim prisoners after he reconciled with them and received a ransom of 200,000 dinars from them on the condition that they be safe for their souls, and committed brutal crimes against them, as he executed more than 2,700 prisoners. with their wives and children.

Attacks and abuses

The Crusaders remained for a month and a half in Acre to decide on the matter of war, and quarrels occurred between them over who was entitled to the throne of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Richard had directed this conflict in his interest, so his ambitions to monopolize all the money and spoils in Acre appeared.

Several attacks and abuses were attributed to him against his allies, as he attacked "Mcita" and allied himself with the usurper of his sister's throne, who vowed revenge to Richard.

When Richard attacked and occupied "Cyprus", its king was imprisoned to death, and he took his daughter as a maid for his wife, and the "Prince of Austria" had mediated for the release of his relative and her father, but Richard refused and abused him, as he mistreated him when he lowered his flag in Acre and trampled it underfoot and prevented his soldiers from Their share of the spoils, so the Archduke (one of the princes of the royal family in Austria) promised him revenge.

As a result of this conflict and abuses, the King of France and the Prince of Austria returned to their country, so Richard was alone in leading the campaign.

Richard I treacherously slaughtered Muslim prisoners in 1883 in the Acre massacre (social networking sites)

Peace of Ramla

Richard led the campaign alone from the coastal road between Acre and Ashkelon, and in the city of "Jaffa" he fell ill, so Saladin sent his private physician, Ibn Maimonides, to treat him, and provided him with fruits and ice to treat the fever and malnutrition he was suffering from.

And when the English king's horse was killed after they faced the battlefield, and he found himself on his feet in the face of the Muslim army, they left him (by orders of Saladin) walking through their battalion without attacking him, and sent him two horses so that he would not be famous for his lack of resourcefulness.

Richard tried to regain Jerusalem, and fought a number of battles, all of which failed. He accepted the failure of his campaign, and offered Saladin negotiations that lasted more than a year, in which 42 delegations participated, which ended with the "Peace of Ramla" in 588 AH (1192 AD), in exchange for a truce of 3 and 8 years. months, with the Crusaders allowed the coastal strip between Acre and Jaffa, and Christian pilgrims to visit Jerusalem under Islamic rule.

family

When Richard sailed back to his country, on the ninth of October / October 1192, sea storms broke his ship, and he was forced to take the land route in central Europe, where a number of kings and princes were lurking in him, after his failure to liberate Jerusalem, and the King of France had led Campaign to spoil his reputation around Europe, accusing him of treason and agreement with the leader Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi.

The English king was disguised as a monk, but his affairs were revealed, so he was arrested near Vienna, and placed in the "Dorstein" castle in Austria, and he remained a prisoner there for two years, under the supervision of the Duke of Austria "Leopold V".

After negotiations, the English were able, in February 1194, to pay a ransom to liberate their king in the amount of 150,000 marks, which is equivalent to 3 times the annual income of the English kingdom.

In England he then imposed a tax on every knight, obliged every civilian to pay a quarter of his income, and compelled every church to give up everything of value to collect the ransom.

The "Duke of Austria" in Austria had used this money to build a city he called "New Vienna" (Wiener Neustadt).

Tomb of Richard I in Fontrevud Church, France (Getty Images)

Death

In his last days, the English king was busy defending his French possessions against King Philip II, and on March 26, 1199 AD, he attacked the French municipality of Chalou, and he was hit by a stray arrow in his arm, and his wound swelled, causing "gangrene" that spread throughout his body, and he died on the sixth of April. April 1199 AD, at the age of 42.

The archer was a young boy, who killed Richard out of revenge for killing his father and two brothers. The Arabs said about Richard, "the lion who was killed by an ant."

According to Richard's will, his body was buried in the Church of Fontevrud in France, at the feet of his father, King Henry II, and his heart was buried in Notre Dame Cathedral in Rouen with his brother Henry, as a gift to its citizens who have always shown him loyalty. Treachery and resisted his rule.