FACTS ABOUT RICHARD THE LIONHEART

1. His famous nickname was Richard Couer de Lion, which translates to Richard the Lionheart, not Lionhearted.
2. He was born in 1157. He was the third son of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine.  He was born in England, but he probably never learned to speak English.  The royal family spoke French.
3. At age 9 he was betrothed to Princess Alais (Alys), the daughter of France’s Louis VII.  It was agreed the two would marry when they came of age and Alais came to live with Henry’s family in the meantime.  Henry took possession of Alais’ dowry, a valuable province of France, before the marriage happened.  In fact, the marriage never occurred.  And to make matters worse, Henry took Alais as his mistress!
4. In 1173, at age 16, Richard joined his brothers Henry and Geoffrey in rebelling against their father. Henry II put down the revolt and forgave his sons, but imprisoned Eleanor for supporting the rebellion.  She was held in castle arrest for the rest of Henry’s life, which was for about fifteen years.  Part of the reason for the imprisonment was to ensure the good behavior of Richard who she had a special bond with his mother.
5. In 1189, Richard rebelled again when his father threatened to give Richard’s province of the Aquitaine to his younger brother John. Richard joined with the French King Philip II to make war on Henry.  They defeated Henry and he was forced to reconcile with Richard and promise him the throne when he died, which he did two days later.
6. Richard was the most famous warrior of the Middle Ages. He commanded troops against rebels at age 16.  He is most famous for leading the Third Crusade to try to recapture Jerusalem after it fell to Saladin.  He was successful at first, capturing Acre after a siege and defeating Saladin in battle at Arsuf.  However, his reputation was tarnished by executing 2,700 Muslim captives in Acre and his inability to capture Jerusalem.
7. On the way back from the Crusade, he was captured in Germany by forces loyal to Leopold V, Duke of Austria. Leopold had held a grudge against Richard since he had shamed him at the siege of Acre.  Leopold turned him over to the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI, who also was a foe.  Henry held him for a huge ransom equal to 2-3 times the annual income of the British Crown.  Eleanor raised the money and got her son released.  John, who he had left as regent, tried to pay Henry to keep Richard imprisoned!
8. Richard returned to England, but only spent about a month before he was off to France to make war on Philip (who he also had quarreled with on the Crusade). In all, Richard spent only six months of his ten-year reign in England.
9. He made a political marriage with Berengeria of Navarre at age 31. After their honeymoon, she accompanied him on the Crusade, but ended up leaving early.  They saw little of each other after that and had no children, which was a pity because that meant John became the next king.  Berengeria never set foot in England while she was queen, although she apparently went there after his death.
10. When Richard was crowned in 1189, Jews were forbidden to attend. When some wealthy Jews showed up with gifts, they were rudely tossed out.  This inspired a wave of anti-semitism that resulted in murders and burning of property.  The public felt Richard had given the green light.  He had to forcefully call a stop to it and had some of the perpetrators executed to restore order.
11. He had an embarrassing death for such a great warrior. A peasant hit him with a crossbow bolt during a siege of a castle.  The wound became infected and he died two days later.
12. Some historians have posited that he was a homosexual, but the jury is still out on that. It is possible that he was bisexual.  It seems unlikely that he had an affair with Philip II of France.  Sorry, “Lion in Winter” fans.
13. If there was a Robin Hood, it is highly unlikely that they met. The “Robin Hood” movies are partly responsible for the overly favorable view people have of Richard.  (He is sometimes known as “Richard of the Last Reel” because of his obligatory appearances at the end of the movies.)  In fact, he was not a good king and certainly not a good person.  It also helps your reputation to be followed by one of the worst kings.

https://www.historyhit.com/facts-about-richard-the-lionheart/

https://www.historyextra.com/period/medieval/8-things-you-probably-didnt-know-about-richard-the-lionheart/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_I_of_England

https://www.factinate.com/people/25-bloody-facts-king-richard-lionheart/

https://www.historyforkids.net/richard-the-lionheart.html