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Angevin Empire
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The term Angevin Empire describes a collection of states ruled by the Angevin Plantagenet dynasty. The Plantagenets ruled over an area stretching from the Pyrenees to Ireland during the 12th and early 13th centuries. Their 'empire' was roughly half of medieval France as well as all of England and Ireland. The term 'Angevin Empire' is a modern construction as the empire had no such collective term at the time.
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The term Angevin Empire describes a collection of states ruled by the Angevin Plantagenet dynasty. The Plantagenets ruled over an area stretching from the Pyrenees to Ireland during the 12th and early 13th centuries. Their 'empire' was roughly half of medieval France as well as all of England and Ireland. The term 'Angevin Empire' is a modern construction as the empire had no such collective term at the time. However, despite the extent of the Plantagenets' rule, they were defeated by the King of France, Philip II Augustus, of the House of Capet which left their empire split in two, losing the provinces Normandy and Anjou. This defeat, which left the ruling Plantagenets with their English territories and Gascony in France, set the scene for the Saintonge and the Hundred Years' War.
Origin of the term and its application
The Angevin Empire is a neologism defining the lands of the Plantagenets: Henry II and his sons Richard I and John. Another son Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany ruled Brittany and established a separate line there. As far as historians know, there was no contemporary term for the region under Angevin control, however descriptions such as 'our kingdom and everything subject to our rule whatever it may be' were used. The term 'Angevin Empire' was coined by Kate Norgate in her 1887 publication, "England under the Angevin Kings". In France, the term "Espace Plantagenêt" is sometimes used to describe the fiefdoms the Plantagenêts had acquired.
The adoption of the "Angevin empire" label marked a re-evaluation of the times, considering that both English and French influences were spread throughout the dominion in the half century the union lasted. The term Angevin itself is the adjective applied to the residents of Anjou and its historic capital, Angers; the Plantagenets were from Anjou, hence the term.
The use of the term Empire has raised controversy amongst some historians. As it is an assemblage of the inherited and acquired lands of Henry there is some question as to whether or not a common identity existed within the dominions. Some historians argue that the term Empire should refer strictly to the Holy Roman Empire, the only Western European political structure actually named "Empire". Other historians argue that Henry II's empire was neither powerful, nor centralised, nor large enough to be seriously called an Empire. There was no such thing as an imperial title, as the term "Angevin Empire" may imply. Although, if the Plantagenets themselves did not claim any imperial title some chroniclers, often working for Henry II himself, used the term "empire" to describe this assemblage of lands. In essence the highest title was "king of England", to which were added the titles of dukes and counts held in France that were completely and totally independent from the royal title, and not subject to any English royal law. Because of this some historians prefer the term commonwealth to Empire, to emphasise the fact that the Angevin Empire was more an assemblage of seven fully independent, sovereign states loosely bound to each other.
Geography and administration
At its largest extent, the so called "empire" consisted of the Kingdom of England, the Lordship of Ireland, the duchies of Normandy, Gascony and Aquitaine (also called Guyenne) as well as of the Counties of Anjou, Poitou, Maine, Touraine, Saintonge, Marche, Perigord, Limousin, Nantes and Quercy. While the duchies and counties were held with various levels of vassalage to the King of France, the Plantagenets held control over the Duchy of Brittany, the Welsh princedoms, the county of Toulouse and the Kingdom of Scotland to varying levels of power although they were not formal parts of the "Empire". Further claims had been laid over Berry and Auvergne yet these were not fulfilled.
Sometimes the frontiers were well known and easy to draw like the one between the royal Demesne of the King of France and the Duchy of Normandy while in other places they were not so clear, especially as regards the eastern frontier of Aquitaine where there often was a difference between the frontiers Henry II and, later, Richard I claimed and the ones where their real power ended. One of the most important characteristic of the Angevin Empire being it was "polycratic", term taken from one of the most important political pamphlet written by a subject of the Angevin Empire: the Policraticus by John of Salisbury.
- England was under a rather firm control and was probably one of the most controlled areas. The Kingdom was divided in shires with sheriffes enforcing the common law. A Justiciar was appointed by the King to make his voice respected while he was away. As the kings of England were more often in France than England they used a larger amount of writs than the Anglo-Saxon kings did, curiously this rather helped England than anything else. Under William's rule, Anglo-Saxon nobles were often replaced by Anglo-Norman ones who could not own large expanses of contiguous lands, which made it much harder for them to rise against the King and defend all of their lands in the same time. Earls held a status similar to that of the continental counts. Yet none of them were really strong enough to be a match for the King.
*In Greater Anjou, for instance, two kinds of officials enforced the rule: prévots or seneschals. These were based at Tours, Chinon, Baugé, Beaufort, Brissac, Angers, Saumur, Laudun, Lauch, Langeais and Montbazon. However the other places were not administered by the Plantagenets but by other families. For instance Maine was, at first, largely self-ruling and lacked of administration. The Plantagenets made efforts to improve the administration of this land by installing new administrators such as the seneschal of Le Mans. These reforms came too late though and the Capetians were the ones that really took benefits from these reforms after annexing Greater Anjou.
- Gascony was certainly a very loosely administrated region, with officials only stationed in Entre-deux-mers, Bayonne, Dax, as well as on the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela and on river Garonne up to Agen. The rest of Gascony was left without an administrator, and was a large area compared to several other provinces. It was very difficult for the Angevin, just like it was for the previous Poitevin dukes, to install their authority over the duchy. This part of Gascony was unattractive to rule because of the landscape and it was difficult to install a firm rule on it.
- As for Poitou and Guyenne, the castles were concentrated in Poitou where there were official representatives while in the eastern provinces of Perigord and Limousin there simply were none. Indeed there were lords that ruled these regions as if they were "sovereign princes" and they had powers in fields such as minting coins. Richard the Lionheart himself met his demise in Limousin.
- Normandy was probably one of the most administrated states of the Angevin Empire. Prévots and vicomtes lost of their importance to the advantage of baillis who held both judicial and executive powers. They were introduced in the 12th century in Normandy and organised the country more like the sheriffs did in England. The Ducal authority was strong on the frontier between the Royal Demesne and the Duchy but was more loose elsewhere.
In Aquitaine and Anjou although ducal and comital authorities did exist it was not homogeneous. For example, the family of the Lusignans, very powerful in these lands, proved themselves opponents of importance to the Plantagenets.
- Toulouse was held through vassalage by the count of Toulouse but the latter did rarely comply. Only Quercy was directly administrated by the Plantagenets and it remained a contested area for the time being.
- Brittany, a region where nobles were traditionally very independent, was under firm Plantagenet control. Nantes was under undisputed Angevin rule while the Plantagenets often involved themselves in Breton affairs and installed archbishops and imposed authority on the region.
- Wales obtained good terms provided it paid homage to the Plantagenets and recognised them as lords. However it remained almost self ruling. It supplied the Plantagenets with knives and longbows which England later used with great success.
Economy and revenue
The economics of the Angevin Empire was quite complicated due to the varying political structure of the fiefdoms. Areas like England which had a centralised power structure generated larger revenues than the more loosely administrated regions such as Limousin; where local princes could mint their own coins.
It is commonly believed that money raised in England was used for continental issues. Also, due to the high level of administration of England and, to a lesser extent, Normandy, it was only area where revenue was fairly consistent.
The English revenues themselves varied from a year to year:
- When Henry II Plantagenet became king, his income for England was a mere £10,500 a year or half of what the English revenue were under Henry I Beauclerc. This was due in part to The Anarchy and Stephen of Blois' loose rule. As time went on, Henry II installed his authority and incomes consequently went up to £22,000 a year.
- When it was time to prepare for the crusade, revenues increased to £31,050 per year but they dropped down to £11,000 a year when Richard I the Lionheart was away.
- Under John Lackland incomes remained stable for a time at £22,000 a year. In order to pay for the reconquest of France, he registered an income of £83,291 and yet that didn't include all sources like the Jews which could have increased it to £145,000 in the year of 1211.
In Ireland, the revenue was fairly low, a mere £2,000 for 1212 however, records are missing for the most part.
For Normandy, there were a lot of fluctuations relative to the politics of the Duchy. In 1180, the Norman revenues were only £6,750 while they reached £25,000 a year in 1198, higher than in England. What was more impressive was the fact the Norman population was considerably smaller than England's, an estimated 1.5 million as opposed to England's 3.5 million.
For Aquitaine, Anjou and Gascony there is no record about revenues. It is not that these regions were poor; there were large vineyards, important cities and iron mines. This is what Ralph of Diceto, an English chronicler, wrote about Aquitaine:
The Capetian kings did not record such incomes, although the royal principality was more centralized under Louis VII and Philip II than it used to be under Hugh Capet or Robert the Pious. The wealth of the Plantagenet kings was definitely regarded as bigger, Gerald of Wales commented on this wealth with these words:
Petit Dutailli had commented that: "Richard maintained a superiority in resources which would have given him the opportunity, had he lived, to crush his rival." There is another interpretation, not widely followed and proven wrong, that the king of France could have raised a stronger income, that the royal principality of the king of France generated alone more incomes than all of the Angevin Empire combined.
Formation of the Angevin Empire (1135 – 1156)
Context before the Anarchy
- See also: Norman conquest of England
The Counts of Anjou had been vying for power in north-western France for a long time. The Counts were recurrent enemies of the Dukes of Normandy and of the Dukes of Brittany and sometimes even of the King himself. Fulk IV claimed rule over Touraine, Maine and Nantes however Touraine was certainly proved to be the only effectively ruled of these as the construction of the castles of Chinon, Loches and Loudun exemplify. Fulk IV married his son Fulk V to Eremburga, the heiress of Maine thus unifying it with Anjou. While the dynasty of the Angevins was successful, their rivals, the Normans, had conquered England while the Poitevins had become Dukes of Aquitaine as well as Dukes of Gascony and the Count of Blois became Count of Champagne.
King Henry I of England had defeated his brother, Robert Curthose, made an enemy of Robert's son - William Clito - who became Count of Flanders in 1127 and used his paternal inheritance to claim the Duchy of Normandy and the Kingdom of England. Henry I tried to establish an alliance with Anjou against Flanders by marrying his only legitimate son, William Adelin, to Fulk V's daughter but the former died in the White Ship disaster in 1120. Then, Henry I married his daughter Matilda to Geoffrey V, however the Anglo-Normans had to accept Matilda's inheritance to the throne of England. There had been only one occurrence of a woman ascending the throne before, Urrace, and it wasn't an encouraging precedent although in January 1127, the Anglo-Normans barons and prelates recognized Matilda as heiress to the throne in an oath. On June 17, 1128, the wedding was celebrated in Le Mans.
The Anarchy and the question of the Norman succession
In order to secure the succession, castles and supporters were need in both England and Normandy. Had Matilda and Geoffrey succeeded, there would have been two authorities in England; King Henry I and his daughter, Matilda. Henry I didn't allow this happen by refusing to hand over any castle to Matilda as well as confiscated the lands of nobles he suspected of supporting her. By 1135, there were major disputes between Henry I and Matilda which drove the barons that were loyal to Henry I against Matilda. In November 1135, when Henry "Beauclerc" was dying, Matilda was with her husband in Maine and Anjou while Stephen of Blois was in Boulogne. Stephen rushed to England upon the news of the Henry I's death and was crowned King of England in December 1135.
Geoffrey sent Matilda alone to Normandy, first, in a diplomatic mission in order to get recognized Duchess of Normandy to replace Stephen. However, Geoffrey V wasn't far behind, at the head of his army, and quickly captured several fortresses in southern Normandy which he never lost again. It was then that an Angevin noble, Robert III of Sablé, rose up against Geoffrey V opening a front on his rear causing him to withdraw to Anjou and end the revolt. When Geoffrey V returned to Normandy in September 1136, the region was plagued with local struggles and infighting among the barons. Stephen was not able to travel to Normandy and as result, the situation remained chaotic. Geoffrey had found new allies with the Count of Vendôme and most importantly, the Duke of Aquitaine. At the head of a new army and prepared to conquer Normandy, he was wounded and was forced to return to Anjou once more. Adding to that, an outbreak of diarrhea plagued his army. Orderic Vitalis stated "the invaders had to run for home leaving a trail of filth behind them". Stephen finally arrived in Normandy in 1137 and restored order, but he had lost much of credibility to the eyes of Robert of Gloucester who supported Geoffrey. Geoffrey took control of the strongholds of Caen and Argentan without resistance but he now had to defend Robert's possession in England against the anger of the King. In 1139, Robert and Matilda crossed the channel and arrived in England while Geoffrey kept the pressure on Normandy. Stephen was captured in February 1141 at the Battle of Lincoln which prompted the collapse of Normandy. Geoffrey was now controlling almost all of Normandy. Previously King Louis VII of France had married Eleanor of Aquitaine becoming Duke of Aquitaine thus adding to his Royal Domain, the lands of Aquitaine in 1137 so he had no interest in the shift in Norman politics since he already ruled vast and powerful territories. Finally, while Geoffrey V asserted control of Normandy, Matilda was suffering defeats against Stephen's allies. At Winchester, Robert of Gloucester was captured while covering Matilda's retreat where she then would exchange Stephen for Robert.
In 1142, Geoffrey V was pleaded to cross the channel and assist Matilda but he refused. He became more interested in Normandy. Following the capture of Avranches, Mortain and Cherbourg, Geoffrey V launched a decisive attack on Rouen capturing it in 1144. He then anointed himself as Duke of Normandy and in exchange of the cession of Gisors to Louis VII was formally recognized by the King. Geoffrey V, satisfied with his new role in Normandy, made no effort to assist Matilda in England even as she was on the verge of defeat. Helie (Elias), Geoffrey's younger brother, felt that he deserved his fair share and asked for Maine. No sooner had that issue been settled, another Angevin noble rebelled: Gerald Berlay, newly appointed seneschal of Poitou by Louis VII, led a revolt in southern Anjou against Geoffrey V.
Accession of Henry and nominal foundation of the Angevin Empire
Stephen had by no means given up his claims on Normandy, even though Louis VII had clearly recognised Geoffrey Plantagenet as duke. An alliance between the two Kings was possible because of the issue over Gerald Berlay. Louis VII agreed to recognise Henry Plantagenet as the new duke in 1151 in exchange of concessions in Norman Vexin. The death of Geoffrey, aged only 38, made Henry Plantagenet count of Anjou in 1151. According to the story told by William of Newburgh (in the 1190s) Geoffrey declared that Henry would have to hand down Anjou to one of his young brothers, also called Geoffrey, if he was to win the crown of England. To compel Henry to make an oath, Geoffrey V had ordered to be left without a sepulture until Henry swore that he would renounce Anjou if he was to acquire England.
In March 1152, Louis VII and Eleanor of Aquitaine divorced under the pretext of consanguinity at the council of Beaugency because the couple was not going on well at all. Eleanor was left Duchess of Aquitaine but under rule of the King in the terms of the divorce and eight weeks later she married Henry Plantagenet who was no less related to her than was Louis VII. With Henry becoming Duke of Aquitaine and Gascony it was obvious he would never give Anjou up to his brother, since it would mean splitting his land into two parts. A coalition of all of Henry's enemies was set up by Louis VII: King Stephen of England and his son Eustace IV of Boulogne (married to Louis' sister), Henry the Liberal (promised to Eleanor's daughter), Robert of Dreux (Louis VII's brother) and finally Geoffrey who had no hope of acquiring Anjou any more.
In July 1152, Capetian troops attacked Aquitaine while Louis VII himself, along with Eustace IV, Henry of Champagne and Robert of Dreux attacked Normandy. Geoffrey raised a revolt in Anjou while Stephen attacked Angevin loyalists in England. Several Anglo-Norman nobles switched allegiance, feeling the forthcoming disaster. Henry Plantagenet was about to sail for England to pursue his claim when his lands were attacked. He first reached Anjou and compelled Geoffrey to surrender and then took the decision to sail for England in January 1153 in order to meet Stephen. Luckily enough Louis VII fell ill and had to retire from the conflict while Henry Plantagenet's defences held against his enemies. After seven months of both battles and political gambles he failed to get rid of King Stephen. Eustace IV died in dubious circumstances, "struck by the wrath of god", this was the last straw and King Stephen gave up the struggle by ratifying the Treaty of Winchester. He made Henry Plantagenet his heir on condition that the land possessions of his family were guaranteed in England and France, these were the terms Matilda had refused after her victory at Lincoln. Henry Plantagenet became Henry II of England in December 1154. Subsequently the question of his oath about Anjou and his brother Geoffrey was raised again. Henry II received a dispensation from Pope Adrian IV under the pretext the oath had been forced upon him, Henry II proposed compensations to Geoffrey at Rouen in 1156, but the latter refused and returned to Anjou to rise once again against Henry II. If Geoffrey had a solid moral claim, his position was nonetheless very weak. Louis VII wouldn't interfere since Henry II paid homage to the King of France for Normandy, Anjou and Aquitaine as vassal. Henry II crushed Geoffrey's revolt and he had to be satisfied with an annual pension.
Expansions of the Angevin Empire
Henry II clearly claimed further lands and worked on the creation of a ring of vassal states, especially around England and Normandy, as buffers. The most obvious ones were Scotland, Wales, Brittany and Flanders, which could be also used as starting points for further expansions.
David of Scotland had taken advantage of The Anarchy to seize Cumberland, Westmorland and Northumberland. In Wales important leaders like Rhys of Deheubarth and Owain of Gwynedd had emerged. In Brittany, there is no evidence that the Duke of Brittany, namely Eudes, had recognised the Norman overlordship. Two vital frontier castles, Moulins-la-Marche and Bonmoulins, had never been taken back by Geoffrey Plantagenet and were in the hands of Robert of Dreux. Count Thierry of Flanders had joined the alliance formed by Louis VII in 1153. Further south, the Count of Blois acquired Amboise. From Henry II's perspective, there were some issues to solve.
King Henry II showed being a very audacious and daring king, he was also very active and mobile. Though he was often more present in France than in England as Ralph of Diss, Dean of St Paul's, ironised on:
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Castles and strongholds in France
Henry II bought Vernon and Neufmarché back in 1154. From now on this new strategy regulated the Plantagenets-Capetians relationship. Louis VII couldn't deny his own unsuccessful attempt at breaking Henry II down. Because of the Angevin control of England in 1154 it was pointless to object to the superiority of cumulated Angevin forces over the Capetian ones. Yet, Henry II wouldn't stop claiming the land until the Norman Vexin was entirely recovered. Thomas Beckett was sent as embassador to Paris in 1158 for leading negotiations and he displayed all the wealth the Angevins could boast of to the Capetians. Louis VII's daughter, Margaret who was still a baby was promised to Henry the "future young king" (King Henry II's son). Although a baby, Margaret was old enough to be given a dowry at her wedding. This dowry happened to be the Norman Vexin. Henry II was given back the castles of Moulins-la-Marche and Bonmoulins. Theobald the Good handed Amboise back to him.
Flanders
Although Thierry of Alsace had taken part in the assaults against Henry II along with Louis VII the wool trade between England and Flanders favoured a cordial relationship between the two men up to the point that the Count appointed Henry II guardian of his lands so that he undertake on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem without concerns. In 1159, William of Blois died without an inheritance, he was Stephen's last son, leaving the titles of Count of Boulogne and Count of Mortain vacant. Henry II absorbed the County of Mortain but wanted to grant Boulogne to Thierry's son, Matthew, who married Marie of Boulogne. The title of Count of Boulogne was accompanied with important manors in London and Colchester.
England received much of its wool from Flanders via the port of Boulogne. An alliance with these two counties was then logically sealed by this wedding and the concessions of manors. Henry II had to get Marie out of her convent first, which had been a common practice in England since the Normans. In 1163, the few official remaining documents showed Henry II and Thierry renewed the treaty signed by William the Conqueror. Flanders would provide Henry II with knights in exchange of an annual tribute in money.
Brittany
In Brittany, the duke Conan III declared his son Hoël a bastard and disinherited him. It was his sister Bertha who became Duchess of Brittany making her husband of the time, Eudes, nominally Duke. Hoël was co-ruler with his brother in law then, and had to be satisfied as Count of Nantes. Bertha was the widow of Alan de Bretagne with whom she already had a son, Conan. Conan who had become Earl of Richmond in 1148 was Henry II's perfect candidate to become the new Duke of Brittany as any Duke with possessions of importance in England could be easier to control.
In 1156, the Duchy of Brittany was hit by civil unrest which led to Conan IV's accession while in Nantes the population called for Henry II's help against Hoël. Geoffrey (Henry II's brother again) was made new Count of Nantes by Henry II, but he did not hold the position for long, as he died in 1158 at only 24 years of age. In 1158, Conan IV briefly ruled as Count of Nantes however, Henry II took the title that same year by mustering an army in Avranches to threaten Conan. In 1160 Henry II married his cousin Margaret of Scotland to Conan in an arranged wedding. He then appointed the archbishop of Dol. Without a tradition of a strong rule in Brittany, discontent amog nobles grew. This led to a revolt that Henry II answered in 1166. He betrothed his own 7 year-old son -Geoffrey- to Conan's daughter and later forced Conan to abdicate for his future son in law, making of Henry II the ruler of Brittany yet not the Duke. Breton nobles strongly opposed that and more attacks on Brittany followed first in 1167 then in 1168 and finally in 1173. Each of these invasions were followed by confiscations and Henry II installed his men in the place, William Fitzhamo and Rolland of Dinan. Although it was not formally part of the Plantagenet fiefdom Brittany was under firm control.
Scotland
Henry II met Malcolm IV in 1157 about Cumberland, Westmorland and Northumberland previously seized by his grandfather, David I of Scotland. In 1149, before Henry II became powerful, he made an oath to David that the lands north of Newcastle should belong to the King of Scotland forever. Malcolm reminded him of this oath but Henry II did not comply. There is no evidence that Henry II got a dispensation from the pope this time, as William of Newburgh put it.
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Malcolm IV gave up and paid homage in return for Huntingdon, which he inherited from his father.
William the Lion, the next King of Scotland, was unhappy with Henry II since he was given Northumberland by David I in 1152 and therefore lost it to Henry II when Malcolm IV handed it back in 1157.
As a part of the coalition set by Louis VII, William the Lion first invaded Northumberland in 1173 and then again in 1174, as a result he was captured near Alnwick and had to sign the tough Treaty of Falaise. Garrisons were to be set in the castles of Edinburgh, Roxburgh, Jedburgh and Berwick. Southern Scotland was from then under firm control just as Brittany was. Richard I of England would end the Treaty of Falaise in exchange for money to fund his crusade, setting a context for cordial relationships between the two lion kings.
Wales
see also Gwynedd, Deheubarth, Powys, and Principality of Wales
Rhys of Deheubarth, also called Lord Rhys, and Owain of Gwynedd were closed to negotiations. Henry II had to attack Wales three times, in 1157, 1158 and 1163 to have them answering his summons to the court. But the terms were too harsh and the Welsh largely revolted against him, he then undertook a fourth invasion in 1164 but this time with a massive army, the Chronicle of the Prince described it that way:
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Bad weather, rains, floods, and constant harassment from the Welsh armies slowed the Angevin army and prevented the capture of Wales (see the Battle of Crogen); furious Henry II had Welsh hostages mutilated. Wales would remain safe for a while, but the invasion of Ireland in 1171 pressured Henry II to end the issue through negotiations with Lord Rhys.
Ireland
Further plans of expansion were considered as Henry II's last brother didn't have a fiefdom. The Holy See was most likely to support a campaign in Ireland which would bring its church into the Christian Latin world of Rome. Henry II was given Rome's blessing in 1155 under the form of a Papal bull but had to postpone the invasion of Ireland because of all the issues in his domains and around them. Here are the terms of the Bull Laudabiliter:
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William X, Count of Poitou died in 1164 without being installed in Ireland, but Henry II didn't gave up on the conquest of Ireland. In 1167 -Dermot of Leinster- an Irish King, was recognised as "prince of Leinster" by Henry II and was allowed to recruit soldiers in England and Wales to use in Ireland against the other Kings. The knights first met great success in carving themselves lands in Ireland, so much it worried Henry II enough to land himself in Ireland in October 1171 near Waterford and confronted to such demonstration of power most native kings of Ireland recognised him as their lord. Even Rory O' Connor, the king of Connacht who claimed to be High King of Ireland paid homage to Henry II. Henry II installed some of his men in strongholds like Dublin and Leinster (as Dermot was dead). He also gave unconquered kingdoms such as Cork, Limerick and Ulster to his men and left the Normans carving their lands in Ireland. In 1177 he made John, his son, the first Lord of Ireland, though John was too young and landed in Ireland only in 1185. He failed to install his authority on the land and had to return to Henry II. Only 25 years later John would return to Ireland while others built castles and installed their interests.
Toulouse
Much less tenable was the claim over Toulouse. Eleanor's ancestors claimed the huge County of Toulouse as it used to be the central power of the ancient Duchy of Aquitaine back in the times of Eudes the Great. Henry II and maybe even Eleanor were probably totally unrelated to this ancient line of dukes (Eleanor was a Ramnulfid while Henry II was an Angevin). Toulouse was a very large city, heavily fortified and much richer than many cities of the time. It was of strategical importance as it is between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. The County of Toulouse was the largest state of the Kingdom of France with its large access to the Mediterranean Sea itself, and included significant cities like Narbonne, Cahors, Albi, Nimes and Carcassonne.
Toulouse wasn't easy prey though. The city was incredibly large and fortified for a medieval city. Not to mention the least, Raymond V was married to Louis VII's sister therefore attacking Toulouse would have endangered the policy of peace with the King of France. The County of Toulouse had also many heavily fortified areas like Carcassonne and its five sons: Queribus, Aguila, Termes, Peyrepertuse and Puylaurens and many more castles and fortified cities.
In June 1159 Henry II gathered in Poitiers what probably was the biggest army he had ever sent, formed by troops from all of his fiefdom (from Gascony to England), that army also included reinforcements sent by Thierry and Malcolm IV. Henry II attacked from the north while other of his allies, namely the Trencavels and Ramon Berenguer opened a different front. Henry II couldn't capture Toulouse proper and the recurrent conflicts with Toulouse would be called the Forty Years War with Toulouse by William of Newburgh. Henry II captured Cahors though as well as various castles in the Garonne valley (in the Quercy region), he came back in 1161 and then too busy with conflicts elsewhere in his fiefdom he left his allies fighting against Toulouse. Alfonso II the King of Aragon himself having interests there joined the war. In 1171 Henry II set an alliance with Humbert of Maurienne adding one more enemy of Raymond V to his alliance. In 1173, in Limoges, Raymond finally gave up after over a decade of constant fights. He paid homage to Henry II, to his son also called Henry and to his other son Richard the Lionheart newly appointed new Duke of Aquitaine.
Pinnacle of the Angevin Empire (1160 - 1199)
Louis VII was known by his contemporaries for his piety and love of peace. This is what Stephen of Paris wrote about King Louis VII:
Even Walter Map, a contemporary English satirical chronicler, had been kind toward Louis VII and praised him marking a contrast with the harsh critiques he did toward other kings..
King Louis VII was a man of peace who hated violence and war but the attacks on Toulouse made clear that peace with Henry II wasn't peace at all but just the opportunity to make war elsewhere. Louis VII himself was in an awkward position, his subject was more powerful than he was and not just a little and worst of all he had no male heir. Constance, his second wife, died in childbirth in 1160 and Louis VII announced he would remarry at once, in the urgent need of a male heir, with Adèle of Champagne. The young Henry was finally married to Margaret aged only 2, under the pressure of Henry II, and as declared in 1158 the Norman Vexin went to him as the dowry. Had Louis VII died without male heir, Henry the Young would have been in a comfortable position to become the next King of France himself (of course, they would have had to ignore the Salic Law).
In 1164 King Louis found a rather turbulent ally in Archbishop Thomas Beckett. King Louis and Thomas Beckett had met previously in 1158, but now the circumstances were very different. Louis had got already a few clerical refugees in his land, and was then called Rex Christianisimus (most Christian king) by John of Salisbury.
Indeed there were growing conflicts between the king of England and the archbishop and Henry II provoqued Thomas Beckett's murder by pronouncing words comparable to these:
Thomas Beckett was murdered in 1170, and the Christian world blamed Henry for this. Louis, who had protected Thomas Beckett, gained general approval against Henry. Although his secular power was still much weaker than Henry's, Louis now had the moral advantage.
In 1165, the idea of a possible succession of Henry the Young to the throne of France was all gone away as Philip was given birth by Adèle. With the birth of the next King of France it was clear peace was over, Henry II claimed Auvergne in and marched on it in 1167 while he also claimed Bourges and attacked it in 1170. Louis VII answered by raiding the Norman Vexin forcing Henry II to relocate his troops to the north and Louis VII then marched south and freed Bourges. At that point, not just Louis VII was wondering if Henry II's expansionism would ever end.
Henry II never treated his land as a coherent sovereign but much more as private possessions he planned to distribute his children. Henry the young was crowned King of England in 1170 but never actually ruled, in 1172 Richard the Lionheart became Duke of Aquitaine, in 1181 Geoffrey became Duke of Brittany, John became Lord of Ireland in 1185 while Leonora (born in 1161) was promised to Alfonso VII with Gascony as dowry during the campaign against Toulouse in 1170. This partition of the lands between his children made it much harder for him to control them, as several of them would then turn against him.
Following his coronation Henry the Young King asked part of his inheritance, at least England or Normandy or Anjou and Henry II the Old King refused to hand down anything. Henry the Young then joined Louis VII at his court, Eleanor of Aquitaine herself joined the conflict and both Richard the Lionheart and Geoffrey of Brittany joined their brother at the court of the King. From then, states that Henry II had pressured joined the conflict against him. Another King to join Louis VII was William the Lion, King of Scotland. Philip, the Count of Flanders also joined the conflict, as well as the Count of Boulogne and Theobald the Count of Blois. Henry II emerged victorious of that conflict, because of his wealth he could recruit very large amount of mercenaries, he had captured and imprisoned Eleanor early on as well as captured William the Lion and forced him into the Treaty of Falaise. Henry II bought the County of Marche, then he asserted the French Vexin and Bourges should be given at once, but this time there was no invasion to back the claim.
Philip II Augustus and Richard I the Lionheart
Louis VII died and was buried in the Saint Denis Basilica in 1180. His son, aged only 15, ascended of France and in 1183. Philip II of France's policy was to use Henry II's sons against him. Richard the Lionheart was administrating Aquitaine since 1175 but his policy of centralisation of the Aquitanian government had grown unpopular in the eastern part of the Duchy, notably Perigord and Limousin. Richard the Lionheart was accused of many crimes there, among which murders and rapes. If Richard was not so popular in Aquitaine Philip II was not really liked either by contemporaries with comments describing him as: astute, manipulative, calculating, penurious and ungallant ruler.
In 1183, Henry the Young joined a revolt led by Limoges and Geoffrey of Lusignan against Richard in order to take Richard's place. They were joined by Philip II, Raymond V and by Duke Hugh III of Burgundy. Henry the Young died suddenly of a fatal illness in 1183, saving Richard's position. Henry the Young King was buried in Notre Dame de Rouen.
Richard was then Henry II's oldest son and inherited of Henry the Young's status. Henry II ordered him to hand down Aquitaine to John Lackland but Richard refused to comply. Henry II had too much to cope with at the time to take care of this, Welsh princes were now contesting his authority, William the Lion was asking for his castles to be given back and as Henry the Young was dead Philip II asked for the Norman Vexin to be given back. Henry II finally asked Richard I to surrender Aquitaine to Eleanor while Richard retained the control. Still in 1183, Raymond V had taken Cahors back and Henry II asked Richard to mount an expedition against Toulouse. Geoffrey of Brittany was quarrelling violently with his brother Richard and it was obvious Geoffrey could be used by the Capetians but his sudden death in 1186 in a tournament killed the plot. In 1187, Philip II and Richard were more that strong allies as Roger of Hoveden reported:
In 1188 Raymond V attacked again joined by the Lusignans, it was rumoured that Henry II himself financed the revolts. By this time Philip II attacked Henry II in Normandy and captured strongholds in Berry. In 1188, Philip II and Henry II met to discuss peace again, Henry II refused to make Richard his heir, the story affirms Richard said "Now at last, I must believe what I had always thought impossible."
This was the final collapse of all Henry's strategy, first Richard paid homage to the King of France for all the lands his father held. As Richard and Philip II attacked Henry II no one in Aquitaine stood for him and the Bretons seized the opportunity to attack him too. Even Henry's birthplace, Le Mans, was captured and Tours also soon fell. He was simply encircled in his castle of Chinon. Henry was finally compelled to surrender, he handed down a large tribute in money to Philip II and swore all his subjects in France and England would recognise Richard as their lord. Henry II died two days later, learning John had joined Richard and Philip, and the old king was buried in Fontevraud Abbey.
Eleanor, who was Henry's hostage, was then freed while Lord Rhys raised and began to reconquer the southern parts of Wales that Henry had annexed. Richard I was crowned King in Westminster Abbey in November 1189, while he was already installed Duke of Normandy, Count of Anjou and Duke of Aquitaine. Philip II asked for the Norman Vexin to be given back but the issue was settled when Richard I announced he would marry Alys, Philip II's sister. Richard I also recognised Auvergne was meant to belong to the crown of France and not to the Duke of Aquitaine ending Henry's claim on the place. In Britain King William of Scotland opened negotiations with King Richard of England (the two lion kings) to revocate the Treaty of Falaise and an agreement was reached.
The Third Crusade
The next priority was the crusade, it had been delayed long enough and Richard I considered it was time to do his religious duty. Beyond purely religious matter, his ancestor Fulk V had been King of Jerusalem and Guy de Lusignan was a Poitevin noble while his wife -Sybilla- was no less than Richard's cousin. The crusade as well as French issues would be the reason of Richard's absence in England, the Lion Heart would spend less than six months of his reign in England.
Before leaving, Richard I had to make sure nothing went wrong while he was in the Holy Land. There was little doubt Raymond V would catch the opportunity to expand his lands in Aquitaine, to counter that threat he built an alliance with Sancho VI the Wise the King of Navarre. On the way to the Holy Land, Richard I married Berengaria the princess of Navarre therefore repudiating Alys in 1191. To calm down Philip II he accepted that if he had two sons the youngest should take Normandy or Aquitaine or Anjou and rule it for the King of France.
The administration left behind worked rather well as an attack from the Count of Toulouse was repelled with the help of Sancho VI. The Siege of Acre was merely over that struck by dysentery Philip II of France had to take the way back to his Kingdom, still upset at the way his sister Alys had been treated. Richard I had also upset Leopold V the Virtuous by removing his banner from Acre. Much has been said about the reasons Philip II went back to France, it is often considered his dysentery was the principal reason. Other causes could have been the way his sister had been treated by Richard I or that he couldn't stand his subject showed more power and wealth than him or even that following the Count of Flanders's death - Philip- he came back to ask for his share of the land of Artois.
Richard I left Palestine in October 1192 and would have retrieved his lands intact had he reached home in time. But Leopold V arrested him near Vienna, accusing him of the murder of his cousin Conrad, and then handed him down to Emperor Henry VI. John Lackland was summoned to Philip II's court and accepted to marry Alys with no less than Artois has a dowry in return of what the entire Norman Vexin would be given to the King of France. After all, no one was sure if Richard I would be ever released. Yet, all of the forces John could gather were a bunch of mercenaries as even William the Lion didn't join his revolt and worse, sent money for Richard's ransom. Another revolt in Aquitaine was suppressed by Elias de la Celle, but in Normandy Philip II himself was leading the operations. By April 1193 he had reached Rouen and although the Ducal Capital couldn't be taken, he and his allies were then controlling all the ports from the Rhine to Dieppe. Confronted to the situation Richard's regents conceded the Treaty of Mantes in July 1193, confirming Philip II's control on all the land he had taken including the entire Norman Vexin, the castles of Drincourt and Arques in Normandy and the castles of Loches and Châtillon in Tourraine as well as adding a substantial payment once Richard is back.
In a new treaty in 1194, concessions to the King of France went much further when Tours with all the castles of Tourraine and all of Eastern Normandy except for Rouen were surrendered. The County of Angoulême was declared independent of Aquitaine, Vendôme was given to Louis of Blois and Rotrou III of Perche acquired Moulins and Bonmoulins. Emperor Henry VI finally released Richard I in 1194 in exchange of the ransom.
Richard freed, recovering his lands, and finally dying
Richard I was in a difficult position, Philip II had taken over large parts of his lands and had inherited of Amiens and Artois. England was Richard's most secured possessions, Hubert Walter who had been to the crusade with the King of England was appointed his justiciar. King Richard took over John's lordship over Ireland and rejected William the Lion's claim over the northern territories.
Richard I had merely crossed the English Channel to claim back his territories that John Lackland betrayed Philip II by murdering the garrison of Evreux and handing the town down to Richard I. "He had first betrayed his father, then his brother and now our King" said William the Breton. Sancho the Strong, the future King of Navarre, joined the conflict and attacked Aquitaine, capturing Angoulème and Tours. Richard himself was known to be a great military commander. The first part of this war was difficult for Richard who suffered several setbacks, indeed Philip II was also a great commander and politician. But by October the new Count of Toulouse, Raymond VI, left the Capetian side and joined Richard's. He was followed by Balwin IV of Flanders, the future Latin Emperor, as this one was contesting Artois to Philip II. In 1197, Henry VI died and was replaced by Otton IV, Richard I's own nephew. Renaud de Dammartin, the Count of Boulogne and a skilled commander, also deserted Philip II. Balwin IV was invading Artois and captured Saint Omer while Richard I was campaigning in Berry and inflicted a severe defeat to Philip II at Gisors, close to Paris. A truce was accepted and Richard I had almost recovered all Normandy and now held more territories in Aquitaine than he had before. Richard I had to deal with a revolt once again, but this time from Limousin. He was struck by a bolt in April 1199 at Châlus-Chabrol and died of a subsequent infection. His body was buried at Fontevraud like his father.
John's reign and the collapse (1199 - 1217)
John wasn't king yet; he had to fight to keep his lands. Following the news of Richard's death, Philip II captured Evreux in a rush. John tried to take the Angevin treasure and the castle of Chinon to install his power. But in the local custom the son of an older brother was preferred to a claimant. Henceforth they recognised Arthur as their ruler, son of Geoffrey of Brittany, depriving John of the Angevins' ancestral land. Only in Normandy and England he could install his rule. In Rouen, Normandy, he was made Duke in April 1199 and he was crowned King of England in May at Westminster Abbey. He left his mother, Eleanor, controlling Aquitaine.
His allies, Aimeri of Thouars and three Lusignan nobles led an attack on Tours in an attempt to capture Arthur and install John as count. Aimeri of Thouars was promised the title of seneschal had he captured Arthur. By this time John went to Normandy to negotiate a truce with Philip II. He took profit of this truce to gather Richard's former allies, especially the Count of Boulogne, the Count of Flanders and the Holy Roman Emperor. In the end no less than 15 French counts swore allegiance to John who was now definitely in a much stronger position than Philip II. A strong supporter of the King—William des Roches—even switched side in front of so much power and handed down Arthur, whom he was supposed to protect, to John. Arthur managed to espace and join Philip II's court very soon though. It was also the moment the Count of Flanders and many knights decided to join the crusade in 1199 and deserted John's court. John's dominant position was short-lived and then he had to accept the Treaty of Le Goulet in 1200. Philip II was confirmed over the lands he had taken in Normandy joined by further concessions in Auvergne and Berry. John was recognised at the head of Anjou in return of what he swore he would not interfere if Baldwin IV or Otto IV attacked Philip II.
The Lusignans' case and decisive defeats
Hugh IX of Lusignan took Eleanor in hostage; John then recognised him as Count of Marche, thus expanding Lusignan power in the region. In August 1200, John had his first marriage annulled and he married Isabella who was already betrothed to Hugh X. John then confiscated La Marche. The Lusignans themselves called for Philip II's intervention, and he summoned John to his court. John refused to meet his King, so Philip II to used his power of suzerainty to confiscate all the lands John held in France. Phillip then accepted Arthur's homage, granting Arthur control of Poitou, Anjou, Maine, and Tours in 1202. Raymond VI, Count of Toulouse, joined Philip II, as did Renaud de Dammartin. Most of John's other allies were either in the Holy Land or had deserted him. Of them, only Sancho VII the Strong remained, and he was in a weak position and unable to render much assistance to John.
Arthur launched an attack in Poitou with his Lusignan allies, while Philip II attacked Normandy and captured many castles on the frontier. John was in Le Mans when the attacks were launched and decided to move southward. John's forced captured Arthur, along with Hugh X and 200 knights; this success was quickly followed by the capture of the Viscount of Limoges, who John imprisoned in Chinon. The year 1202 was a time of triumph for John, who had distinguished himself from Richard I nor Henry II by succeessfully stifling his enemies.
Unfortunately, John suffered from a fatal character flaw: "he could not resist the temptation to kick a man when he was down." He took pleasure in humiliating his enemies. After Arthur was murdered in prison (almost certainly at John's command), many of John's supporters deserted him.
John's former allies, many of whom now actively fought against him, handed Alençon over to Philip II in Normandy. Vaudreuil was delivered to the King of France without a fight. John, who was trying to retake Alençon, was forced to withdraw once Philip II arrived. Château-Gaillard itself had fallen in 1204 after a six month siege; this was a devastating loss for the Angevins. Philip II continued campaigning in Normandy and successfully captured Argentan, Falaise, Caen, Bayeux and Lisieux in only three weeks. At the same time, a force of Breton knights captured the Mont Saint-Michel and Avranches. Tours fell in 1204, Loches and even Chinon followed in 1205; only Rouen and Arques continued to resist. Rouen finally capitulated and opened its gates to the King. The Ducal castle was then destroyed and a bigger one was commissioned.
Eleanor died in 1204 and most of the Poitevin nobles joined Philip II since they were loyal to Eleanor, but not to John. After Eleanor's death, Alfonso VIII asked for Gascony, which was part of the dowry Henry II had given his daughter. Gascony was one of the few French portions of the once-powerful "Angevin Empire" to remained loyal to the Angevins; the Gascons resisted Alfonso and the territory remained under John's control.
The two kings finally agreed to a truce in 1206. The "Angevin Empire" had been reduced to only Gascony, Ireland, and England.
Campaigns in the British Isles and return to France
John had to make his rule on the isles undisputed following the loss of Normandy and Anjou. He campaigned in South Wales in 1208, the Scottish border in 1209, Ireland in 1210 and North Wales in 1211 and these campaigns often met their successes. John used all resources he could muster to finance an upcoming campaign in France. Taxation of the Jews generated additional incomes while all land property of the church were seized, this had led to John's excommunication.
In 1212, John was ready to land and invade France, but a revolt in Wales forced him to delay his plans and then a baronnal revolt in England made it worse. Philip II was then also preparation an invasion of England but his fleet was destroyed while anchored at Damme by the Earl of Salisbury, William Longespee. Hearing of the news, John ordered all the forces he had set to defend England to sail for Poitou. He landed in La Rochelle in 1214 and was then allied with Renaud de Dammartin, Count Ferdinand of Flanders and of course with Otto IV. His allies would attack in the north-east of France while he would attack from the south west. John went to Gascony and tried to install his garrison in Agens but it was expelled. Unlike Normandy, Philip II had never invaded Poitou, it just switched allegiance. In order to invade Paris it was much shorter to go through Normandy from England than the southwest thus King Philip II concentrated his efforts there. The sword swung two ways as for Philip II it was easier to launch and invasion of England from Normandy. As a consequence Poitou was left without strong royal presence. John betrothed his daughter -Joan- to Hugh IX of Lusignan's son Hugh X, in return of what the Lusignans would be granted Saintonge and the Island of Oleron as well as possibilities of further concessions in Touraine and Anjou. These were huge gains for the Lusignans, yet John called that bringing them to submit.
Peter was the Duke of Brittany of the time, he was loyal to the King of France but his claim to the rule of Brittany was fairly loose. If anything Eleanor of Brittany had a stronger claim as she was the sister of the defunct Arthur. John had her captured and used her as blackmail against Peter with one hand while temptating him by offering Richmond with the other hand, Peter refused to change allegiance in the end and not even after capture of his brother Robert III of Dreux near Nantes made him change his stance.
John entered Angers and captured a newly built castle at Roche-au-Moine but Prince Louis rushed from Chinon with an army and took it back by pushing John back to retreat. Even though this was a setback John had at least made the job of his allies easier by dividing the Capetian army. Then happened the disastrous Battle of Bouvines in which all his allies were defeated by King Philip II.
John was beaten, the economy of the Kingdom of England was bankrupted and he was then seen as a failed plunderer. All the money he could gather and all the power he used brought nothing and his allies were all down or captured.
Capetians in England
In 1215 English barons were convinced that John would not respect the convention of the charter he had just signed and they sent a letter to the French court in which they offered the crown of England to Prince Louis. By November a Capetian garrison was sent to London to support the rebels. On 22 May 1216 Capetian forces landed at Sandwich led by Prince Louis himself. John fled, allowing Louis to capture London and Winchester. By August, Louis controlled most of eastern England; only Dover, Lincoln and Windsor remained loyal to John. EvenKing Alexander II of Scotland travelled to Canterbury and paid homage to Prince Louis, recognizing him as King of England.
John died 2 months later, defeated even in England. The following regency installed the Magna Carta in law, that charter signed by John and was not applied until then, since Henry III was too young to do it himself. The Anglo-Normans barons then withdrew their supports to Louis. He was defeated nearly a year later at Lincoln and Sandwich, thus ended his claim on England that he conceded in the Treaty of Lambeth in September 1217. Norman barons were now divided between allegiances.
This quote taken from Capetian France 987 - 1328 summarises the reasons of the Angevin collapse well enough:
Cultural Influence
The hypothetical continuation and expansion of the Angevin Empire over several centuries has been the subject of several tales of alternate history. Historically both English and French historians had viewed the juxtaposition of England and French lands under Angevin control as something of an aberration and an offence to national identity. To English historians the lands in France were an encumbrance, while French historians considered the union to be an English empire.
This is what Whig historian Macaulay, in 1849, wrote in his History of England about the union of the two lands.
The Plantagenet kings had adopted wine as main drink, replacing beer and cider used by the Norman kings. The ruling class of the Angevin Empire was also French speaking, while the church retained Ecclesiastical Latin.
The 12th century is also the century of the Gothic architecture, first known as "Opus Francigenum", from the work of the Abbot Suger at Saint Denis in 1140. The Early English Period began around 1180 or 1190, in the times of the Angevin Empire, but this religious architecture was totally independent of the Angevin Empire, it was just born at the same moment and spread at those times in England. The strongest influence on architecture directly associated to the Plantagenets is about kitchens.
The British royal motto is said to come from these times: "Dieu et mon droit" were Richard's alleged words while these Angevin kings had also adopted three crawling lions for symbol. If these symbols did not represent England at first (they were Plantagenet's personal coat of arms and did not represent a political structure) they are today often associated to England. Normandy and Aquitaine also retained leopards on their flags though, the Norman symbol being probably the oldest one here.
From a political point of view the continental issues were given more attention from the monarchs of England than the British ones already under the Normans. Under Angevin lordship things became even more clear as the balance of power was dramatically set in France and the Angevin kings often spent more times in France than England. With the loss of Normandy and Anjou the fiefdom was cut in two and then the descendants of the Plantagenets can be regarded as English kings accounting Gascony in their domain.
See also
Further reading
Due to the nature of the Angevin Empire there is a good number of sources in French. Thus to enjoy the largest array of sources requires a good knowledge of both English and French.
- "The Angevin Empire" by John Gillingham, editions Arnold.This book as been largely used as English source for this article.
- "L'Empire des Plantagenet" by Martin Aurell, editions Tempus, in French. From 2007 available in a English translation by David Crouch.
- "Noblesse de l'espace Plantagenêt (1154-1224)", editions Civilisations Medievales; it's a collection of essays by various French and English historians on the Angevin ruling class. It's a bilingual sourcebook which articles in French or English (but not both at a time).
- "The Plantagenet Chronicles" by Elizabeth Hallam. This book tells the history of the Angevin Dynasty and it is written in English.
Appendixes, notes and references.
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