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Birth:          24 Dec 1166 Kings Manor House, Oxford, Oxfordshire, England
Death:          19 Oct 1216 Newark, Nottinghamshire, England
Burial:         Cathedral, Worcester, Worcestershire, England

Notes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John,_King_of_England
Duchy of Normandy to King Philip II of France, resulting in the collapse of most of the 
Angevin Empire and contributing to the subsequent growth in power of the Capetian 
dynasty during the 13th century. The baronial revolt at the end of John's reign led to 
the sealing of Magna Carta, a document sometimes considered to be an early step in 
the evolution of the constitution of the United Kingdom.

John, the youngest of five sons of King Henry II of England and Duchess Eleanor of 
Aquitaine, was at first not expected to inherit significant lands. Following the failed 
rebellion of his elder brothers between 1173 and 1174, however, John became Henry's 
favourite child. He was appointed the Lord of Ireland in 1177 and given lands in 
England and on the continent. John's elder brothers William, Henry and Geoffrey died 
young; by the time Richard I became king in 1189, John was a potential heir to the 
throne. John unsuccessfully attempted a rebellion against Richard's royal 
administrators whilst his brother was participating in the Third Crusade. Despite this, 
after Richard died in 1199, John was proclaimed King of England, and came to an 
agreement with Philip II of France to recognise John's possession of the continental 
Angevin lands at the peace treaty of Le Goulet in 1200.

When war with France broke out again in 1202, John achieved early victories, but 
shortages of military resources and his treatment of Norman, Breton and Anjou nobles 
resulted in the collapse of his empire in northern France in 1204. John spent much of 
the next decade attempting to regain these lands, raising huge revenues, reforming his 
armed forces and rebuilding continental alliances. John's judicial reforms had a lasting 
impact on the English common law system, as well as providing an additional source of 
revenue. An argument with Pope Innocent III led to John's excommunication in 1209, 
a dispute finally settled by the king in 1213. John's attempt to defeat Philip in 1214 
failed due to the French victory over John's allies at the battle of Bouvines. When he 
returned to England, John faced a rebellion by many of his barons, who were unhappy 
with his fiscal policies and his treatment of many of England's most powerful nobles. 
Although both John and the barons agreed to the Magna Carta peace treaty in 1215, 
neither side complied with its conditions. Civil war broke out shortly afterwards, with 
the barons aided by Louis of France. It soon descended into a stalemate. John died of 
dysentery contracted whilst on campaign in eastern England during late 1216; 
supporters of his son Henry III went on to achieve victory over Louis and the rebel 
barons the following year.

Contemporary chroniclers were mostly critical of John's performance as king, and his 
reign has since been the subject of significant debate and periodic revision by 
historians from the 16th century onwards. Historian Jim Bradbury has summarised the 
current historical opinion of John's positive qualities, observing that John is today 
usually considered a "hard-working administrator, an able man, an able general".[2] 
Nonetheless, modern historians agree that he also had many faults as king, including 
what historian Ralph Turner describes as "distasteful, even dangerous personality 
traits", such as pettiness, spitefulness and cruelty.[3] These negative qualities 
provided extensive material for fiction writers in the Victorian era, and John remains a 
recurring character within Western popular culture, primarily as a villain in films and 
stories depicting the Robin Hood legends
Childhood and the Angevin inheritance[edit]

John was born to Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine on 24 December 
1166.[4] Henry had inherited significant territories along the Atlantic seaboard—Anjou, 
Normandy and England—and expanded his empire by conquering Brittany.[5] Henry 
married the powerful Eleanor of Aquitaine, who reigned over the Duchy of Aquitaine 
and had a tenuous claim to Toulouse and Auvergne in southern France, in addition to 
being the former wife of Louis VII of France.[5] The result was the Angevin Empire, 
named after Henry's paternal title as Count of Anjou and, more specifically, its seat in 
Angers.[nb 2] The Empire, however, was inherently fragile: although all the lands 
owed allegiance to Henry, the disparate parts each had their own histories, traditions 
and governance structures.[7] As one moved south through Anjou and Aquitaine, the 
extent of Henry's power in the provinces diminished considerably, scarcely resembling 
the modern concept of an empire at all. Some of the traditional ties between parts of 
the empire such as Normandy and England were slowly dissolving over time.[8] It was 
unclear what would happen to the empire on Henry's death. Although the custom of 
primogeniture, under which an eldest son would inherit all his father's lands, was 
slowly becoming more widespread across Europe, it was less popular amongst the 
Norman kings of England.[9] Most believed that Henry would divide the empire, giving 
each son a substantial portion, and hoping that his children would continue to work 
together as allies after his death.[10] To complicate matters, much of the Angevin 
empire was held by Henry only as a vassal of the King of France of the rival line of the 
House of Capet. Henry had often allied himself with the Holy Roman Emperor against 
France, making the feudal relationship even more challenging.[11]

Shortly after his birth, John was passed from Eleanor into the care of a wet nurse, a 
traditional practice for medieval noble families.[12] Eleanor then left for Poitiers, the 
capital of Aquitaine, and sent John and his sister Joan north to Fontevrault Abbey.[13] 
This may have been done with the aim of steering her youngest son, with no obvious 
inheritance, towards a future ecclesiastical career.[12] Eleanor spent the next few 
years conspiring against her husband Henry and neither parent played a part in John's 
very early life.[12] John was probably, like his brothers, assigned a magister whilst he 
was at Fontevrault, a teacher charged with his early education and with managing the 
servants of his immediate household; John was later taught by Ranulph Glanville, a 
leading English administrator.[14] John spent some time as a member of the household 
of his eldest living brother Henry the Young King, where he probably received 
instruction in hunting and military skills.[13]

John grew up to be around 5 ft 5 in (1.68 m) tall, relatively short, with a "powerful, 
barrel-chested body" and dark red hair; he looked to contemporaries like an inhabitant 
of Poitou.[15] John enjoyed reading and, unusually for the period, built up a travelling 
library of books.[16] He enjoyed gambling, in particular at backgammon, and was an 
enthusiastic hunter, even by medieval standards.[17] He liked music, although not 
songs.[18] John would become a "connoisseur of jewels", building up a large 
collection, and became famous for his opulent clothes and also, according to French 
chroniclers, for his fondness for bad wine.[19] As John grew up, he became known for 
sometimes being "genial, witty, generous and hospitable"; at other moments, he could 
be jealous, over-sensitive and prone to fits of rage, "biting and gnawing his fingers" in 
anger.[20][nb 3]
Death[edit]

In September 1216 John began a fresh, vigorous attack. He marched from the 
Cotswolds, feigned an offensive to relieve the besieged Windsor Castle, and attacked 
eastwards around London to Cambridge to separate the rebel-held areas of 
Lincolnshire and East Anglia.[216] From there he travelled north to relieve the rebel 
siege at Lincoln and back east to King's Lynn, probably to order further supplies from 
the continent.[217][nb 17] In King's Lynn, John contracted dysentery, which would 
ultimately prove fatal.[217] Meanwhile, Alexander II invaded northern England again, 
taking Carlisle in August and then marching south to give homage to Prince Louis for 
his English possessions; John narrowly missed intercepting Alexander along the way.
[218] Tensions between Louis and the English barons began to increase, prompting a 
wave of desertions, including William Marshal's son William and William Longespée, 
who both returned to John's faction.[219]

The king returned west but is said to have lost a significant part of his baggage train 
along the way.[220] Roger of Wendover provides the most graphic account of this, 
suggesting that the king's belongings, including the Crown Jewels, were lost as he 
crossed one of the tidal estuaries which empties into the Wash, being sucked in by 
quicksand and whirlpools.[220] Accounts of the incident vary considerably between 
the various chroniclers and the exact location of the incident has never been 
confirmed; the losses may have involved only a few of his pack-horses.[221] Modern 
historians assert that by October 1216 John faced a "stalemate", "a military situation 
uncompromised by defeat".[222]

John's illness grew worse and by the time he reached Newark Castle he was unable to 
travel any farther; John died on the night of 18/19 October.[4][223] Numerous – 
probably fictitious – accounts circulated soon after his death that he had been killed 
by poisoned ale, poisoned plums or a "surfeit of peaches".[224] His body was 
escorted south by a company of mercenaries and he was buried in Worcester 
Cathedral in front of the altar of St Wulfstan.[225] A new sarcophagus with an effigy 
was made for him in 1232, in which his remains now rest.[226]

Legacy[edit]

In the aftermath of John's death William Marshal was declared the protector of the 
nine-year-old Henry III.[227] The civil war continued until royalist victories at the 
battles of Lincoln and Dover in 1217. Louis gave up his claim to the English throne 
and signed the Treaty of Lambeth.[227] The failed Magna Carta agreement was 
resuscitated by Marshal's administration and reissued in an edited form in 1217 as a 
basis for future government.[228] Henry III continued his attempts to reclaim 
Normandy and Anjou until 1259, but John's continental losses and the consequent 
growth of Capetian power in the 13th century proved to mark a "turning point in 
European history".[229]

John's first wife, Isabel, Countess of Gloucester, was released from imprisonment in 
1214; she remarried twice, and died in 1217. John's second wife, Isabella of 
Angoulême, left England for Angoulême soon after the king's death; she became a 
powerful regional leader, but largely abandoned the children she had had by John.
[230] John had five legitimate children, all by Isabella. His eldest son, Henry III, ruled 
as king for the majority of the 13th century. Richard became a noted European leader 
and ultimately the King of the Romans in the Holy Roman Empire.[231] Joan married 
Alexander II of Scotland to become his queen consort.[151] Isabella married the Holy 
Roman Emperor Frederick II.[232] His youngest daughter, Eleanor, married William 
Marshal's son, also called William, and later the famous English rebel Simon de 
Montfort.[233] John had a number of illegitimate children by various mistresses, 
including nine sons – Richard, Oliver, John, Geoffrey, Henry, Osbert Gifford, Eudes, 
Bartholomew and probably Philip – and three daughters – Joan, Maud and probably 
Isabel.[234] Of these, Joan became the most famous, marrying Prince Llywelyn the 
Great of Wales.[235]

Parents
PLANTAGENET Henry II "Curt Mantel" (5 Mar 1133 - 6 Jul 1189)
D'AQUITAINE ET POITOU Eleonore (ABT 1121 - 31 Mar 1204)

Siblings
PLANTAGENET Maud (Matilda) (BEF Jul 1156 - 28 Jun 1189)
____ Eleanor (13 Oct 1162 - 25 Oct 1214)
PLANTAGENET John "Lackland" (24 Dec 1166 - 19 Oct 1216)

Marriage To DE FERRERS Agatha (ABT 1168 - )
    m.  

Notes

Parents
DE FERRERS Walkelin (William) (ABT 1140 - 1201)
DE BRAOSE Sybil (ABT 1147 - AFT 5 Feb 1228)

Children by DE FERRERS Agatha ABT 1168 - 
____ Joan (ABT 1188 - 2 Feb 1237)

Marriage To PLANTAGENET Adela (ABT 1170 - )
    m.  

Notes

Parents
PLANTAGENET Hameline (1130 - 7 May 1202)
DE WARENNE Isabel (ABT 1139 - 13 Jul 1199)

Children by PLANTAGENET Adela ABT 1170 - 
FITZ ROY Richard (ABT 1190 - Jun 1246)

Marriage To DE TAILLEFER OF ANGOULEME Isabella (1188 - 31 May 1246)
    m. 24 Aug 1200 Bordeaux, Gironde, France (her 1st, his 2d)

Notes
his second, her first

Parents
DE TAILLEFER DE VALENCE Aymer (ABT 1160 - 16 Jun 1202)
DE COURTENAY Alice (Adelaide) (ABT 1160 - 14 Sep 1218)

Children by DE TAILLEFER OF ANGOULEME Isabella 1188 - 31 May 1246
PLANTAGENET Henry III (1 Oct 1206 - 16 Nov 1272)
PLANTAGENET Richard (5 Jan 1209 - 2 Apr 1272)

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