British Kings "Bullet Book", Richard I, 1189 - 1199, A.K.A. "Richard the Lionheart"

BillJones

French Aquitaine denier of Richard the First
NOTE - All of Richard I’s British coins were issued in the name of Henry II

• Richard I was known as “the lionheart” because his prowess as a warrior.
• Richard the Lionheart is a legendary king because of his fictional association with Robin Hood. In the Robin Hood story, Richard was depicted as a great and virtuous king who was captured and held for ransom. In his absence the evil Prince John treated the people poorly. When Richard returned, all was well in England.
• THE TRUTH: If there was a Robin Hood at all, he was active more than 25 years after Richard’s death.
• Richard was far more French than he was English. His principle interests were in the crusades and in maintaining his holdings in France (Aquitaine). To him, England was uninteresting backwater province. He spent only about 10 months of his reign in England, the least of any king. He left his brother, John, as his regent.
• Richard was captured and imprisoned by Duke Leopold of Austria in late 1192 and held for ransom. The English raised the money for his release, 150,000 marks, almost bankrupting the country. He was released in early 1194.
• Richard was killed during the siege of the castle Chalus-Chabrol in France. He was shot in the shoulder by an arrow. The wound developed gangrene.

Of all the British kings, I think that Richard I is the most over rated, at least from the British point of view. He was barely in the country, yet the English paid his ransom.

7Jaguars

Yes, probably all true. However, I lived in Cyprus in the late '60s and he remained something of a local hero (to non-Greek Christians at least) in his defense of the Christian holdings in the Levant. He did check the Muslims down even against stiff odds. As a child both literally and of history, he did hold a romantic place of Kingly Knighthood.

DoctorPaper

Another denier of Richard I. This one displaying the "Reversed S" variety and an unusual crescent in the northwest quadrant of the cross. Could this be related to Richard's vigorous Crusader activity and support?

Namvet69

That font is wild! Does that style don't have a name? Peace Roy

BillJones

Richard I was probably hailed as a hero in much of the Christian world, although not by the Duke of Austria, certainly. Given his attitude toward England, however, I think that the British have made more of him than they should have with respect to their country.

BillDugan1959

When I was fairly young (circa 1965), the name 'Richard the Lionhearted' was known by almost everyone (although we certainly didn't know many specifics about him).

Must have been from the Robin Hood movies and television.

BillJones

I think that the 1938 film, "The Adventures of Robin Hood" staring Errol Flynn was the best. The DVD is a real bargain with some outstanding extras about film making during that “golden age of Hollywood.” An for those don’t like “old black and white movies,” it was shot in color. I’ve seen it in the bargain bid at Walmart for $5 although their supply has probably been sold out by now.

There was also an old 1950s TV series that featured a singing troubadour between the commercial breaks. I remember the last episode when “Good King Richard” returned to England, and Robin and all of his men bowed down when Richard came to take his rightful place as king. They didn’t mention that he would soon be headed back to France, where he felt more at home, leaving England to “bad old Prince John.”

John was a bad king, as we shall see in the next chapter, but his coins were a bit more interesting than usual.