King of England

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Edmund of
Woodstock
(1301 - 1330)

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(1239 - 1307)

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(1166 - 1216)

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(1133 - 1189)

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(1102 - 1167)

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(1068 - 1135)

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"The
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(1027 - 1087)

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LOFTIN:
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Corzine
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Fisher
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Harwell
Kaiser
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Deal
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Ikert
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Babst/Bobst
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Meinhert
Miller
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Robinson

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Corzine
Fink
Hamilton
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Leslie
Lewis
Moore
Sherrill
Upright
Wilkinson

 

John   Born: 24 December 1166, Beaumont Palace, Oxford, ENGLAND Died: 18/19 October 1216 (aged 49), Newark Castle, Nottinghamshire, ENGLAND                                           Father:  Henry II "Curtmantle" Mother:  Eleanor of Aquitaine Spouse:  (1) Isabel, Countess of Gloucester (2) Isabella of Angoulême Reign: 6 April 1199 – 18/19 October 1216 Predecessor: King Richard I "the Lionheart" Successor: King Henry III of England Royal House: House of Plantagenet                                                             John was born 24 Dec 1166 in Beaumont Palace, Oxford, England.  He was the son of King Henry II "Curtmantle" and Eleanor of Aquitaine.  While John was his father's favorite son, as the youngest he could expect no inheritance.  His family life was tumultuous, as his older brothers all became involved in rebellions against Henry.  His mother, Eleanor, was imprisoned by Henry in 1173, when John was a small boy.   John's father, King Henry, had a curious painting in a chamber of Winchester Castle, depicting an eagle being attacked by three of its chicks, while a fourth chick crouched, waiting for its chance to strike. When asked the meaning of this picture, King Henry said:  “The four young ones of the eagle are my four sons, who will not cease persecuting me even unto death. And the youngest, whom I now embrace with such tender affection, will someday afflict me more grievously and perilously than all the others.” As a child, John was betrothed to Alys (pronounced 'Alice'), daughter and heiress of Humbert III of Savoy. It was hoped that by this marriage the Angevin dynasty would extend its influence beyond the Alps.  King Henry promised his young son castles in Normandy which had been previously promised to his brother Geoffrey, which was for some time a bone of contention between King Henry and his son Geoffrey. Alice made the trip over the Alps and joined Henry's court, but she died before being married.     Before his accession, John had already acquired a reputation for treachery, having conspired sometimes with and sometimes against his elder brothers, Henry, Richard and Geoffrey. In 1184, John and Richard both claimed that they were the rightful heir to Aquitaine, one of many unfriendly encounters between the two. In 1185, John became the ruler of Ireland, whose people grew to despise him, causing John to leave after only eight months.   King John is remembered mainly as the senior bad guy in Robin Hood and as the reluctant signer of the Magna Carta.  His older brother, King Richard I Plantagenet, called the Lion-Hearted, ruled England after Henry II and conducted the Third Crusade.    During Richard's absence on the Third Crusade from 1190 to 1194, John attempted to overthrow William Longchamp, Richard's designated Chief Justice. This was one of the events that inspired later writers to cast John as the villain in their reworking of the legend of Robin Hood. John was more popular than Longchamp in London, and in October 1191 the leading citizens of the city opened the gates to him while Longchamp was confined in the tower.  John promised the city the right to govern itself for recognition as Richard's heir presumptive. While returning from the Crusade, Richard was captured by and imprisoned by Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor.  John is said to have sent a letter to Henry asking him to keep Richard away from England for as long as possible, but Richard's supporters paid a ransom for his release because they thought that John would make a terrible king. On his return to England in 1194, Richard forgave John and named him as his heir.   When Richard died, John did not gain immediate universal recognition as king.  Some regarded his young nephew, Arthur of Brittany, the son of John's late brother Geoffrey, as the rightful heir.  Arthur fought his uncle for the throne, with the support of King Philip II of France.  The conflict between Arthur and King John had fatal consequences. By May 1200, Philip recognized John over Arthur.     King John's Castle is a castle located on King's Island in Limerick, Ireland, next to the River Shannon. A castle, built on the orders of King John and bearing his name, was completed around 1200.       In 1202, John was summoned to the French court to answer charges - one of which was his marriage to Isobel of Angouleme who was already engaged to Guy de Lusignan.  John refused to go, and, under feudal law, the French King claimed the lands and territories ruled by King John.  All John's French territories except Gascony were forfeit. The French promptly invaded Normandy and  King Philip II gave Arthur all titles and property King John had once held [except for Normandy] and betrothed him to his daughter Marie. During John's reign, major improvements were made in ship design, including the addition of sails and removable forecastles.  He also created the first big transport ships.  John is sometimes credited with the founding of the modern Royal Navy. In the hope of avoiding trouble in England and Wales while he was away fighting to recover his French lands, in 1205, John formed an alliance by marrying off his illegitimate daughter, Joan, to the Welsh prince Llywelyn the Great.   As part of the war, Arthur attempted to kidnap his own grandmother, Eleanor of Aquitaine, but was defeated and captured by John's forces.  Arthur was captured and imprisoned.  No one is certain what happened to Arthur after that. According to the Margam Annals, on 3 April 1203: “After King John had captured Arthur and kept him alive in prison for some time in the castle of Rouen... when [John] was drunk he slew [Arthur] with his own hand and tying a heavy stone to the body cast it into the Seine.”   Hubert de Burgh, the officer commanding the Rouen fortress, claimed to have delivered Arthur around Easter 1203 to agents of the King sent to castrate him and that Arthur had died of shock. Hubert later retracted his statement and claimed Arthur still lived, but no one saw Arthur alive again, and the supposition that he was murdered caused Brittany, and later Normandy, to rebel against King John.   Besides Arthur, John also captured his niece, Eleanor, Fair Maid of Brittany. Eleanor remained a prisoner the rest of her life (which ended in 1241); through deeds such as these, John acquired a reputation for ruthlessness.   Because the barons had withdrawn their support and turned against him, John met with their leaders on 15 June 1215 near London to seal the “Great Charter”, written in Latin and called the “Magna Carta”. The “Magna Carta”  required King John to proclaim certain rights (mainly of his barons), respect certain legal procedures, and accept that his will could be bound by the law.  The “Magna Carta” did not limit the power of King John, but by the time of the English Civil War it had become an important symbol for those who wished to show that the King was bound by the law.   (Below) King John signs the Magna Carta       Because John had signed the “Magna Carta” under duress, John received approval from the Pope to break his word as soon as hostilities had ceased.  Retreating from a French invasion led by Prince Louis, John took a safe route around the marshy area to avoid the rebels.  His slow baggage train (including the Crown Jewels), however, took a direct route across it and was lost to the unexpected incoming tide.  This dealt John a terrible blow, which affected his health and state of mind. Succumbing to dysentery and moving from place to place, he stayed one night at Sleaford Castle before dying on 18 October (or possibly 19 October) 1216, at Newark Castle (then in Lincolnshire, now on Nottinghamshire's border with that county). Numerous, possibly fictitious, accounts circulated soon after his death that he had been killed by poisoned ale, poisoned plums or peaches. He was buried in Worcester Cathedral in the city of Worcester. His nine-year-old son succeeded him and became King Henry III of England (1216–72), and although Louis continued to claim the English throne, the barons switched their allegiance to the new king.     (Below) The tomb of King John in Worceser Cathedral     Children of King John Name Birth Date Death Date Spouse Henry III of Winchester 01 October 1207 Winchester 16 November 1272 Westiminster Eleanor of Provence Richard Plantagenet  Earl of Cornwall 1209 Winchester 1272 Newark   Joan Plantagenet  Queen of Scots 1210 Gloucestershire 1237 London   Isabella Plantagenet  Holy Roman Empress 1214 Gloucestershire 1241 Foggia   Eleanor Katherine Plantagenet  Countess of Leicester 1215 Gloucstershire 1275 Montargis, France                                         SOURCES:   Charlemagne's Descendants to George Washington http://www.kareldegrote.nl/charlemagne/George_Washington.htm   Margaret Butler & Sir Lawrence Washington to King Edward I of England http://www.thepeerage.com/p17991.htm#i179904   ROYAL DESCENT The Lanier Family Connection to the Washington Family The Connection to King Edward I of England http://jimserver.net/genealogy/royal_desc.html   The Ancestry of George Washington Sons of Liberty Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution http://www.revolutionarywararchives.org/washancestry.html   Polish History, Heraldry and Genealogy The Lineage of George Washington http://www.angelfire.com/mi4/polcrt/lineageGW.html   Sampson LANIER & Elizabeth WASHINGTON http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~asbellm/genealogy/fam01284.htm   King Edward I, King Henry III, King John http://en.wikipedia.org         If you have photos or additional information, please contact me.