Richard I’s exploits in the Third Crusade have left him one of England’s most famous kings.
Richard I’s exploits in the Third Crusade have left him one of England’s most famous kings.
The crusades began in 1095 when the Pope called on the Christian nobles of western Europe to rescue the holy city of Jerusalem from the Saracens, the name given to the Muslims living in the area.
A year later the First Crusade set out and in 1099 captured Jerusalem amid terrible slaughter.
In 1148 the Second Crusade was launched, intending to add much-needed reinforcements to the small crusader kingdoms that had been set up in the Middle East.
Then in 1187 disaster struck when the army of King Guy of Jerusalem was destroyed by the famous Saracen general Saladin at the Battle of Hattin.
Three months later Saladin captured Jerusalem. The fall of Jerusalem stunned Europe. The Pope immediately called for a new crusade to retake the holy city.
In 1190 King Richard of England, known as the Lionheart because of his bravery in battle, set out for the Holy Land.
Richard, who stopped off on the way to conquer the island of Cyprus, arrived in June 1191.
He discovered the crusader forces were besieging the coastal city of Acre and took command.
On July 12 Acre surrendered and Richard took almost 3,000 Saracen soldiers prisoner along with their wives and children.
He agreed to spare their lives in exchange for a large sum in gold.
But when Saladin was late paying the money the prisoners were executed on Richard’s orders.
Five weeks later the armies of Richard and Saladin clashed at the Battle of Arsuf.
Richard was heavily outnumbered, but once again showed his military talent.
He drew his knights up behind ranks of bowmen and spearmen and ordered them not to charge until he gave the word.
Wave after wave of Saracen cavalry attacks bounced off the disciplined Crusader lines.
The attacks went on until the Saracens began to tire. At that moment 1,000 crusader knights surged forward.
The terrified Saracens turned and fled — or were crushed beneath the knights’ horses.
The result was a total victory for Richard.
Most of Saladin’s army was, however, still intact.
On August 5, 1192, Saladin caught Richard by surprise outside the city of Jaffa.
Saladin’s army consisted of at least 7,000 cavalrymen. Richard had about 2,000 infantry and just 54 knights, of whom only 15 had horses.
He drew his men up shoulder-to-shoulder in a tight semi-circle. In front of them were hammered a line of tent-pegs designed to impale enemy horsemen who tried to break through their line.
The Saracens attacked seven times. Each time they were driven off by the small crusader force.
As each attack pulled back Richard sent forward his archers to pour volley after volley of arrows into the Saracen ranks.
As daylight began to fade Saladin realised the battle was lost and retreated.
The crusaders had won against all the odds thanks to Richard’s tactical genius.
But the King was still no nearer to capturing Jerusalem.
To make matters worse he was ill with a fever — and there was unwelcome news from England that his brother John was stirring up trouble.
Reluctantly, Richard decided he must go home. On September 2 he signed a five-year peace treaty with Saladin.
It allowed Christian pilgrims to visit Jerusalem — but the city was to remain in Saracen hands.
A month later Richard sailed away from the Holy Land.
On his way home he was captured by his enemy Henry VI of Germany.
Richard spent more than a year in jail until a huge ransom was paid.
After his release he spent five years fighting the French King Philip Augustus.
It was during this conflict, on March 26, 1199, that Richard was killed by an arrow fired from a French castle he was besieging.
Origins of football
An early type of football was often played on festival days in medieval England.
Neighbouring villages staged matches with more than 50 a side, using an inflated animal bladder as a ball. The game would start at the mid-point between the two villages and the teams would kick, punch, throw and carry the ball forward. Once they reached the outskirts of the rival village they had scored.
The game was extremely violent. Serious injuries were common. Sometimes players died. In 1389 Richard II banned the game because it interfered with archery practice.