The Revolt of 1173–1174 was a rebellion against King Henry II of England by three of his sons, his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine, and their rebel supporters. The revolt ended in failure after eighteen months; Henry's rebellious family members had to resign themselves to his continuing rule and were reconciled to him.
King Henry II had been ruling England, Normandy, and Anjou since 1154, while his wife Queen Eleanor ruled the vast territory of Aquitaine since 1137. In 1173 Henry had four legitimate sons (from oldest to youngest): Henry, called the "Young King", Richard (later called "the Lionheart"), Geoffrey, and John ("Lackland"), all of whom stood to inherit some or all of these possessions. Henry also had an illegitimate son, Geoffrey, born probably before the eldest of the legitimate children.[1]
By this time, Henry the Young King was 18 years old and praised for his good looks and charm. He had been long-married to the daughter of Louis VII of France, the former husband of Eleanor (Henry the Young King's mother). Henry the Young King kept a large and glamorous retinue but was constrained by his lack of resources: "he had many knights but he had no means to give rewards and gifts to the knights".[2] The young Henry was therefore anxious to take control of some of his ancestral inheritances to rule in his own right.
The immediate practical cause of the rebellion was Henry II's decision to bequeath three castles, which were within the realm of the Young King's inheritance, to his youngest son, John, as part of the arrangements for John's marriage to the daughter of the Count of Maurienne. At this, Henry the Young King was encouraged to rebel by many aristocrats who saw potential profit and gain in a power transition. His mother Eleanor had been feuding with her husband, and she joined the cause as did many others upset by Henry's possible involvement in the murder of Archbishop Thomas Becket in 1170, which had left Henry alienated throughout Christendom.
In March 1173 Henry the Young King withdrew to the court of his father-in-law, Louis, in France and was soon followed by his brothers Richard and Geoffrey. Eleanor tried to join them but was stopped by Henry II on the way and held in captivity. The Young King and his French mentor created a wide alliance against Henry II by promising land and revenues in England and Anjou to the Counts of Flanders, Boulogne, and Blois; William the Lion, King of the Scots, would have Northumberland. In effect, the Young King would seize his inheritance by breaking it apart.
Hostilities began in April when the Counts of Flanders and Boulogne invaded Normandy from the east, the King of France and young Henry from the south, while the Bretons attacked from the west. Each of the assaults ended with failure: the Count of Boulogne was killed, Louis was defeated and kicked out of Normandy, and the Bretons were routed with great loss of life and treasure. William the Lion's attacks in the north of England were also a failure. Negotiations were opened with the rebels in Normandy between father Henry II and son young Henry, to no avail.
The Earl of Leicester, a supporter of young Henry who had been in Normandy and was chief of the aristocratic rebels, took up the charge next. He raised an army of Flemish mercenaries and crossed from Normandy back to England to join the other rebel barons there, principally Hugh Bigod, Earl of Norfolk. The Earl of Leicester was intercepted by the English forces returning from the north in Scotland, led by Richard de Luci, and was completely defeated at Fornham. Henry II's barons supposedly said to him, "It is a bad year for your enemies."[3]
Norwich Castle was captured by Hugh Bigod with a force of over 800 soldiers in July 1174.[4]
In the spring of 1174 the rebellion continued. David, Earl of Huntingdon, brother of William the Lion, moved back south to attempt the conquest of northern England and took up the leadership of the rebel barons. William de Ferrers, Earl of Derby and one of the rebels, burned the royal burgh of Nottingham while Hugh Bigod likewise torched Norwich.
Henry II, who had been in Normandy fighting his enemies, landed in England on 8 July. His first act was to do penance for the death of Thomas Becket, who was murdered by some of Henry's knights three years earlier and had already been canonized as a saint. The day following the ceremony at Canterbury, on 13 July, in a seeming act of divine providence for Henry II, William the Lion and many of his supporters were surprised and captured at the Battle of Alnwick by a small band of loyalists. In the aftermath Henry II was able to sweep up the opposition, marching through each rebel stronghold to receive their surrenders. With England taken care of, Henry returned to Normandy and set about a settlement with his enemies, and on 30 September "King Henry, the king's son, and his brothers, returned to their father and to his service, as their lord".[5]
Aftermath
Thetford Castle in Norfolk belonged to Hugh Bigod, Earl of Norfolk, and was demolished on the king's orders after the rebellion ended.
The revolt lasted eighteen months, played out across a large area from southern Scotland to Brittany. At least twenty castles in England were recorded as demolished on the orders of the king.[6] Many towns were destroyed and many people were killed. Blame was placed on young Henry's advisors, the rebel barons, who manipulated the inexperienced and rash princes for their own dreams of gain. William Marshal, who was loyal to young Henry during the revolt, said "cursed be the day when the traitors schemed to embroil the father and the son".[7]
Brown, R. Allen (April 1959), "A List of Castles, 1154–1216", The English Historical Review, Oxford University Press, 74 (291): 249–280, doi:10.1093/ehr/lxxiv.291.249, JSTOR 558442
Fryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I. (1996), Handbook of British Chronology (Third revised ed.), Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, ISBN0-521-56350-X
Wareham, Andrew (1994), "The Motives and Politics of the Bigod Family, c.1066–1177", Anglo-Norman Studies, The Boydell Press, XVII, ISSN 0954-9927
Bartlett, Robert (2000). England under the Norman and Angevin Kings, 1075–1225. The New Oxford History of England. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 55. ISBN9780199564491.
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This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Revolt of 1173 1174 news newspapers books scholar JSTOR August 2011 Learn how and when to remove this template message The Revolt of 1173 1174 was a rebellion against King Henry II of England by three of his sons his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine and their rebel supporters The revolt ended in failure after eighteen months Henry s rebellious family members had to resign themselves to his continuing rule and were reconciled to him Revolt of 1173 1174DateApril 1173 30 September 1174LocationEngland Normandy Southern Scotland Brittany FlandersResultRoyalist English Victory Rebels reconciled to Henry II Treaty of Falaise between Henry II and William the LionTerritorialchangesHenry II maintains hold on his territories Scottish castles including Berwick and Edinburgh transferred to Henry IIBelligerentsKingdom of EnglandRebels Kingdom of FranceKingdom of ScotlandDuchy of BrittanyCounty of FlandersCounty of BoulogneCommanders and leadersKing Henry II Richard de LuciRanulf de GlanvillReginald de DunstanvilleWilliam FitzRobertWilliam d Aubigny Humphrey III de BohunGeoffrey FitzroyEleanor of Aquitaine POW Henry the Young King Richard Duke of Aquitaine Geoffrey Duke of Brittany Robert de Beaumont POW William Marshal Hugh Bigod William de Ferrers POW Hugh de Kevelioc POW William the Lion POW David Earl of Huntingdon Louis VII of France Philip I of Flanders Matthew of Boulogne Contents 1 Background 2 The revolt 3 Aftermath 4 References 5 Further readingBackground Edit King Henry II King Henry II had been ruling England Normandy and Anjou since 1154 while his wife Queen Eleanor ruled the vast territory of Aquitaine since 1137 In 1173 Henry had four legitimate sons from oldest to youngest Henry called the Young King Richard later called the Lionheart Geoffrey and John Lackland all of whom stood to inherit some or all of these possessions Henry also had an illegitimate son Geoffrey born probably before the eldest of the legitimate children 1 By this time Henry the Young King was 18 years old and praised for his good looks and charm He had been long married to the daughter of Louis VII of France the former husband of Eleanor Henry the Young King s mother Henry the Young King kept a large and glamorous retinue but was constrained by his lack of resources he had many knights but he had no means to give rewards and gifts to the knights 2 The young Henry was therefore anxious to take control of some of his ancestral inheritances to rule in his own right The immediate practical cause of the rebellion was Henry II s decision to bequeath three castles which were within the realm of the Young King s inheritance to his youngest son John as part of the arrangements for John s marriage to the daughter of the Count of Maurienne At this Henry the Young King was encouraged to rebel by many aristocrats who saw potential profit and gain in a power transition His mother Eleanor had been feuding with her husband and she joined the cause as did many others upset by Henry s possible involvement in the murder of Archbishop Thomas Becket in 1170 which had left Henry alienated throughout Christendom In March 1173 Henry the Young King withdrew to the court of his father in law Louis in France and was soon followed by his brothers Richard and Geoffrey Eleanor tried to join them but was stopped by Henry II on the way and held in captivity The Young King and his French mentor created a wide alliance against Henry II by promising land and revenues in England and Anjou to the Counts of Flanders Boulogne and Blois William the Lion King of the Scots would have Northumberland In effect the Young King would seize his inheritance by breaking it apart The revolt Edit Henry the Young King Hostilities began in April when the Counts of Flanders and Boulogne invaded Normandy from the east the King of France and young Henry from the south while the Bretons attacked from the west Each of the assaults ended with failure the Count of Boulogne was killed Louis was defeated and kicked out of Normandy and the Bretons were routed with great loss of life and treasure William the Lion s attacks in the north of England were also a failure Negotiations were opened with the rebels in Normandy between father Henry II and son young Henry to no avail The Earl of Leicester a supporter of young Henry who had been in Normandy and was chief of the aristocratic rebels took up the charge next He raised an army of Flemish mercenaries and crossed from Normandy back to England to join the other rebel barons there principally Hugh Bigod Earl of Norfolk The Earl of Leicester was intercepted by the English forces returning from the north in Scotland led by Richard de Luci and was completely defeated at Fornham Henry II s barons supposedly said to him It is a bad year for your enemies 3 Norwich Castle was captured by Hugh Bigod with a force of over 800 soldiers in July 1174 4 In the spring of 1174 the rebellion continued David Earl of Huntingdon brother of William the Lion moved back south to attempt the conquest of northern England and took up the leadership of the rebel barons William de Ferrers Earl of Derby and one of the rebels burned the royal burgh of Nottingham while Hugh Bigod likewise torched Norwich Henry II who had been in Normandy fighting his enemies landed in England on 8 July His first act was to do penance for the death of Thomas Becket who was murdered by some of Henry s knights three years earlier and had already been canonized as a saint The day following the ceremony at Canterbury on 13 July in a seeming act of divine providence for Henry II William the Lion and many of his supporters were surprised and captured at the Battle of Alnwick by a small band of loyalists In the aftermath Henry II was able to sweep up the opposition marching through each rebel stronghold to receive their surrenders With England taken care of Henry returned to Normandy and set about a settlement with his enemies and on 30 September King Henry the king s son and his brothers returned to their father and to his service as their lord 5 Aftermath Edit Thetford Castle in Norfolk belonged to Hugh Bigod Earl of Norfolk and was demolished on the king s orders after the rebellion ended The revolt lasted eighteen months played out across a large area from southern Scotland to Brittany At least twenty castles in England were recorded as demolished on the orders of the king 6 Many towns were destroyed and many people were killed Blame was placed on young Henry s advisors the rebel barons who manipulated the inexperienced and rash princes for their own dreams of gain William Marshal who was loyal to young Henry during the revolt said cursed be the day when the traitors schemed to embroil the father and the son 7 References EditNotes Fryde et al 1996 p 36 Bartlett 2000 p 55 Bartlett 2000 p 56 Wareham 1994 p 241 Bartlett 2000 p 56 Brown 1959 p 252 Bartlett 2000 p 57 Bibliography Brown R Allen April 1959 A List of Castles 1154 1216 The English Historical Review Oxford University Press 74 291 249 280 doi 10 1093 ehr lxxiv 291 249 JSTOR 558442 Fryde E B Greenway D E Porter S Roy I 1996 Handbook of British Chronology Third revised ed Cambridge UK Cambridge University Press ISBN 0 521 56350 X Wareham Andrew 1994 The Motives and Politics of the Bigod Family c 1066 1177 Anglo Norman Studies The Boydell Press XVII ISSN 0954 9927 Bartlett Robert 2000 England under the Norman and Angevin Kings 1075 1225 The New Oxford History of England Oxford Oxford University Press p 55 ISBN 9780199564491 Further reading EditWarren W L 1973 Henry II Eyre Methuen ISBN 978 0 520 02282 9 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Revolt of 1173 1174 amp oldid 1098383264, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
