Case Study 1 - King John, The Barons' Revolt and the Magna Carta

History AQA GCSE

What did John first do when he became king?

- He made peace with France
- Divorced his English wife and married a young French Countess

When did John become King?

1199

Arthur

Nephew of John

How did John get rid of Arthur?

-John captured Arthur and murdered him
- Arthur disappeared from all records after 1203
-Rumours spread that John murdered Arthur with his own hands

Philip II

King of France

What happened in 1204?

- Phillip launched an invasion of Normandy
- John fled in terror worried about the loyalty of his barons
-The English lost lands in France and were totally lost

What are John's 2 nicknames?

Softsword and Lackland

Scutage

A form of taxation where instead of military services, additional taxation is paid to the monarch

What did John do with scutage?

He collected it 11 times and the royal income rose from £25,000 to £150000 by 1211

What new fines did John introduce?

- In 1208: Baron William de Briouze had to pay 40,000 marks (£27k) to reclaim his lands when John confiscated them for unpaid debts
-In 1213: Baron John de Lacy paid 7000 marks (£4.6k) to inherit his father's land

What happened in the rest of the Baron's Revolt?

- John refused Stephen Langton as Archbishop of Canterbury
-The Pope Innocent III issued an interdict and excommunicated John
-He demanded repayment of loans and demanded scutage, but the barons refused
-John granted England as 'papal fief' and accepted Stephen Langton

What happened in the rest of the Baron's Revolt?

- John's invasion of 1214 but was undermined by disloyalty, John panicked and fled back to England
-Baron's Revolt was in 1215 and was forced to sign the Magna Carta in June 1215
-John refused to uphold the term and the Baron's went to French Prince Louis for help
- John fled to the South East and died of dysentery in 1216 and his son Henry III became king

What was the Magna Carta?

A treaty that had 63 clauses that put severe limits on the King's powers including a council of 25 barons to uphold its terms

When did John lose his lands?

1204

Excommunication

Total execution from Catholic Church

Interdict

Exclusion from Chruch Services

Papal

Owned or belonging to the Pope

Papal Fief

Territory 'owned' or paying homage to the Pope

Economic Causes

- John increased taxes
- Collected scutage 11 times
-Introduced new fines on inheritance & unpaid debts

Religious Causes

- John refused to put Stephen Langton as Archbishop of Canterbury
-He was excommunicated by the Pope
-The interdict
-Papal Fief

Political Causes

- Married a French Countess
- Arthur is murdered
-Pays France 20,000 marks for peace to start war again
-Pulls Irish men's beards
-Ignored 1st Magna Carta

Military Causes

- Fails to recapture France
-Lost land in France
-He flees and wastes resources

What were the short-term outcomes?

* limitations on taxes to the monarch
* Barons create security council
\-Divine Right is challenged (limits power of the monarch)
\-1st Barons War
* brought peace and set basis for Henry's rule -1297- Final issue of the Magna Carta
* Terms only apply to freemen, nobility, barons and knights

What are the long-term outcomes?

- Inspiration for Parliament, 'Petition of Rights'
- American 'Bill of Rights'
- UN Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
- Democracy
-American and English Civil War
- Magna Carta of Women's Rights

What was the methods of protest?

- Violent (First Barons War)
-Legal (Magna Carta)