Kings of England

Richard I, known also as Richard the Lionheart (Richard Cœur de Lion), became Duke of Aquitaine and Count of Poitou in 1172, but was later forced to surrender Aquitaine to his mother, Eleanor. Richard became King of England in 1189, but spent little of his reign in England, because he was either on crusade or held prisoner. He was killed at the siege of Chalus in France in 1199.

Richard was the third son of Henry II. He twice rebelled against his father before he became King of England in 1189, but based himself in his Duchy in Aquitaine inherited from his mother Eleanor. He spent only six months of his reign in England and spoke only French. He appointed William Longchamp as Chancellor of England during his absence but he was overthrown by Richard’s brother John.

Richard acquired a reputation as a leader and warrior becoming known as Richard ‘The Lion Heart’ or ‘Coeur de Lion’. His experience in warfare came from controlling rebellions in Poitou in the 1170s and against his father, Henry II, in 1183. He took up Henry's plans to recover Jerusalem on his accession in 1189 and set out to establish bases for crusades in Sicily in 1190 and Cyprus, which he took in 1191. Engaging in the siege of Acre, which he brought to a swift conclusion, he set off down the coast to Jaffa, conducting a fighting march against Saladin.

In the third Crusade 1191–92 he won victories at Cyprus, Acre, and Arsuf (against Saladin), but failed to recover Jerusalem. While returning overland he was captured by the Duke of Austria, who handed him over to the emperor Henry VI. He was held prisoner until a large ransom was raised.

On his release he returned briefly to England, where his brother John had been ruling in his stead. His later years were spent in warfare in France, where he was killed by a crossbow bolt while besieging Châlus-Chabrol in 1199. He left no heir.

Richard III was King of England from 1483. The son of Richard, Duke of York, he was created Duke of Gloucester by his brother Edward IV, and distinguished himself in the Wars of the Roses.

On Edward's death 1483 he became protector to his nephew Edward V, and soon secured the crown for himself on the plea that Edward IV's sons were illegitimate.

He proved a capable ruler, but the suspicion that he had murdered Edward V and his brother undermined his popularity. In 1485 Henry, Earl of Richmond (later Henry VII), raised a rebellion, and Richard III was defeated and killed at Bosworth.

Richard III was a ruthless man by many accounts, subject to mad rants as portrayed by Shakespeare, and he was widely despised after seizing the crown from his brother, Edward IV, and imprisoning the king's two young sons, including his eldest and heir, the 12-year-old Edward V. No one knew at the time but Richard had them both killed and their bodies sealed into the thick walls of the Tower of London. Suspicions of this heinous act circulated, however, and the Earl of Richmond, Henry Tudor (grandson of Henry V), determined to unseat the former Prince Richard. His grandmother was daughter of the king of France, so the French willfully aided Henry, whose army clashed with that of Richard III at Bosworth field on August 22, 1485. Richard was killed on the field of battle, one of the most famous deaths in history, and Henry Tudor was crowned King of England right on the battlefield. It is not hard to imagine that his new subjects readily turned in any coins issued by Richard -- and when they were melted some of the finest mementoes of English medieval history perished.