1066–1485

Challenging Royal Authority

King John of England signed the Magna Carta in 1215. This marked the first of a series of concessions by which
English monarchs ceded parts of their power in the face of baronial challenges to their authority. By 1277,
Parliament had become established in England and kings could no longer levy new taxes without its consent.

I
n 1200, King John became involved
in a drawn-out war with France.
His failures in France, especially the
defeat at Bouvines in 1214, tarnished
his prestige. His quarrel with Pope
Innocent III over his refusal to accept
the appointment of English cardinal
Stephen Langton as Archbishop of
Canterbury in 1207, was also
damaging, as England was placed
under an Interdict, which theoretically
forbade the holding of almost all church
services in the country. In November
1209, the Pope excommunicated
John, absolving all his subjects—
including the barons—of their oath
of allegiance to him.
The increasing level of financial
exactions needed to pay for the
unpopular French war crystallized
opposition to John around a group of
northern nobles, including William de
Mowbray. A meeting between John
and his tenants-in-chief in November
1213 did little to resolve the situation
and by the time John returned to
England in October 1214, three months
after Bouvines, the demands for a
scutage (a tax paid in place of military
service) of three marks for each knight’s
fief (land) had further inflamed matters.
Magna Carta
The baronial revolt looked likely to
be settled without violence when the
Magna Carta was accepted by King and
barons on June 15, 1215 (see pp.86–87).
The charter protected the barons from
undue exactions by the Crown, but
certain of its provisions, such as the
choice of 25 of their number who
could, in the event of the King breaking
the terms of the Magna Carta, seize
the King’s castles and lands, were never
likely to be allowed to stand by John.
The King did everything he could to
wriggle out of the agreement, asking
for a papal condemnation of it; and in
late September 1215, a papal bull
absolving John of his promises duly
arrived in England.
135,541 The sum in marks
(£90,370) that
Henry III had to pay the Pope for the
appointment of Edmund as King of Sicily.

B EF O R E

Royal authority had been strengthened

since its restoration after the chaos of the
civil wars in Stephen’s reign. By the reign
of King John, revenues were increasing,
but disasters in France undermined royal
prestige once more.

ROYAL CHALLENGES
Noble and baronial revolts against the English
kings were nothing new. From the rebellion of Earls
Tostig and Morcar against Harold Godwinsson in
1065, to the attempt by Robert of Gloucester and
Matilda to unseat Stephen in the 1140s, English
monarchs had to face challenges from overmighty
subjects. The reign of Henry I brought
comparative calm ❮❮ 72–73 —at least in
England, as abroad he faced revolts by his
sons. The absences of Richard I
on crusade actually strengthened
the Crown, since the King’s
justiciar, Hubert Walter, was
an able administrator and
inspired relatively
little opposition.

CHINON CASTLE, RESIDENCE OF HENRY I

The kiss of peace

John is seen here giving a fraternal kiss to his
arch-enemy Philip II Augustus of France. John
was defeated many times by Philip, which fatally
undermined his power to control the English barons.

84