The lucky marriage
Alternate history of the Capetian Dynasty and of the 13th century Europe
Motto :“Le roi est le justicier qui amène son people au salut” Saint Augustin
“The Capetians in general sought to advance only through legally correct means. They more than any rulers of the time followed the precept of making war for correct reason […] they put right before might.[…] Still, what it make them so successful were a succession of fortunate marriage and the ability to sire boys every single generation for a long period of time. One of such lucky matrimonial deal was done right at the beginning of the XIII century and marked they tremendous rise in power and we can truly say that it reshaped the face of the world.” “The Capetians: The History of a Dynasty”, By Jim Bradbury (*)
Prologue
At the end of the XII century, the Christianity was ripped apart by endless wars: wars fought for power, for riches and land, for glory, for honor, for pride, for love or for revenge, wars fought for religious beliefs and wars fought for the sic of war. The bellicose European nobility lived by and for wars. The war was the mean to solve any dispute at any levels.
Right in the middle of Christianity, two dynasties were fighting to the death. In the year of the lord 1199, the fighting between the Capetiens and the Plantagenets was at climax.
The King of the Franks, Philip II from the House of Capet, better known as Philip Augustus, was in a dire situation as his great rival had the upper hand, was richer and more powerful then him, was a greater warrior, had better allies and he won battle after battle.
From the moment of his coronation, Philip had no rest or peace. He waged wars after wars against his barons and the great lords of the Kingdom and, especially, against the Plantagenet's kings of England. First time he fought against Henry, now he fought against his son Richard. They were once friends. Now they were the greatest enemies.
Philip had successes and setbacks but now it seemed that the future was not very promising. His enemy and rival was one of the most powerful man in Europe, the champion of Christianity, the Great Crusader and the Greatest Knight, no one than Richard “Coeur de Lion”. He was King of England but also Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, Count of Poitiers, Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Count of Nantes, Overlord of Brittany, Wales and Ireland.
As his father before him, Richard was more powerful and richer than the French King. As his father before him, Richard’s worst enemy was the French King. And Richard was not alone. He had carefully forged a mighty alliance against his archenemy by allying with his nephew, Otto IV, the Emperor of the Holy Empire, with Baldwin IX, the Count of Flanders and Hainault, with Renaud, Count of Boulogne, and with his father-in-law, the King Sancho VI of Navarre.
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(*) First phrase is from the original book.
Source of the photo: http://www.lookandlearn.com/history...Crusade-1190?img=1&search=vezelay&bool=phrase