[MR] Second Battle of Lincoln, 1217

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble Friends,

On this date in 1217, the Second Battle of Lincoln was fought between an
English army led by William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke, and an
Anglo-French army led by Thomas, Count of Perche. The cause of this battle
is a much misunderstood (and rather embarrassing) part of English history.

Let's start with Bad King John. Yes, he of Magna Carta and rushy Runnymede
fame. John was soundly hated and distrusted by most of the English Barons.
So they forced him to seal Magna Carta, which limited the King's arbitrary
power over the barons. Then John, with the Pope's backing, repudiated Magna
Carta. This led to what is generally called the 1st Barons' War. The
rebellious barons decided to invite Prince Louis of France over, with his
own army, to be King of England.

After John died in 1216, his young son was proclaimed King Henry III by the
remaining loyalist barons. The greatest knight, William Marshal, became
Henry's protector and leader of the loyalist faction. Many rebels were not
any happier being ruled by Phil, who was on track to also be King of France
someday. Maybe the rebels really didn't like Phil. Maybe they didn't want
to be French (again!). Or maybe they didn't like brie. A whole bunch of
them swung over to Henry III's side.

Philip's remaining supporters, and a large French army, occupied Lincoln,
a walled town. What they couldn't capture was the Lincoln castle, which was
stubbornly held for Henry by a remarkable woman, Nicola de la Haie. While
the Count of Perche was posturing in front of the castle gates, Marshal's
army arrived. They captured a side gate in the city wall, and Marshal's
army poured into Lincoln. In several hours of street fighting, Perche was
killed and most of the surviving rebels and Frenchmen fled south. Because
the citizens of Lincoln had supported Philip and the rebels, Marshal
ordered the town to be sacked in an incident known as "The Lincoln Fair".

Philip was still holed up in London and called for French reinforcements.
They were to be delivered by the notorious pirate Eustace the Monk. The
French fleet was defeated in a sea battle off Dover. Eustace was taken
alive and summarily beheaded on his own ship's railing. Phil decided things
were going pretty badly, so he allowed himself to be bought off for 10,000
marks. He had also to renounce any claim to the English throne, which is
why he doesn't appear in any British regnal lists despite having ruled from
London for over a year.

You can read more about the Battle of Lincoln at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Lincoln_(1217) .

Yours Aye,


Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge  🦆
Keeping Merry Rose relevant and in business for 16 years.