The Treaty of Lambeth of 1217, also known as the Treaty of Kingston to distinguish it from the
Treaty of Lambeth of 1212, was a peace treaty signed by
Louis of France in September 1217 ending the campaign known as the
First Barons' War
The First Barons' War (1215–1217) was a civil war in the Kingdom of England in which a group of rebellious major landowners (commonly referred to as barons) led by Robert Fitzwalter waged war against King John of England. The conflict resulte ...
to uphold the claim by Louis to the throne of England. When the campaign had begun, baronial enemies of the unpopular English king
John
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second ...
had flocked to the French banner, but after John's death in 1216, and his replacement by a regent,
William Marshal
William Marshal, 1st Earl of Pembroke (1146 or 1147 – 14 May 1219), also called William the Marshal (Norman French: ', French: '), was an Anglo-Norman soldier and statesman. He served five English kings— Henry II, his sons the "Young King" ...
, on behalf of John's young son and successor,
Henry III, many had switched sides. Subsequent defeats at
Lincoln
Lincoln most commonly refers to:
* Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States
* Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England
* Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S.
* Lincoln ...
in May 1217 and at
Dover
Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...
and
Sandwich
A sandwich is a food typically consisting of vegetables, sliced cheese or meat, placed on or between slices of bread, or more generally any dish wherein bread serves as a container or wrapper for another food type. The sandwich began as a po ...
in August 1217 forced Louis to negotiate.
Information on the treaties is based on three early documents but none of these is known to have been based on an original manuscript. It is known that negotiations were spread over several locations, opening on 6 September 1217 at
Staines, because the royal court was nearby at
Chertsey
Chertsey is a town in the Borough of Runnymede, Surrey, England, south-west of central London. It grew up round Chertsey Abbey, founded in 666 CE, and gained a market charter from Henry I. A bridge across the River Thames first appeared in the ...
or possibly on 5 September on an island of the Thames near
Kingston. Various dates for treaties are given by the sources including:
* a treaty signed by Louis and Henry's
regents
A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...
on 11 September at
Lambeth Palace
Lambeth Palace is the official London residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury. It is situated in north Lambeth, London, on the south bank of the River Thames, south-east of the Palace of Westminster, which houses Parliament, on the opposite ...
(the
archbishop of Canterbury
The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...
's London house),
* a Treaty of Kingston on 12 September,
* papal ratification from the
papal legate
300px, A woodcut showing Henry II of England greeting the pope's legate.
A papal legate or apostolic legate (from the ancient Roman title ''legatus'') is a personal representative of the pope to foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic ...
, who was encamped near Kingston on the 13 September and who issued his terms on 22 September at
Merton.
* a Treaty of Lambeth signed on 20 September ratifying the Kingston treaty.
Whatever documents were actually signed during September, Louis left England for the last time from
Dover
Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...
on 28 September. The principal provisions of the treaties were an amnesty for English rebels. It was also acknowledged that the French had failed to take possession of the entire
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
and so possession of the individual islands was restored to the king of England.
Louis undertook not to attack England again and agreed he had never been the legitimate king of England, in exchange for 10,000 marks. Scottish troops under
Alexander II also withdrew.
There is no known surviving copy of the treaties.
[Powicke]
References
Bibliography
*James H. Ramsay ''The Dawn of the Constitution: Or, the Reigns of Henry III and Edward I (A.D. 1216-137)'' Oxford University Press, 1908
*Maurice Powicke ''The Thirteenth Century, 1216-1307'' (Oxford History of England)" Clarendon Press, 1962
*H. W. C. Davis ''England under the Normans and Angevins, 1066-1272'' Methuen, 1905.
*''The Oxford Companion to British History'', originally published by Oxford University Press 2002.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Treaty Of Lambeth
1210s in France
1217 in England
Barons' Wars
Lambeth
Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area expe ...
History of Surrey
Lambeth
Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area expe ...
Lambeth
Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area expe ...
Treaties of medieval England
Louis VIII of France
Henry III of England
13th-century military history of France
13th-century military history of the Kingdom of England