WHAT REALLY HAPPENED to Arthur of Brittany in 1203? Was the true heir to the English throne murdered by King John, who was his own uncle, or is this anti-Plantagenet propaganda designed to further smear the man who is already the villain of the Robin Hood stories?
Prince Arthur of Brittany was the son of Geoffrey Plantagenet and the nephew of Richard I of England, better known as Richard the Lionheart. After Richard’s death in 1199, a fierce succession crisis erupted within the Plantagenet dynasty. Many nobles believed Prince Arthur had the strongest hereditary claim to the throne of England and the vast Angevin Empire. But Richard’s younger brother, Prince John, seized the crown instead, setting the stage for one of the most dramatic and mysterious episodes in medieval history. This it is claimed, explains why King John wanted Arthur of Brittany dead.
Captured during a rebellion in 1202, Arthur was imprisoned by King John and eventually transferred to the royal fortress at Rouen Castle. Then, suddenly, the prince vanished. In this Plantagenet history documentary from History Calling, we look at the disappearance of Arthur of Brittany, aka Prince Arthur, which quickly became one of the greatest royal murder mysteries of the Middle Ages. I’ll regale you with the infamous story that his uncle King John, bashed his head in and dumped the body in the River Seine whilst in a drunken rage, yet I’ll also use primary sources to tell you about the competing theories about the death of Arthur of Brittany. These hold that he may have drowned, died during an escape attempt, or simply vanished into thin air. Along the way, I’ll tell you about the short life of Arthur of Brittany and what people alive at the time thought had happened to the young Duke of Brittany.
If you’re interested in medieval history, Plantagenet history, royal succession crises, unsolved historical mysteries and a scandal which destroyed John’s reputation across Europe and contributed to the king’s lasting legacy as one of England’s most infamous monarchs, this is a story you won’t want to miss. It is the tale of the original Prince in the Tower, allegedly killed by his uncle in order to secure the throne, but did King John really murder his nephew?
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