Arthur I of Brittany
| Arthur I | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Duke of Brittany | |
| Reign | 1196–1203 |
| Predecessor | Constance |
| Successor | Alix |
| Co-ruler | Constance (1196-1201) |
| Born |
29 March 1187 Nantes, Brittany |
| Died | 3 April 1203 (aged 16) Rouen Castle or Cherbourg |
| House | Plantagenet |
| Father | Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany |
| Mother | Constance, Duchess of Brittany |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Arthur I (Breton: Arzhur Iañ; French: Arthur Ier de Bretagne) (29 March 1187 – probably 1203) was 4th Earl of Richmond and Duke of Brittany between 1196 and 1203. He was the posthumous son of Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany and Constance, Duchess of Brittany. Geoffrey was a son of Henry II, King of England, younger than Richard the Lionheart but older than John Lackland. In 1190 Arthur was designated heir to the throne of England and its French territory by his uncle, Richard I, the intent being that Arthur would succeed Richard in preference to Richard's younger brother John. Nothing is recorded of Arthur after his incarceration in Rouen Castle in 1203, and while his precise fate is unknown, it is generally believed he was killed by John.
Arthur was born in 1187, the son of Constance of Brittany and Geoffrey II of Brittany, who died before he was born. As an infant, Arthur was second in line to the succession of his grandfather King Henry II, after his uncle Richard. King Henry died when Arthur was 2 years old, and Richard I became the new king in his place.
While Richard was away on the Third Crusade, Arthur's mother Constance made actions to make the Duchy of Brittany more independent. On November 11, 1190, Richard betrothed Arthur to a daughter of Tancred of Sicily as part of their treaty. However, Emperor Henry VI conquered the Kingdom of Sicily in 1194, so the betrothal of Arthur came to nothing.
A marriage plan, originally aiming to establish an alliance between King Richard and Philip II, King of France, to marry Arthur's elder sister Eleanor to Philip's son Louis also failed. In 1196, Constance had the young Arthur proclaimed Duke of Brittany and her co-ruler as a child of nine years. The same year, Richard again nominated Arthur as his heir and summoned him, as well as his mother Constance, to Normandy, but Ranulf de Blondeville, 6th Earl of Chester, stepfather of Arthur, abducted Constance. Richard marched to Brittany to rescue Arthur, who was then secretly carried to France to be brought up with Louis.
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