Richard I of England

Richard I of England, nicknamed Richard Cœur de Lion or Richard the Lionheart, was King of England in the late 12th century. He was succeeded by his younger brother John.

While he led his troops in the Third Crusade, accompanied by his sister Lady Joanna, he worried that John would usurp his throne back in England.

In 1190, Richard and his men were ambushed by Saracens, but only William des Preaux was captured. Richard and the rest of his men were helped by the First Doctor and Ian Chesterton, who with Vicki Pallister petitioned Richard to rescue Barbara Wright and des Preaux from Saladin. Richard knighted Ian as Sir Ian of Jaffa.

Richard planned a match between Joanna and Saladin's brother Saphadin, much to Joanna's dismay. She defied him, and Richard sent the Doctor away, believing him to have told Joanna of the plan. He later realised that the Doctor had not betrayed him, but thought it best that the Doctor and his friends leave. (TV: The Crusade)

While he was in the Holy Land, John ruled England in his stead. (TV: Invasion of the Dinosaurs)

The Twelfth Doctor claimed to have practised swordfighting with him. (TV: Robot of Sherwood)

Behind the Scenes

 * Julian Glover played Richard again in the 1982 TV film Ivanhoe. He was also played by Bernard Horsfall in an earlier version of Ivanhoe and by Iain Glen in Kingdom of Heaven.