Richard I of England

Richard I of England was King of England in the late 12th century. He was nicknamed Richard Cœur de Lion, (TV: The Crusade) or Richard the Lionheart, because of his reputation as a great military leader and soldier. His reign lasted from 1189 until his death in 1199. (PROSE: A History of Humankind) He was also referred to as Malek Ric by the Saracens. (TV: The Crusade) He was succeeded by his younger brother John. (PROSE: A History of Humankind)

Although he was King of England, he spent very little time in the country and was one of the main Christian leaders in the Third Crusade. (PROSE: A History of Humankind)

Biography
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)

Richard saved Lord Warren the First from the Quell in Jaffa with the help of the Fourth Doctor and Romana. (AUDIO: The Warren Legacy)

Legacy
In his sixth (AUDIO: Leviathan) and twelfth incarnations, (TV: Robot of Sherwood) the Doctor boasted of having practised swordfighting with him.

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, by Forbes Collins in a 1989 episode of Maid Marian and Her Merry Men and by Iain Glen in Kingdom of Heaven.