The Exchequer and some of its revenue generating aspects during the reign of Richard I

The Exchequer and some of its revenue generating. aspects during the reign of Richard I, king of England 1189-1199. On 6 April 1199, Richard I of England died of a wound he received during the siege of a rebel stronghold at Chalus-Chabrol in the centre of Aquitaine. His death was lamented by the contemporary chroniclers who extolled his virtues, and mentioned his vices in passing. Richard was held to be a model king, brave in battle, noble in spirit, a patron of the arts and a fair judge to his people, even ifhis taxes were considered immoderate. This was Richard I's legacy, he was admired by later generations of English kings a model for them to emulate. However, this ideal was not to remain Richard's legacy in perpetuity. Historians ofthe emerging nation-state ofEngland began to tum against Richard for the limited time he actually spent in England, a little over six months in ten years, and his seeming greater concern for his French territory. Later constitutional historians saw Richard's reign as mere filler between the influential reigns of his father Henry II and his brother John. They saw no true administrative, legal or social innovations in the reign; instead these historians focussed upon Richard's increased demand upon the treasury of England and his English subjects, to fund his continental wars with Philip II ofFrance. Richard and his reputation had run the gamut from respected king to predatory, self-serving adventurer. The focus ofthis thesis is to explore Richard's reign, from the financial standpoint. By utilising the Pipe Rolls, the annual audits of Richard's exchequer, charter evidence, the other surviving bureaucratic records, this research delves into the relatively untapped world ofRichard's government and administration. Were Richard's fiscal policies ruinous to the English economy and therefore to blame for the economic woes ofJohn's reign? How much money was Richard able to extract from England and from which sources? This thesis examines various aspects of Richard's fiscal administration such as the management ofthe royal forests, Richard's legal revenues, the various taxes, aids and scutages levied both in the funding ofthe Third Crusade and after Richard's return, and Richard's system of patronage to answer these questions. To accomplish this,a series of databases were constructed which allowed for the pipe rolls and the transactions which they contain to be studied from a variety of perspectives. The pattern that unfolded ofhuman interaction within the structure of the English exchequer was fascinating. Richard I's administration of England was neither destructive to the economy nor horribly overbearing. Richard may share some of the blame for what occurred in John's reign, but he should not bear the brunt of the criticism for the financial woe that plagued his brother.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo