During a tour of the Midlands, John received homage from William 'the Lyon', King of Scotland at Lincoln. William was looking to move into the areas of Northumberland, Cumberland, and Westmoreland. John on the other hand ensured that those areas were controlled by Barons he could trust.

Work on improving Banbury Castle continued between 1201 and 1207.

In France the Lusignans were causing problems still angry over John's marriage to Isabella. John ordered that an army should assemble at Portsmouth. Instead of taking the assembled army John used the money to hire mercenaries and took them instead.

The Fourth Crusade (1202–1204) was originally intended to recapture Jerusalem from Muslim control, but the goals of the crusade were controversially changed by Venice in order to gain new territories and ended in the sack of Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire. It demonstrated how crusading motives could be manipulated for political and financial gain rather than religious purposes.

Arthur of Brittany and the Lusignans had laid siege to Mirabeau Castle trapping Eleanor of Aquitaine inside. King John launched a rescue mission to free her. Arthur was captured by William de Braose and was handed over to King John. Many other important knights were also captured and it was an important and famous victory for the English king. Those that were captured were treated badly by King John. He could have ransomed them for their freedom and made a lot of money, instead he kept them prisoner locked in dungeons. Some he had shipped to England and imprisoned. Arthur was sent to the dungeon in the castle at Falaise in Normandy.

Arthur had been moved to Rouen from Falaise where he was being held captive. There it is said that King John killed Arthur and dumped his weighted-down body in the Seine. The body was discovered and later buried.

With events going badly in France for King John, the threat of invasion was a real possibility. To help prevent that John ordered Dover Castle to be handed over to William of Huntingfield who should defend it against attack. To ensure he did so, William's son and daughter were taken hostage and were not to be released until the castle was safely returned in person to the King or Hubert de Burgh.

King John abandoned the lands that had been held by the Dukes of Normandy for over a hundred years and returned to England. Only two castles held out against Philip Augustus, they were Chinon, controlled by Hubert de Burgh and Loches, defended by Girard d'Athee.

King John gave Goodrich Castle to William Marshal on his marriage to the heiress of the earldom of Pembroke.

William Marshall captured the Welsh castle at Cilgerran in Pembrokeshire from the Welsh.

After losing Normandy to the French, John sent an embassy to France to negotiate with Philippe. In the party that went from England were Hubert Walter and William Marshal. The negotiations failed due to Philippe's demands.

Philippe II, King of France won control of Rouen, the capital of Normandy and Normandy itself. John still had control of Aquitaine.

Philippe II of France held a meeting in Normandy to discuss invading England. This forced King John to abandon his own plans of invading Normandy as he could not risk moving his army abroad when the French were about to attack. The planned French invasion never materialised.

Worried by rumours of an invasion from Philippe of France, led by heirs of king Stephen, John prepared an invasion fleet of his own. But the barons refused to cross the Channel and attack Normandy and so the fleet was disbanded.

The castles at Chinon and Loches both fell to the French as Philippe strengthened his position. Again William Marshall travelled to see Philippe to agree peace terms, but his attempts were destroyed by Hubert Walter who sent a secret letter to Philippe telling him not to accept William Marshal's promise that John would do homage to Philippe. (What's going on here?)

Hubert held out in the castle at Chinon for as long as he could but when it finally fell to the French he was captured as his men rushed out to attack the besiging army.

After Philippe failed to invade England the year earlier, John took to opportunity to land an army at La Rochelle to defend his interests in Aquitaine which was his from his inheritance from Eleanor of Aquitaine, John's mother. John moved his army north and took back some of the lands he had lost to Philippe.

A two year truce is agreed between the Kings of England and France.

As Earl of Pembroke, William Marshall inherited the lands of Leinster in Ireland. The link between Pembroke and Leinster started when Richard de Clare married the daughter of the King of Leinster in 1170.

The castle at Aberystwyth was demolished by Maelgwyn, the brother of the then Lord of Cardiganshire. Maelgwyn had risen up in revolt against his brother and put him in prison. Maelgwyn had first captured the castle but decided to destroy it because Llywelyn the Great was threatening to attack Maelgwyn's lands and he feared the that castle could fall into Llywelyn's hands.

Peter of Castelnau, the papal legate, was murdered by heretics belonging to the Albigensains. The Albigensains were an extreme religious group based in the south of France. The Pope wanted them to cease their opposition to the Church. The murder led to the start of the Albegensian Crusade that would destroy the heretics.

The Albignsian stronghold of Beziers was besieged and when it was captured all the people within it were massacred.

John mobilized an army with the help of Llywelyn of Gwynedd a Welsh chieftain and moved them up to Norham Castle. William 'the Lyon', the king of Scotland was not ready for conflict and paid John to leave and a treaty was signed.

King John spent time and money on the castle at Kenilworth, building outer walls and raising the height of the lake.

King John used Haverfordwest Castle as a staging post before and after travelling to Ireland.

John landed at Waterford looking for the rebel baron William de Braose who had fled to Ireland. John took the opportunity to visit his lands in Ireland receiving homage from the Irish Chieftains. de Braose fled but his wife and son were captured, taken back to England and starved to death in Windsor Castle.

The castle belonging to the Earl of Ulster was besiged by the English. It did not take long for the castle to fall into English hands.

King John ordered that Jews across the country had to pay a 'tullage', a sum of money to the king. Those who did not pay were arrested, imprisoned and forced to pay the money in return for their release. May Jews were executed or left the country.

King John took an army into Wales and subdued the princes of the regions. John and Llywelyn the Great of Wales reached an agreement and a peace treaty was signed.

William, King of the Scots was prepared to give John his eldest son, Alexander as hostage to keep the peace between the two countries. William was also eager that Alexander should become King of the Scots after himself. Earning the trust of John was to be repaid later when John sent an army to Scotland to help William put down a rebellion.

A mysterious Crusade supposed to have consisted of children from Germany and possibly France. How young the children were who took part is not known and they may not have been children at all. The Crusaders did not get very far and many of those that took part never came back. They were either killed or sold into slavery.

At a camp near Canterbury called Barham Down King John mobilized an army against the threat of invasion from the French. He also prepared a navy on the south coast to try and prevent the French landing on English soil.

Because King John had been excommunicated by the Pope the French king, Philippe, had the right to invade England and remove John from the throne. Philippe wanted to put his son Louis in John's place. Plans were put forward at the Council of Soissons in early April. The Count of Flanders refused to join the Crusade againt the English so the French king had to overrun his country to ensure France was safe from attack if the invasion of England took place.

Rather than wait for the French to set sail, King John ordered his fleet to attack the French ships. The English fleet attacked the French fleet at Damme, Flanders near the town and port of Bruges. The French were taken by surprise and many of their ships were captured or destroyed. The French plans of invasion were destroyed.

John met the Barons at Wallingford in an attempt to prevent them from rebelling against him. The king had planned to invade France but the northern barons had refused to provide the necessary assistance.

John's conflict with Philippe of France started again with John's departure from Portsmouth. With him sailed his wife and second son, Richard. He also took a large amount of treasure.

English forces under the control of Emperor Otto IV were defeated by Philip II of France.

An invasion force from France under direction of Philippe II, the king of France captured Colchester Castle. Their objective was to help the cause of the Baron's against King John.

The fortifications at Wallingford castle were strengthened at this time.

The castle at Abervagenny was captured from King John's forces by Llewellyn.

Llewellyn's fight against the Normans continued with the capture of Cilgerran Castle.

Rhys Grug, another son of the Lord Rhys, captured and burnt the castle at Kidwelly. The Welsh held the castle for several years until Llywelyn the Great forced its restoration to the Normans .

The gates to London were opened by a supporter of the rebellious Barons and the houses of Jews were targeted for ransacking and burning. The rebels called for those Barons still on the side of John to join them. The Tower of London held by John's supporters was too well defended to fall into the hands of the rebels.

Stephen Langton and William Marshall attempted to get the Barons and John to meet and find a settlement to the civil war.

Pope Innocent III annulled the Magna Carta freeing King John from its limitations. The Pope annulled the charter on the grounds that the King only signed it because he was forced to and that the document was illegal. The Pope was prepared to support John against the rebel barons because he wanted him to take a key role in a new crusade.

After the Magna Carta was annulled and it was clear that King John was not going to agree to the terms of the charter the civil war between King John and the rebel barons began.The barons offered the English crown to Prince Louis, the son of King Philippe II of France and invited him to invade England. John confiscated the rebel barons' lands and gave them to his own supporters. King John besieged Rochester Castle where a garrison of men had been left by the barons. The garrison was starved out and the castle fell to the King.

Peter de Montfort rebuilt the inner bailey of Beaudesert Castle in stone, of which nothing remains.

King John attacked Berwick and forced the Scots to leave. He also raided the lowlands.

King John put down a revolt in East Anglia. The Barons and the French kept hold of London.

A small French army landed in London. Their commander informed the rebel barons that Prince Louis would soon arrive from France.

John's fleet of ships was badly damaged by storms as they prepare to defend against an invasion from France. This left the way open for Prince Louis to sail to England a few days later.

Prince Louis advanced on Winchester and captured the city and its castle. Elsewhere, Windsor Castle and Dover Castle were besieged by the rebel barons. Both castles were defended and held out against the sieges. King John used Corfe Castle in the south-west as his base of operations while he planned his campaign against the rebel barons and Prince Louis.

A man called William of Cassingham, possibly known as Willekin of the Weald, supported King John against the invaders and attacked the rebel barons and French in whatever means he could using a form of guerrilla warfare.

King John was at Cambridge Castle before heading north. He left the castle in the hands of Falcasius de Brent. The castle fell into the hands of the rebel barons.

Again Egypt was the destination of this Crusade called for by the Pope and organised by Frederick II, the Holy Roman Emperor. Although Frederick promised to join the Crusade he failed to do so. The Cruaders mainly consisted of Knights from northern Europe. They laid siege to Damietta, a port on the Egyption coast, and captured it. The journey from Damietta to attack Cairo had to be abandoned due to floods and attacks. The Crusaders had to surrender and Damietta was handed back to the Muslims. The Crusade was over and Frederick II was blamed for its failure.

Prince Louis captured and almost destroyed the castle at Portchester.

Royalists besieged the French controlled Mountsorrel Castle in Lincolnshire. When Louis sent reinforcements to assist those in the castle the royalists moved away to Nottingham. The French army then made the mistake of moving on to Lincoln where the royalists had held out against previous attacks.

King Henry III's supporters defeated the forces belonging to Prince Louis and the rebel barons that were besieging the castle at Lincoln.

A fleet of French ships were defeated off the coast near Sandwich by Hubert de Burgh. The French fleet was commanded by Eustace the Monk, a pirate and mercenary who fought for both the French and English when it suited his needs. The French fleet were bringing more men and supplies to assist Prince Louis in his quest to take the English throne. The ship Eustace was on was captured and the monk was executed.

The defeat of the French fleet left Prince Louis without much hope of taking the English throne. William Marshall blockaded London from the sea and land and at Lambeth Louis accepted peace terms. Louis waived his claim to the throne of England and should have restored Normandy to Henry but did not. Louis was paid 10,000 marks to ensure he left the country as soon as possible. William Marshall pardoned all those who had supported Louis.

The Knights Templar, with the help of pilgrims, built this castle in the Holy Land.

William Marshal is succeeded by Peter de Roches, Bishop of Winchester and Hubert de Burgh who was Justiciary.

Hubert de Burgh improved the defences at Grosmont Castle, including the gatehouse and towers.

King Henry III made large alterations to the Tower of London including new curtain walls, an improved water filled ditch, and a water gate, so the King could enter the castle directly from the Thames.

Llywelyn, the Prince of Wales, began raiding Pembrokeshire to retake land that he accused William Marshall, the younger, of stealing. This included Wiston Castle.

Llyewelyn the Great started the construction of this Welsh castle.

Llywelyn, the Prince of Wales, had captured the castles at Carmarthen and Cardigan but both were recaptured by William Marshall, the younger.

William Marshall, the younger, recaptured the castle at Cilgerran from Llywelyn ap Iorwerth.

Hubert de Burgh gets agreement that the rebel barons should give up their Earldoms and castles which were to be turned over to the crown. The Earls were slow in complying with the agreement.

King Henry III started the construction of a new castle at Montgomery on the Welsh border with England.

While King Henry was occupied with problems caused by the barons, Louis VIII took the opportunity to take an army into Poitou and besiege La Rochelle. Unable or unwilling to send assistance from England, Henry allowed the town to be captured and by the end of the year the northern part of Aquitaine fell to the French.

All those castles that had been taken from King John were claimed back by Henry. Henry did not want to have untrustworthy Barons in control of strong castles. Fawkes de Breaute, one of the castle occupiers refused to relinquish his castle(s) and started a short rebellion. Stephen Langton and Hubert de Burgh dealt with Fawkes and the castles were handed over. (Need to find out which castles)

The garrison at Bedford Castle, belonging to the rebel Falkes de Breute, refused to surrender to the Crown. Falkes had been repeated summonsed to account for his refusal to comply with agreement and when he refused to appear before the King the castle was surrounded. The castle fell when the keep was undermined. The garrison, who had surrendered the castle, were all hung on the order of the Justiciar. Falkes was allowed to leave the country but he lost all his possessions in doing so. Bedford Castle was badly damaged as a result.

Returning from a spell crusading in the Holy Land, Ranulf, the fifth Earl of Cheshire started the construction of the castle at Beeston.

The Sixth Crusade was won with diplomacy by Frederick II, who had married the heiress of Jerusalem in 1225. He went to the East to claim his right to the throne, and taking advantage of internal disputes between the Sultan's family members, concluded the Treaty of Jaffa, which gave Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Nazareth back to the Christians.

Hubert de Burgh took ownership of the old motte and bailey fort and finished its reconstruction as a stone castle.

King Henry III called for an army to be assembled at Portsmouth to be transported to Normandy to regain lost territories. A large army of knights turned up ready to go but not enough ships had been provided. The King blamed Hubert de Burgh for the fiasco and in his rage would have killed him if Ranulf of Chester had not intervened. This marks the beginning of the rift between Henry and Hubert de Burgh. The expedition was postponed until the mid of 1230.

Construction of the castle at Tattershall.

Hubert de Burgh had become a powerful Lord in the Welsh Marshes, controlling castles such as Cardigan and Carmarthen. He began to threaten the local Welsh leaders.

Richard, Earl of Pembroke in alliance with Llywelyn of Wales join forces to fight King Henry III. (Details required).

King Henry III was at Gloucester where he summonsed Richard Marshall. When the Earl refused to attend Henry called for an army to be formed to deal with the rebellion.

King Henry III's army was camped at Grosmont Castle when they were attacked in the night by a force of Welsh and English rebels. Several of Henry's supporters were captured and the castle was returned to Hubert de Burgh, one of the rebels.

The town and castle at Wisbech were hit by a fierce storm.

With the death of the last male heir of the Earldom of Cheshire, the earldom and castle at Beeston are claimed by King Henry III. The castle was too important not to be in the hands of the crown.

The Crusade of Theobald of Champagne and the King of Navarre was a French expedition that did little, except obtain concessions from Damascus in Galilee, and Ascalon from Egypt. Richard of Cornwall, the brother of King Henry III, arrived after Theobald had left, but managed to strengthen both concessions in Galilee, and the fortifications at Ascalon.

The alarm had been raised and the citizens of the Polish city of Krakow had all but abandoned their homes when the Mongol army arrived. The city was put to the torch by the Mongols.

King Henry III bestowed the custody of Kenilworth Castle to Simon de Montfort. Simon's wife Eleanor, Henry's sister, already owned Odiham Castle so Simon had two of the strongest fortresses in England under his control.

With the fall of Jerusalem and the crushing defeat of the Christian armies at Gaza, Louis IX of France took the cross and prepared for a Crusade. It took him four years to set sail.

When Maud, the last of the Marshal line, died in 1245 Chepstow Castle was passed to her son Roger Bigod II, Earl of Norfolk.

After the Christians were defeated at Gaza in 1244, King Louis IX of France took the cross. He only managed to set sail for Cyprus some four years later, landing at Damietta in June of 1249, Louis had to wait until the Nile floods had reduced before continuing for Cairo. Held up and cut off from Damietta, the French King's camp was struck with disease and most of his men were killed or captured. Louis was taken prisoner and had to pay a ransom to be freed.

King Henry III ordered the construction of a castle at Rye to protect the River Rother from attack from the sea.

Llywelyn ap Gruffudd declared himself ruler of North Wales and had given himself the title of Prince of Wales. King Henry III told Prince Edward that he would not help remove Llywelyn from power and Edward would have to do that himself if he wanted his inheritance.

Under their leader, Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, the Welsh invaded the northern coastal areas that had agreed to English rule. Prince Edward, who had been given the areas to administer himself by his father King Henry III asked his father for help but Henry refused.

King Henry III relented to his son's demands for assistance to fight the Welsh, and joined him on a campaign to retake the territories lost to the Welsh under Llywelyn.

The seven were joined by many more Barons and Knights and they confronted King Henry III at Westminster. Although armed, the Barons did leave their weapons outside the hall. Henry and his son Edward were forced to take the oath to join the commune of Barons and to accept their wished. Henry agreed to meet again with the Barons at Oxford in June.

Llywelyn received the support of the native lords in Wales and declared himself the 'Prince of Wales'. Under him, a united Welsh nation was ready to defend itself from the English.

The Pope offered the Sicilian crown for Henry's youngest son Edmund. The Pope wanted to add Sicily to the papal dominions. To raise the money required for such an expedition Henry met Parliament at Westminster. The barons who were not involved in the meeting forced Henry to meet again in June where they wanted Henry to reform the way the country was being run.

For many years, Henry had been living beyond the means of the country and with the failure of both harvests and Henry's will to amend his ways, a group of Barons rose up against him. Seven Barons first signed an oath and formed a commune in which they swore to look after each others interests. The seven were Richard de Clare (Earl of Gloucester), John Fitz Geoffrey, Roger Bigod (Earl of Norfolk), Hugh Bigod (Roger's brother), Peter of Savoy, Peter de Montfort (not a relation of Simon), and finally Simon de Montfort.

Provisions of Oxford. The barons and King Henry III met at Oxford where fully armed, the barons showed Henry that he had no choice but to reform the way the country was being run. A council of fifteen members was set to advise the king. The fifteen were selected by a committee of four, two from the barons and two from the king. The new council was not to last long as the members could not agree amongst themselves on courses of action and by 1260 it had broken up. The reformers and royalists were to take up arms and meet in civil war.

The Crusader castle, located near the town of Arnoun in Lebanon, was bought by the Knights Templars.

Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, the 'Prince of Wales' rose up against the English and attacked the castle at Tenby. He also laid siege to Builth Wells Castle with siege engines.

Pope Alexander IV agreed to absolve King Henry III from the Provisions of Oxford.

Henry had deposed ministers that had been appointed at the Provisions of Oxford and appointed new ones. His new proclamation gave the new ministers full power.

On the pretence of removing his mother's jewels, Edward (I) entered the Knights Templar's Temple in London and ransacked the treasury, taking the proceeds to the Tower of London.

Edward and his wife returned to England

Moving firstly westward from the stronghold of one of Henry's supporters to another, Simon de Montfort's forces did much damage, even though Simon had ordered that no sacred place should be attacked. Simon then moved towards the south east coast ports to secure them. By the end of June he had reached Dover, its inhabitants welcoming him.

At the Battle of Largs Alexander III of Scotland attacked the Viking army led by King Haakon IV of Norway and took the islands of the Hebrides. Haakon died on Orkney in the middle of December.

Following the defeat at the Battle of Lewes, King Henry III's supporters fled and took refuge in Pevensey Castle. Simon de Montfort's son, laid siege to the castle, but could not take it.

At a camp near Canterbury, called Barham Down, the supporters of Simon de Montfort gather an army and hold it there to fend off a possible invasion from King Henry III's supporters.

A force led by Simon de Montfort besieged Rochester Castle for several days but the castle did not fall. He left a small number of men to continue the siege but they were attacked and fled.

During this year forces belonging to Simon de Montfort occupied and controlled the important Beeston Castle.

Prince Edward attacked the castle at Tutbury as it was the stonghold of one of the rebel barons.

Henry and Edward captured the castle at Northampton where the sons of Simon de Montfort and their group of rebels were stationed. The sons (Henry and Simon the younger) were taken prisoner.

The castle at Warwick was attacked by forces loyal to Simon de Montfort. The castle was badly damaged in the assault.

The civil war between King Henry III and the barons. The barons wanted to limit Henry's power and to sort out his finances which were a drain on the barons' resources. The cause was led by Simon de Montfort.

Simon de Montfort surprised King Henry III and Prince Edward, with early movements of his troops on the hills above the castle at Lewes. Henry and Richard of Cornwall defend the centre and left of the castle, but Prince Edward attacked the lighter armed Londoners to the right and forced them to flee and followed them off the battle site. When he returned, he found that King Henry was trapped in the priory and gave himself up in exchange for his father's release. After the battle Simon de Montfort marched on London but the drawbridge on London Bridge had been raised by the Lord Mayor. Simon had the support of the Londoners who managed to lower the drawbridge allowing him into the city,

Haco of Norway and his troops landed at the mouth of the Clyde after taking a battering from storms. Three days of fighting resulted in a victory for Alexander III. Escaping to Orkney, Haco died (from injuries ?).

Edward (I) was held captive at Wallingford Castle but after an escape attempt he was moved to Kenilworth Castle.

Llywelyn attacked Hawarden Castle because Henry de Montfort had promised to hand the castle over to the Welsh but had failed to honour the agreement.

Left in custody at Hereford, Edward (I) was rescued and joined Roger Mortimer and Gilbert de Clare at Wigmore Castle. Edward escaped by persuading his guards to allow him to exercise outside the castle. The prince had the guards test the speed of their horses, and when all were exhausted, mounted a fresh horse and made his escape.

Using the banners of Simon de Montfort's son captured at Kenilworth, prince Edward approached Simon's position at Evesham. Simon de Montfort was trapped in the bend of the river Avon and forced to fight. Simon was defeated and killed. Simon's youngest son took refuge in Kenilworth Castle, where prepared for a long siege, he managed to hold out until December 1267.

After the defeat of Simon de Montfort at Evesham, a limited agreement of peace was declared between King Henry III and the barons. Some resistance remained at Kenilworth and the Isle of Ely until 1267.

After the Treaty of Perth the Hebrides and Isle of Man were given to the Scots by the Magnus IV of Norway. The Scots had mainly captured the islands anyway.

The rebel barons were given the option by Edward to buy back their properties. Edward was careful not to cause friction between the king and the barons that may have restarted a war.

The Treaty of Shrewsbury was an agreement between King Henry III of England and Llywelyn the Prince of Wales. Henry recognised Llywelyn's position as Prince of Wales in return for a regular payment. Also known as the Treaty of Montgomery.

Construction of the castle at Caerphilly was begun in 1268 under the control of Gilbert de Clare.

Prince Edward took the cross in preparation for a Crusade from Ottobuono Fieschi, the papal legate. Ottobuono Fieschi had been sent to help both Henry and Edward sort out troubles at home and was an important factor in the country's rule from 1265 to 1268.

The Welsh attacked the castle during its construction and set it alight. It appears that the conflict could have become out of control but King Henry III intervened and Llywelyn withdrew to leave de Clare to restart the building work.

Prince Edward, his wife Eleanor, his cousin Henry (son of the King of the Romans) and many knights left for the Holy Land to join the Eighth Crsuade.

King Louis IX of France once again set out on Crusade, not to the east but towards Tunis. Charles, the brother of Louis, influenced the direction as Charles had plans in the East. At Cathage in July, the plague broke out and in August Louis died.

The Crusade of Edward, the future King of England. This was a continuation of the Eighth Crusade but also known as the Nineth Crusade.

While staying in Guienne in France, Edward (I) was challenged to a duel by the Count of Chalons. Fearing a trap Edward took a thousand men with him and was faced by a force of double that. In the battle that ensued Edward's forces overcame the enemy and won.

Llywelyn ap Gruffydd of Wales had consistently failed to do homage to King Edward I. He had been paying sums of money to the English crown as agreed in the Treaty of Shrewsbury drawn up in 1267 but after the death of King Henry III the payments had stopped. Edward's repeated demands for a meeting with Llywelyn were ignored. In an attempt to stir up internal problems in England Llywelyn sent to France for Eleanor de Montfort who had been promised to him as a bride for his support of King Henry III in the Baronial revolt against the English King. Eleanor was captured by the English on the journey and was then held prisoner by Edward. Edward finally had to accept Llywelyn as a rebel and so began his war on the Welsh. Feudal levies were called for in June 1277 allowing an army to be raised via the feudal system to supports the King's war with the Welsh.

King Edward I spent large sums of money improving the fortifications at the Tower of London. A new moat was dug and a curtain wall was built around it. The land between the Tower and the river was levelled and new apartments were built on the shore. Edward had a complex of gates added which meant it was extremely difficult to attack the castle through the main land entrance.

Before the main army could be assembled Edward ordered that the Marchers and the smaller permanent forces attached to the royal household were to be sent out in three detachments. Although not much headway was made in the north the south and central districts abandoned their allegiance to Llywelyn. Roger Mortimer was able to force Llywelyn to retreat from Powys northwards. It was soon clear that the only area the Llywelyn had any control over was the north of Wales.

King Edward I ordered improvements to be made to the castle at Builth.

Reconstruction of the castle at Aberystwyth was begun by the English during King Edward I's conflict with Llywelyn ap Gruffydd.

King Edward I of England granted Ruthin to Dafydd, the brother of Prince Llewelyn ap Gruffudd in return for his help against his brother who have been attacking English interests in the north of Wales. Construction of Ruthin Castle may have begun under the direction of Edward or Dafydd himself.

King Edward I called for feudal levies to be collected to pay for his war against the Welsh prince who had repeatedly refused to pay him homage.

As part of the plans to defeat Llywelyn, King Edward I ordered the construction of Flint Castle in Clwyd. Edward had been impressed by fortified town and castle combinations he had seen on his travels in France and Flint Castle was designed in the same manor. The castle was completed in 1280.

Joined by a force of some 800 cavalry and 2500 infantry at Worcester, King Edward I moved north to Chester. Edward's forces then proceeded to move along the north coast of Wales. His advance was impeded by dense forest which offered the Welsh good opportunities to launch surprise attacks on the English troops. Edward built a wide road through the forests building fortified posts along the way. The force of soldiers were on a forty-days service agreement and after that some returned home. Edward retained some by paying them extra for their services.

Leaving work on Flint Castle underway King Edward I moved on up the coast to Rhuddlan where he found the remains of an old Norman Motte and Bailey castle overlooking an important crossing point of the river Clywd. A new castle was ordered and work began to create both the castle and a new town alongside.

Llywelyn was cut off from supplies and an escape route so had to accept defeat. Edward demanded payment of £50,000 and all of Llywelyn's territories. Llywelyn was left only with the Isle of Anglesey which he had to pay rent of £1,000 a year. Edward also demanded that Anglesey should be handed over if Llywelyn died without a male heir. Llywelyn swore fealty to Edward at Rhuddlan on November 10th and again at a ceremony at Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day.

King Edward I was responsible for the construction of the Beauchamp Tower at the Tower of London on the western side of the curtain wall. It got its name later on in 1397 when Thomas Beauchamp was imprisoned there by Richard II. The three storey tower was large enough to hold not only the captive, but members of his household as well. It has been used to hold other important prisoners since.

Another castle was built by King Edward I's master castle builder, James of St. George in North Wales.

The Welsh attacked and burnt the castle at Aberystwyth and its town.

When Dafydd ap Gruffyd rebelled against King Edward the Welsh area Dyffryn Clwyd became was granted to Reginald de Grey as a Marcher Lordship. Reginald was granted the castle at Ruthin.

David ap Gruffydd attacked and took control the castle at Hawarden. The constable, Roger de Clifford, was captured during the attack.

David, Llywelyn's brother, rose up in revolt. Llywelyn, even though he had sworn fealty to Edward, joined his brother in the fight against the English.

King Edward had called for the feudal army to gather at Rhuddlan in August to put down the Welsh revolt. Edward and Eleanor's daughter Elizabeth was born at Rhuddlan at this time.

Luke de Tany, on the side of the English, had taken control of Anglesey. The plan was attack the Welsh rebels from the north and so a bridge of boats was constructed across the Menai Straits that separate Anglesey from Wales. The Welsh were waiting for the English in force and the English plan failed. Many of the English knights drowned when the boat bridge was destroyed.

Whilst fighting in the south of Wales Llywelyn was killed. He had moved to the rear of his army feeling secure with the way the war was progressing. A detachment of English found a way across the river Wye which Llywelyn was using for protection and moved around the rear of the Welsh army where the Prince was. Before Llywelyn could rejoin his army he was cut down and killed. His head was cut off and taken to the King Edward. Llywelyn's brother David carried on the fight against the English for another six months.

After capturing Dolwyddelan, Edward moved up the river Conwy to its mouth and a new castle was ordered. The castle's design and size were chosen to prove the royal power of the English King. Construction work lasted until 1297.

Edward and his master castle builder started the reconstruction of a new castle at Caernarfon.

After the death of Lleweyln Edward was free to occupy all the previous strongholds of the Welsh Princes. In 1283 Edward attacked and captured the Welsh castle at Dolyyddlan.

Edward moved around the Welsh coast to attack and capture the Welsh castle at Criccieth. He then moved on and ordered another castle to be built at Harlech. In the summer of 1283 King Edward provided money to improved the defences at Criccieth Castle.

Work began on Harlech Castle. Money for the construction being moved from Cymer Abbey a few miles to the south of the new castle's location.

David the brother of Llywelyn was handed over to the king by his own supporters who had already surrendered. He was taken to Shrewsbury Castle where a Parliament met and sentenced him to death by execution.

Dafydd was found guilty of high treason and sentenced to death. His punishment for betraying the King was to be drawn, hanged and quartered.

King Edward I ordered reconstruction work at Aberystwyth Castle after it had been burnt and damaged in an earlier Welsh attack.

Philippe III, the king of France died at Perpignan at the end of a disastrous attempt to capture Aragon for his son Charles. The battle in which he died was part of a large war known as the War of the Sicilian Vespers forght between the kings of Aragon on one side and Charles of Anjou and the kings of France on the other with the support of the Pope.

In the summer of 1287, Rhys ap Maredudd, the Lord of Dryslwyn rebelled against King Edward I. Although Rhys ap Maredudd had assisted the English King in the past, he accused Edward of treating him unfairly over taxes. The rebels burned several towns including Swansea and Carmarthen.

After Dryslwyn Castle fell to the English, Rhys ap Maredudd fled to Newcastle Emlyn Castle. The English took their siege engines to the castle and a siege began. The warfare continued over the winter period.

Eleanor of Castile, the wife of King Edward I died while travelling in the North with the King. Eleanor had been suffering with illness for some time and the cold and damp of the Winter months probably aggravated her condition.

King Edward I granted Lawrence of Ludlow a licence to fortify his manor house at Stokesay.

The Muslims reclaimed the port of Acre after a siege. Acre was the last refuge for the western crusaders and with the loss of this important port the Crusades had finally come to an end.

A small scale war breaks out between English and Norman sailors after a Norman sailor is killed in a brawl with an English Sailor. The Normans demand the English sailor is handed over but he is not and in following battles many sailors were killed on both sides. Things escalate and Philippe of France demands Edward pay homage to him as Edward is Duke of Aquitaine, a vassal of the French King. Edward refuses and sends his brother Edmund instead. Edmund agrees with Philippe to surrender Gascony to the French.

Philippe added the bishopric of Maguellone and the east side of Montpellier to his domains.

As part of peace negotiations between England and France it was proposed that King Edward I would marry Blanche of France, the half-sister of Philippe IV, and Philippe would take back Gascony. This was agreed but the French King changed the agreement by replacing Blanche with her younger sister Margaret. This action saw the peace negotiations fail and England and France were again at war with each other.

Madog ap Llywelyn, one of the Welsh rebels, attacked and burnt Caernarfon Castle.

King Edward I need money and men for his war with the French and sent tax collectors into Wales. In response the tax collectors were hung and a rebellion began in the north of Wales led by Morgan. Denbigh Castle and its town were attacked during the Welsh uprising. The rebellion spread to the south of the country,

Edward needed an army to fight in France and ordered the Welsh to provide men to meet at Shrewsbury. Unwilling to fight abroad, the Welsh took the opportunity to rise up against an English army reduced in numbers due to the problems in France. Edward once again had to fight the Welsh. One of the leaders of this revolt was Madog ap Llywelyn.

Bad weatther and unusually high tides prevented Edward advancing against the rebels and after spending Christmas at Conwy Castle Edward's attempts to defeat the Welsh were further hampered by losses of supplies to the Welsh. The king held his position at Conwy Castle waiting for improved weather and to receive supplies by sea.

The construction of Beaumaris Castle on Anglesey is begun under the direction of master mason James of St. George.

Supplies reached Edward at Conwy castle and he was able to march against the Welsh. By April had occupied Anglesey.

King Edward I called together a parliament consisting of a cross-section of society; the heads of the church, the Barons and members of the burghs. The parliament agreed that a tax could be raised to allow the king to launch attacks on the Scots and the French.

The castle on Loch Ness fell to the English. Sir William Fitz Warine was left in charge of the castle as its Constable.

King Edward ordered his army to attack the badly fortified town of Berwick. Many Scots were killed in the two days of the attack and possibly somewhere between 7000 and 17000 men, women and children were slaughtered.

John Balliol was defeated at the battle of Dunbar by King Edward I.

Philippe the King of France took the opportunity of Edward's troubles in England to threaten the lands that Edward held in France.

The English had taken many castles and in July 1296 Balliol surrendered to King Edward I and was imprisoned in the Tower of London. Edward advanced to Elgin and on his return to England took the Stone of Scone.

In response to the fear that the King of France would try to take back some of the lands Edward held in France, King Edward I arranged a marriage between his son Edward and Philippa, the daughter of the Count of Flanders, an enemy of the King of France.

Outside Westminster Hall, King Edward I made an appeal for support for the war in France. He apologised for high tax demands he had previously levied. He also asked the Barons to swear allegiance to Edward of Caernarfon, the future Edward II, King of England. He received the support he needed.

Leaving an unhappy England behind him, Edward left for France to fight Philippe.

William Wallace and Andrew De Moray leaders of the Scottish revolt in the South and North joined forces and defeated the English army led by Surrey at Stirling. The Scots caught the English forces as they crossed a bridge across the Forth.

Sir Andrew de Moray retook the castle from the English.

King Edward I held a Parliament at York to discuss the situation in Scotland. It wasn't long before an English army was prepared to go into Scotland.

Edward's army defeated William Wallace. The battle is dominated by the English and Welsh longbows.