Richard I was King of England for just under a decade, from 1189 to 1199, from when he was 31 to 41 years of age.

Aside from fighting in the Third Crusade to reconquer Jerusalem and spending over a year in prison - not the first sitting King of England to spend time in jail - he’s perhaps best known as one of England’s greatest monarchs.

So much so that a statue of him riding on his horse with his sword drawn stands outside the Houses of Parliament in London.

Richard is also credited with introducing the three lions insignia, still used today as the official emblem of the English football team.

Given that he’s feted as one of England’s greats, it is perhaps a surprise then to learn that during his reign, he spent no more than around six months actually in England.

The rest of the time he spent either fighting around Jerusalem, or in the other part of his Kingdom … Normandy.


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