John was born in England around Christmastide in 1166 or 1167. His father, King Henry II of England, had inherited significant territories along the Atlantic seaboard including Anjou, Normandy and England. John's mother was Eleanor, the powerful duchess of Aquitaine who held a tenuous claim to Toulouse and Auvergne in southern France. The future of this vast empire upon Henry's eventual death was not secure. Most believed that Henry would divide the empire, giving each son a substantial portion. As one moved south through Anjou and Aquitaine, the extent of Henry's power in the provinces diminished considerably. It scarcely resembled the modern concept of an empire at all.
Shortly after his birth, John was passed from Eleanor into the care of a wet nurse. Eleanor then left for Poitiers, the capital of Aquitaine, and sent John north to Fontevrault Abbey. This may have been done with the aim of steering her youngest son towards a future ecclesiastical career. John spent some time as a member of the household of his eldest living brother, Henry the Young King. He probably received instruction in hunting and military skills there. John grew up to be around five feet six inches tall, relatively short, with a powerful barrel-chested body and dark red hair. He looked to contemporaries like an inhabitant of Poitou.
John enjoyed reading and built up a travelling library of books. He enjoyed gambling, particularly at backgammon, and was an enthusiastic hunter even by medieval standards. He liked music although not songs. John would become a connoisseur of jewels building up a large collection. He became famous for his opulent clothes and also for his fondness for bad wine according to French chroniclers. As John grew up he became known for sometimes being genial witty generous and hospitable. At other moments he could be jealous over-sensitive and prone to fits of rage biting and gnawing his fingers in anger.
Accession And War
After Richard's death on the 6th of April 1199 there were two potential claimants to the Angevin throne. John whose claim rested on being the sole surviving son of Henry II faced young Arthur I of Brittany who held a claim as the son of John's elder brother Geoffrey. With Norman law favouring John as the only surviving son of Henry II and Angevin law favouring Arthur as the only son of Henry's elder son the matter rapidly became an open conflict. John was supported by the bulk of the English and Norman nobility and was crowned at Westminster Abbey backed by his mother Eleanor.
Arthur was supported by the majority of the Breton Maine and Anjou nobles and received the support of Philip II who remained committed to breaking up the Angevin territories on the continent. Warfare in Normandy at the time was shaped by the defensive potential of castles and the increasing costs of conducting campaigns. The Norman frontiers had limited natural defences but were heavily reinforced with castles such as Château Gaillard built and maintained at considerable expense. It was difficult for a commander to advance far into fresh territory without having secured his lines of communication by capturing these fortifications which slowed the progress of any attack.
John initially adopted a defensive posture similar to that of 1199 avoiding open battle and carefully defending his key castles. John's operations became more chaotic as the campaign progressed and Philip began to make steady progress in the east. John became aware in July that Arthur's forces were threatening his mother Eleanor at Mirebeau Castle. Accompanied by William de Roches his seneschal in Anjou he swung his mercenary army rapidly south to protect her. His forces caught Arthur by surprise and captured the entire rebel leadership at the battle of Mirebeau.