The French led by Louis VIII were in turn were more than happy to join forces wtih the rebellious Barons (major landowners) against John I in the English civil war of 1215-1217, when neither side failed to abide by the terms of the Geat Charter drawn up by the Achbishop of Canterbury to make peace between the unpopular King and rebel Barons. Though the French Prince dragged the conflict out after peace had been acheived,his ambitions for the English throne came to nothing. In 1217 the Great Charter was redrafted by Henry III and adopted under the new name of the Magna Carta.
Despite of, or because of, for England the period of the 100 year’s war produced perhaps its most colourful era and beloved topic of many a history lesson. Events such as the Black Death, Agincourt, the Wars of the Roses, the princes in the Tower and the peasant’s revolt, feel almost mythological. In turn, characters like Henry V, the first English king able to read and write in English, Richard III who was either much maligned or fully deserved to end up in a car park in Leicester and Edward Tudor of Blackadder fame, have become part of the legend.