Welcome back to Hertford - A History Part 9!
Following on from Part 8, Robert Fitz Walter angered the King and had to flee to France in 1211 and his Castles in Hertford and Bennington were confiscated.
He was reinstated in his Castles after returning with a contingent of Barons and took a leading role in this great march against the Crown which lead to Magna Carta. Fitz Walter took it further when he travelled to France 2 months later and offered the Crown to Philip Augustus while King John was attempting to persuade the Pope that the charter was unlawful.
In 1216 in October when King John died, Philip Augustus and a French army arrived on English Shores and were gratefully received by the people of England. Ironically the death of John led to the rallying of the barons to John’s son and successor Henry III, and they opposed the Dauphin.
In the next blog post read about how the arrival of the French led to a troubled time in Hertford’s history.
For more in depth reading, read The Book Of Hertford by Cyril Heath, this book was a great catalyst for this blog series.
