Simon de Montfort probably hoped to quickly finish off the last pockets of resistance after the Battle of Muret. Instead conflict continued for another one and a half decades. What would happen to Simon, to Count Raymond and the people of Languedoc at this critical period for the region?
Category Archives: Podcasts
Battle of Muret 1213, Part 3
In September 1213 in southwestern France two Christian armies faced each other off. One was led by King Peter II of Aragon, who after his glorious victory against a Muslim army at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa the previous year, was not only one of the most respected monarchs of Christendom but a favoured son of the Church. The other army was composed of crusaders, mainly from northern France, fighting on behalf of the Pope to root out heresy from the French region of Languedoc.
Battle of Muret 1213, Part 2
Simon de Montfort becomes leader of the Albigensian Crusade against the Cathars of Languedoc. He meets resistance from Count Raymond VI of Toulouse and the general population of the region
Battle of Muret 1213, Part 1
Background to the Cathars and the Albigensian Crusade in Languedoc, southern France
Bouvines 1214, Part 3
A powerful league unites against Philip II Augustus of France, including King John of England, Emperor Otto IV, and numerous counts of France. But who would come out on top? Historians are pretty unanimous, that this was a decisive battle which helped shape western Europe
Bouvines 1214, Part 2
King John prepares to invade France and recover his lost territories. In the meantime King Philip Augustus of France consolidates his gains on the continent, provoking resistance among local rulers, especially in Flanders
Las Navas de Tolosa 1212, Part 5
Caliph al-Nasir, also known as Miramamolin invades Spain with a huge Muslim army which is met in the Sierra Nevada mountains by a Christian army, including King Alfonso VIII of Castile, Pedro/Peter II of Aragon and Sancho VII of Navarre. Pictured – King Sancho VII of Navarre breaks through the Caliph’s bodyguards of black African slave-warriors. Tapestry by Vicente Pascual, 1950
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Las Navas de Tolosa 1212, Part 4
The Almohads invade Spain from North Africa while the Christian kings bicker among themselves. Alfonso VIII suffers a heavy defeat at the Battle of Alarcos in 1195
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Las Navas de Tolosa 1212, Part 3
The Almohads arrive in Spain from North Africa and threaten to overwhelm the peninsula. The greatest resistance comes not from the Christian kingdoms, but from a fellow Muslim known as ‘El Rey Lobo’ (The Wolf King), head of a kingdom based in Murcia, a city in its golden age
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Las Navas de Tolosa 1212, Part 2
The birth of the kingdom of Portugal, the Siege of Lisbon, and the Union of Aragon and Catalonia – the political map of the peninsula begins to form. Pictured: King Afonso I of Portugal, nicknamed “the Conqueror”, “the Founder” or “the Great”
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