About the Chess Set

Richard the Lionheart Chess Set - A more definitive decorated chess set would be hard to find than this superbly crafted masterpiece.

The designers by combining their skills with the styles of Staunton and the old French Dieppe chess sets have created one of the more attractive sets.

This regal chess set features important characters from the era of King Richard I of England who reigned from 1189 to 1199. The pieces are richly decorated in silver and gold (decorated set only) which contrasts with the simple elegance of the Staunton style bases.

King - Richard I of England

Known as Richard the Lionheart or Richard, Coeur de Lion is one of England's most famous kings and yet he actually spent less than one year of his reign in England. His image is that of a chivalrous knight, constantly battling to restore justice and order and, indeed, in many respects that is just what he was. The son of King Henry II and Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine, Richard was born in Oxford on 8 September 1158. He spent much of his early life in France on his mother's estates at Anjou and Poitou, where he indulged in tournaments and war games. He was known as the Duke of Aquitaine, but on the death of his father in 1189 he became king of England. His coronation was held on Sunday, 3 September 1189 and he was crowned by Baldwin, the Archbishop of Canterbury at Westminster Abbey.

From that time onwards Richard was constantly engaged in defending his lands in France and preventing them from being re-possessed by the French. However his main activity was arranging and taking part in crusades to recover Christian lands around Jerusalem, which had fallen into the hands of the Muslims, led by Saladin. Such was his passion for crusading and fighting that his own wedding to Berengaria of Navarre was arranged and took place whilst en-route to the Holy Lands. The wedding was held in the chapel of St George, Limassol, Cyprus on 12 May 1191 and immediately afterwards Richard set sail for Jerusalem to fight yet another crusade.

On his way back to England he was captured by Leopold of Austria and was only released after a very large ransom was paid. The money required for the many crusades was a constant drain on the exchequer, and meant that high taxes had to be levied in England to fund the activities of this absent king. Richard used his kingdom as a bank to finance his wars and left the administration of the country to 'regents' whose responsibility was to govern the country in his absence.

It was inevitable that Richard would die a royal death, perhaps in hand to hand combat with the enemy, rather than die peacefully in his sleep. His end, when it came was caused by his own zeal. The baron of a small French castle at Chalus refused to hand over some recently discovered treasure. The castle had but fifteen defenders and Richard, expecting an easy victory rode forward to inspect their defences. He refused their offer to surrender in exchange for their freedom, vowing that every man would be hanged. On hearing this, a defender armed with a crossbow fired an iron tipped bolt at Richard who was completely exposed to view. The bolt hit him in the left shoulder and penetrated deeply. Richard rode back to his camp where doctors tried to remove the bolt and hacked about in his shoulder. The wound developed gangrene and Richard died eleven days after on 6 April 1199. Realising that he was dying Richard gave instructions that he was to be buried at Fontrevault in France and not in Westminster Abbey. His heart was buried at Rouen Cathedral.

Queen - Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine

Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine, Richard's mother is selected as the queen for this set as she had far more power and authority than that of Queen Berengaria, Richards' wife.

Eleanor was born in Poitou, France about 1122. Her father owned large estates and castles in Aquitaine and when he died, at Easter 1137 she inherited them. At that time she was only a fifteen year old girl and as such was a prime candidate for marriage, considering the vast wealth and estates that now belonged to her. Consequently she was very quickly married off to the heir to the French throne. The marriage took place in July 1137, but the French King died in August 1137 making Eleanor and her husband Philip the King and Queen of France.

Eleanor was a lively lady and indulged in many secret affairs, referring to her husband as 'more like a monk than a king’. It was obvious that the couple were incompatible and the marriage was annulled on 21 March 1152. Very shortly afterwards, on 18 May 1152 Eleanor married King Henry II of England. Henry was totally different in character and temperament to Philip her first husband and although Henry was dominant Eleanor was used to being Queen and was very much involved in political matters at court.

Eleanor and Henry produced several children, amongst them Richard who became Richard 1st on Henry's death in 1189. Eleanor, as Queen Mother, was able to exert much influence at court and in diplomatic circles to guarantee stability for Richard during his many long absences at overseas wars. She supervised his wedding in Cyprus and actually travelled to the Holy Land with him whilst he was besieging the city of Acre. She was also present at Richard’s death in France and helped arrange his funeral at Fontrevault.

Bishop - Hubert Walter the Bishop of Salisbury

Later to become Archbishop of Canterbury. Hubert Walter accompanied King Richard on his crusades and was a loyal and trusted companion. When Baldwin the Archbishop of Canterbury who had officiated at Richard's coronation died, on 19 November 1190, Richard requested that Queen Eleanor see to it that Hubert Walter was given this high office.

Walter, the King's inseparable companion at the siege of Acre in the Holy Land had a great reputation as a soldier, diplomat and administrator. Many people thought that a priest should not concern himself with affairs of state, but Walter was a brilliant man and was ideal for the job. In Richard's absence he effectively governed England by the powers of Archbishop of Canterbury and the further powers granted to him by Richard, that of chief Justice in December 1193.

He was also appointed as Papal Legate in March 1195. It was Hubert Walter who set up the administration to collect taxes from the people to fund Richard's armies and expeditions, and it was he who helped negotiate the terms of Richard’s release and the payment of the ransom to Leopold of Austria. In 1196 he calculated that he had supplied Richard with 1,100,000 marks in a two year period by means of taxation. He was a brilliant advisor and no king could have had a better servant.

Knight - Lion

The knight is represented by a lion, a symbol of strength and bravery, adopted by Richard as part of his coat of arms.

Rook - Tower or Turret

A representation of the tower or turret of a castle of the medieval period.

Pawn - Foot Soldier

William Marshall (Guillaume le Marechal) a famous fighter and knight thought to have tutored Richard in the skills and arts of chivalry and combat. Born the fourth son of a Wiltshire baron his chances of financial fortune were slim. However he was adept at fighting as a foot soldier and took part in many tournaments. These were held as often as once a fortnight on the Continent but had been banned in England by King Henry who viewed them as a threat to public order. These tournaments often ranged over several square miles of land and were truly war games. When Richard became king he re-instated them for he did not fear rebellion and regarded them as excellent training for his troops.

The victors in the tournaments won not only honour but also the weapons, armour and horses of the vanquished foe. William Marshall was one of the most famous of these gladiatorial knights and was able to prosper handsomely from his skills. He became a legend and even had poetry written in his honour. He eventually married the heiress to the Earldom of Pembroke and subsequently ended his days as the Earl of Pembroke and was entrusted with the regency of England during the years that King Henry III was a minor.