Richard's Ransom Drained England's Churches

While returning from the Third Crusade in 1192, King Richard the Lionheart was captured near Vienna and eventually imprisoned by Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI. The emperor demanded 150,000 marks, equivalent to 100,000 pounds of silver and two to three times the English Crown's annual income. To raise the money, clergy and laypeople were taxed one-quarter of their property's value, while churches surrendered their gold and silver treasures. Richard was finally released in February 1194.

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