Louis VIII of France
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Louis VIII, nicknamed The Lion, was King of France from 1223 to 1226. As a prince, he invaded England on 21 May 1216 and was excommunicated by a papal legate on 29 May 1216. On 2 June 1216, Louis was proclaimed "King of England" by rebellious barons in London, though never crowned. He soon seized half the English kingdom but was eventually defeated by the English. After the Treaty of Lambeth, he was paid 10,000 marks, pledged never to invade England again, and was absolved of his excommunication.
15th-century miniature of Louis VIII at the Siege of Avignon, c. 10 June – 9 September 1226
Painting by Henri Lehmann, 1837
Arrival of Louis of France in England (from the Chronica Majora, Matthew Paris, c. 1236–1259)
Coronation of Louis VIII and Blanche of Castile at Reims in 1223, miniature from the Grandes Chroniques de France, c. 1332–1350 (Bibliothèque nationale)
Albigensian Crusade
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The Albigensian Crusade or Cathar Crusade (1209–1229) was a military and ideological campaign initiated by Pope Innocent III to eliminate Catharism in Languedoc, what is now southern France. The Crusade was prosecuted primarily by the French crown and promptly took on a political aspect. It resulted in the significant reduction of practicing Cathars and a realignment of the County of Toulouse with the French crown. The distinct regional culture of Languedoc was also diminished.
Massacre against the Albigensians by the Crusaders
This Pedro Berruguete work of the 15th century depicts a story of Saint Dominic and the Albigensians, in which the texts of each were cast into a fire, but only Saint Dominic's proved miraculously resistant to the flames.
Carcassonne with the Aude river in the foreground
Cathars being expelled from Carcassonne in 1209