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On February 6, 1214, John sailed for La Rochelle. With him went Ian and Alinor but not Salisbury and Geoffrey. The only man in the world John trusted as he trusted himself would go to join his allies in Flanders to be sure their purpose did not waver. It was necessary for John to begin operations early because the men of Poitou and La Manche liked him even less than the English. He had not oppressed them personally much, but memories are long in the country of the langue d'oc. There Richard was still adored, his faults now forgotten, and John was not only compared unfavorably to him in military matters but also accounted somewhat guilty of his death, even though John and Richard were not at war at that time. They knew that John had dealt treacherously with Richard, and that rankled in memory. |
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Thus, John needed to make sure Aquitaine would be a firm base, a sound anvil upon which the hammer of the attack from Flanders could smash Philip of France. To do this it was first necessary to show enough force to bring the doubtful Poitevin lords to heel. Second, there was the problem of the Lusignans. Since John had stolen Isabella, virtually on the eve of her wedding, the family had been his inveterate enemies, and they were very powerful. |
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Through February and March the news Joanna received was all excellent. The fortress of Milecu fell almost at once, and this brought in a number of barons who realized John was not only serious in his intentions but had power enough to enforce them. In March, John took his army down the Charente through Angoulême to the Limousin. Those nobles who did not come voluntarily to do fealty and to swell his forces, he reduced with an efficient ferocity that served |
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