On this day in 1199, the mighty English king Richard the Lionheart suffered a deadly wound. Namely, on that evening he was shot by a crossbowman while walking around a castle in France, which he wanted to seize. This was the Châlus castle in the French region of Limousin (today Château de Chalus-Chabrol). It was quite a small castle, and the king thought it would be easily taken. So, it appears, he put his guard down and went to investigate the course of the siege without his chainmail armor.
At one point, King Richard was hit in the left shoulder, near his neck, with a crossbow bolt. He stayed on his feet and went to his tent to pull out the bolt. However, he failed to pull it out himself, so a surgeon was called (maybe it was actually a butcher). This “expert” managed to remove the bolt, but with severe consequences for the king. The wound swiftly became gangrenous and it seemed obvious that the king does not have long to live.
Meanwhile, the castle was seized, so the king asked that the man who shot him be brought before him. The dying king showed chivalry towards that enemy – he freed him and even gave him money. The King died 12 days after being wounded, when he was only 41 years old.
