Saladin Tithe - Aftermath

Aftermath

In the end, Henry never went on crusade. In 1189 he was involved in a war with Philip and his own son Richard, and was accused of spending the tithe on provisions for this war. Henry died later in the year before the crusade was underway; according to Girardus this was divine punishment for such a harsh tithe. Richard succeeded him and found the treasury full, although he collected even more money by selling land and imposing various fines throughout England. Altogether, Henry and Richard succeeded in raising 100,000 silver marks with the Saladin tithe.

The subsequent Third Crusade helped capture the Mediterranean coast for the remnant of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, but Richard could not conquer Jerusalem. On his return home he was taken hostage by Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor. In 1194, another massive tax was imposed on England in order to raise his ransom money. It was essentially a repeat of the Saladin tithe of 1188, but in this case the tax was set at the much higher rate of 25%. The same organizational structure and machinery of collection was used to raise money for King John's wars in France in 1207.