The Loire and Vienne valley between Anjou and the Blésois, with the great comital fortresses of Chinon and Loches, the city of Tours with its archbishop and the king of France's own abbey of Saint-Martin, and a ring of baronies (Amboise, Sainte-Maure, Preuilly, L'Île-Bouchard).
Arthur was invested at Tours in April 1199 and French troops were there in the summer; by the winter the fortresses are John's. Philip's standing in Tours as abbot of Saint-Martin gives him a foothold inside John's county.
Who he is
- Name
- John (Jean sans Terre)
- Title
- Count of Anjou, lord of Touraine
- Since
- April 1199; John took Chinon and Richard's treasure from Robert of Turnham about 14 April 1199
- Born
- 24 December 1166 (aged 33)
- Family
- As for Anjou.
- Confidence
- high
Touraine was part of the Angevin count's lands since 1044, not a separate county; it is drawn separately because its fortresses and its prelates make it a distinct problem.
Overlord
Philip II in law; John has not yet done homage. Philip is also, as king, lay abbot of Saint-Martin of Tours.
What it holds
- Chinon castle and treasury (Henry II died there, 6 July 1189)
- Loches, retaken by Richard from the French on 13 June 1194
- The comital castle of Tours and the count's rights in the Cité
- Langeais and Montbazon (comital keeps of Fulk Nerra; who kept Montbazon in 1200 is not pinned)
- Overlordship of Amboise, Montrichard, Sainte-Maure, Preuilly, L'Île-Bouchard, La Haye, Rochecorbon and Semblançay
How it was acquired
Conquered by Geoffrey Martel of Anjou from the counts of Blois in 1044.
Allies and rivals
Archbishop Bartholomew of Tours (of Vendôme), whose province spans John's lands and Arthur's; the chapter of Saint-Martin under Philip as abbot; the burgesses of Châteauneuf, who have tried more than once to form a commune; the Thouars brothers next door in Poitou.
How things stand that morning
Chinon and Loches are held for John. Tours: the castle and Cité are John's as count, but the French had troops there in the summer of 1199 and whether any remain that morning is not pinned; Châteauneuf around Saint-Martin answers to its chapter and, through it, to Philip. The barons of Touraine are quiet.
Wealth
The tournois penny (deniers tournois) is struck at Tours under the abbey of Saint-Martin; Loire and Vienne tolls; wine; the pilgrim trade at Saint-Martin's tomb.
Military
Chinon and Loches are among the strongest fortresses in France (Loches resisted Philip until Easter 1205, Chinon until June 1205). Langeais, Montbazon and the Tours castle complete the comital network.
Threats
- Philip's lever in Tours through Saint-Martin
- The Thouars brothers on the Poitou border
- Arthur's claim to the county, recognised by Philip in 1199
What the year holds
What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.
In 1200
- 22 May 1200Le Goulet confirms Touraine to John.Depends on: The January truce holding. Stopped by: A collapse of the truce.
Later, on the likely course
- 1202-1205After the confiscation of 1202, Philip conquers Touraine; Loches and Chinon fall in 1205.Depends on: The war of 1202; far beyond the first turn. Stopped by: Any change in the 1200-1202 politics.
Places of note
- Chinon: Comital fortress and treasury
- Loches: Comital fortress
- Langeais: Comital keep on the Loire
- Montbazon: Keep of Fulk Nerra on the Indre; keeper in 1200 not pinned
- Tours: Cité with archbishop and comital castle; Châteauneuf around Saint-Martin
Where the sources disagree
- campaign notes (Part 6 B) say Tours is 'Angevin ground claimed by Arthur and coveted by Philip'. Agreed; add that Philip, as lay abbot of Saint-Martin, already has lawful rights inside Tours (Châteauneuf).
Evidence: Fortress history well known; the garrison of Tours in the winter of 1199-1200 is not pinned.
On the map: Follows the later province of Touraine less Château-Renault and the Chaumont area (Blois fiefs) and less the Berry border at Châtillon-sur-Indre; the southern edge against Poitou (Loudun, Mirebeau, La Roche-Posay) is approximate.
Primary sources for Angevin lands
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- Chronicle of Alberic of Trois-Fontaines, Alberic of Trois-Fontaines (about 1227 to 1241, at the Cistercian abbey of Trois-Fontaines in Champagne). The widest net of any Latin chronicle for 1200, compiled from dozens of sources, many now lost. Read online
- Chronicles of Saint-Martial of Limoges, Bernard Itier and other monks of Saint-Martial; Geoffrey of Vigeois for the earlier chronicle (Geoffrey's chronicle to 1184; Bernard Itier's notes about 1195 to 1225). Bernard Itier, librarian of Saint-Martial, kept dated notes through 1200 of what reached Limoges: Richard's death at Chalus in 1199, the viscounts of Limoges and the lords of the Limousin, John's passage through Aquitaine in 1200 and the affairs of Angouleme and the Lusignans, and the abbey's own elections and prices. Read online
- Chronicles of the Churches of Anjou (Saint-Aubin, Saint-Serge, Saint-Florent and others), Various (monks of Angers and the Loire) (11th to 13th centuries; the Saint-Aubin annals run to the 1220s). The Angevin houses' own annals of the succession crisis in their city: Arthur received at Angers in 1199 with Constance and the Breton and Angevin barons, John's counter-moves, the defection of William des Roches and the Angevin lords to John, and the peace of 1200 that left Arthur John's vassal. Read online
- The Great Chronicle of Tours, Anonymous (a canon of Saint-Martin of Tours) (about 1227). The Loire valley's view of the Angevin succession. Read online
- Universal Chronicle of the Anonymous of Laon, Anonymous (an English-born canon of Laon) (about 1219). A Picard chronicle whose author had lived in England and keeps an eye on both kingdoms. Read online
- Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
- Chronicle; Deeds of the Kings, Gervase of Canterbury (Chronica about 1188 to 1199; Gesta Regum about 1199 to 1210). The Chronica stops in 1199, so for 1200 the witness is the briefer Gesta Regum, which notes John's peace with Philip, the coronation of Isabella at Westminster on 8 October 1200, and matters touching Canterbury: the archbishop Hubert Walter as chancellor, the cathedral priory's quarrel with him, and the Lambeth college dispute lately settled by the pope. Read online
- English Chronicle of Ralph of Coggeshall, Ralph of Coggeshall (about 1200 to 1224, in stages). Short but independent entries for 1200 from a Cistercian house in Essex: John's levy on the Cistercians and the carucage, the peace with Philip, the king's new marriage and the queen's coronation, and the death of Hugh of Lincoln. Read online
14 more in the sources library for France and Iberia.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.