John, King of England succession. Henry the Young King had been crowned King of England in 1170, but was not given any formal powers by his father; he was also promised Normandy and Anjou as part of his future inheritance. Richard was to be appointed the Count of Poitou with control of Aquitaine, whilst Geoffrey was to become the Duke of Brittany. At this time it seemed unlikely that John would ever inherit substantial lands, and he was jokingly nicknamed "Lackland" by his father. Henry II wanted to secure the southern borders of Aquitaine and decided to betroth his youngest son to Alais, the
History of the English line of succession eldest living son: Richard I. Richard had no legitimate children. On the day of his death, 6 April 1199, if the line of succession to the English throne had followed primogeniture, he would have been succeeded by his nephew Arthur I, Duke of Brittany (b. 1187), son of Richard I's brother Geoffrey, Duke of Brittany. However, since Arthur had sided with Philip II of France, Richard's enemy, Richard named his younger brother John as his heir, and he became king. John died, on 19 October 1216, in the midst of conflict against his barons; most of them had already recognized