The name Richard in the Plantagenet family

Mentions of Richard Cœur de Lion raises the question of where Henry II
and Eleanor of Aquitaine got the name of their third son from. Their
first two sons, William and Henry, bore names already used by Norman
Kings of England (and in the case of William, by the Dukes of
Aquitaine), their fourth son was named after Henry's father, and
John....well, he always was the misfit. After Cœur de Lion the name
Richard was widely used in the Plantagenet dynasty until 1485 (as
indeed was John, for sons of Edward III and Henry IV), and it can
therefore be said that Richard III was in effect named after Cœur de
Lion, albeit a few times removed*. But who was Cœur de Lion named
after ?

Richard G

* Richard Earl of Cambridge and Richard Duke of York were presumably
named for King Richard II, but as the second son of Edward the Black
prince, presumably he was named for Cœur de Lion in the expectation
that his elder brother Edward would become Edward V on the demise of
his grandfather and father and maintain the line of Edwards.

Interesting point. Richard was a common enough Christian name among the Anglo-Normans - about the most common apart from William and Robert. There are certainly several Richards among the pre-Conquest Dukes of Normandy, if his parents were thinking that far back, and the Conqueror's youngest son (killed hunting in the New Forest when about 18) was also called Richard. Otherwise, perhaps he was named after one of his father's friends?
John was born on the Feast of St John the Evangelist, so presumably named after the saint.



----- Original Message ----
From: rgcorris <RSG_Corris@...>
To:
Sent: Monday, 7 July, 2008 4:02:50 PM
Subject: The name Richard in the Plantagenet family


Mentions of Richard CSur de Lion raises the question of where Henry II
and Eleanor of Aquitaine got the name of their third son from. Their
first two sons, William and Henry, bore names already used by Norman
Kings of England (and in the case of William, by the Dukes of
Aquitaine), their fourth son was named after Henry's father, and
John....well, he always was the misfit. After CSur de Lion the name
Richard was widely used in the Plantagenet dynasty until 1485 (as
indeed was John, for sons of Edward III and Henry IV), and it can
therefore be said that Richard III was in effect named after CSur de
Lion, albeit a few times removed*. But who was CSur de Lion named
after ?

Richard G

* Richard Earl of Cambridge and Richard Duke of York were presumably
named for King Richard II, but as the second son of Edward the Black
prince, presumably he was named for CSur de Lion in the expectation
that his elder brother Edward would become Edward V on the demise of
his grandfather and father and maintain the line of Edwards.