Richard the Lionheart Fest

25 July - Annweiler, Germany. We attended the Richard the Lionheart Fest in Annweiler. It is a small town south of Kaiserslautern. It was a very nice fest of Medieval flavor. It is to celebrate the time when Richard I, King of England and a bunch of other places, was held prisioner in the local castle - Trifels - on a mountain above the town. Richard mainly lived in SW France but was King of many lands. On his way home from the Crusades, Henry of Saxony (part of Germany) held Richard for ransom on baseless charges. Since it was illegal to hold a crusader for ranson, the Pope excommunicated Henry. Richard was brought to Speyer, 1 hr SE of Kaiserslautern. He was handed over to Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor, who held Richard I in the castle in Annweiler. Henry VI demanded and was paid a ransom from England but was also excommunicated from the church by the Pope. Richard was the King of England at the time of Robin Hood and the brother of King John who assumed the throne upon Richard's death in 1199. Robin Hood is said to have served as an Archer on the crusades with Richard. The fest was nice. Food, stalls of different items for sale and several medieval acts on several stages from archery demonstrations, fanconry, puppet shows a Knights village exhibition. Alot of people we in clothes of the times, beer serves in stone mugs, gooooooooood food. Knights walking thru town...... Sampling the local cuisine :) Jamie at the fest....Trifels castle where Ricahrd I was prisoner is in the background on the hill.