King of France (1223-1226) born in Paris, member of the Capetian dynasty and who continued the policy of his father, of strong central authority.. Son and successor of King Philip II Augustoe de Isabela of Hainaut, at just 12 years old (1200), he married Branca of Castile (1188-1252), also aged 12.
As Crown Prince, he fought (1215-1219) against the Albigenses of southern France and encouraged the English lords to rebel against King John. He tried to take the English throne (1216) by invading England, which caused his excommunication by Pope Innocent III. John's death and the rise of Henry III as sovereign of the British Isle made him recoil from his immediate pretensions. After his defeat at Lincoln (1217) he definitely backed down. Crowned (1223) in the cathedral of Reims, in his short reign he sought to continue his father's work.
As king he conquered Poitou (1224) and Saintonge by taking La Rochelle (1224) from the English. Having acquired the right of the Montforts in Languedoc, he turned the war against the Albingians into a real undertaking, aimed at conquering the south. This generated an indignant reaction from Avignon and Languedoc and to make peace with the church he pledged to form a Crusade (1226).
The crusade against Raimundo VII ended in triumph, but as he returned to Paris from the siege of Avignon, he died in the castle of Montpensier, Auvergne, victim of fatal dysentery, and was buried in the Basilique de Saint-Denis. From her marriage to Branca were born Philip (1209-1218), Louis IX (1214-1270), Roberto de Artois (1216-1250), João (1219-1232), Alfonso de Poitiers (1220-1271), Filipe Dagoberto (1222-1232), Isabela (1225-1269), Etienne (1226-1226) and Carlos d'Anjou (1227-1285) and was succeeded to the throne by his eldest son then living Luis IX.
Source: Biographies - Academic Unit of Civil Engineering / UFCG
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SCHOOL, Team Brazil. "King Louis VIII of France"; Brazil School. Available in: https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/biografia/luis-viii-franca.htm. Accessed on June 29, 2021.
