Louis VIII of France

Louis VIII (1187–1226), called the Lion, son of Philip II Augustus and Isabella of Hainault, married Blanche of Castile in 1200. As prince he invaded England in 1216 and was proclaimed king by rebel barons in London, though never crowned; after King John's death he was defeated and withdrew.

He fought in the Albigensian Crusade and, as king from 1223, seized western lands from the Angevins, leaving them only Gascony. In 1226 he led another crusade into Languedoc and died of dysentery on the campaign, leaving the crown to the young Louis IX.