LOUIS VIII., surnamed Le Lion, born on September 5, 1187, was the son of Philip Augustus, whom he suc-ceeded in July 1223. In 1200 he had married Blanche of Castile, the granddaughter of Henry II. of England, and in virtue of this connexion he received from the English barons in 1216 an offer of the crown, which he accepted. Landing in England in May, he achieved several military successes, but retired early in 1217 ; later in the same year he renewed the attempt to make good his claims, but finally quitted English soil in September. He next took charge of the war against the Albigenses with varying success; it continued after his accession to the throne, and ultimately proved fatal to him. He died, most probably of pestilence, shortly after the capture of - Avignon, at Montpensier in Auvergne on November 8, 1226, and was succeeded by his son Louis IX.