It was as a politician that John was most obviously a wretched failure. Under his father, the empire had been sustained by a shrewd combination of charisma and feudal loyalty. John's problem was his difficulty in believing that anyone would ever be more than a fair-weather friend. So he relied on blackmail and extortion, threats to the barons rather than promises. Assuming disloyalty, he ended up guaranteeing it. So when John needed the barons most, when Normandy was threatened by the French King, they weren't there for him. The result was a catastrophic defeat. The loss of Normandy ripped the heart out of Angevin power.


作为政治家来说，再也没有比约翰更加一败涂地的了。其父在位时，这个国家维系于君主的号召力和对封建制度的忠诚，两者间的巧妙结合。约翰的问题在于不信任别人，总是认为别人不过是酒肉之交。对待贵族，他只崇尚敲诈勒索和胁迫，宁我负天下人，莫让天下人负我。结果却事与愿违，当诺曼底受到法王威胁，约翰最需要他们的紧要关头。贵族们却没有伸出援手，最终导致了灾难性的失败，痛失诺曼底令安茹王朝元气大伤。