Prince John

Prince John is a lion and the main antagonist of Disney's 1973 film Robin Hood, voiced by Peter Ustinov (who also voiced King Richard in the original English version) and animated by Disney vetern Ollie Johnston. He is a coward and a crybaby, who after his brother King Richard is tricked into going a crusade, he assumes the crown and becomes somewhat a dictator, leaving his subjects in poverty. He is based on the real life King John of England. Peter Ustinov also did Prince John's German-language voice.

Personality
Little is known of Prince John's past, other than the fact that he is the younger brother of King Richard. He seems to have had a love/hate relationship with his deceased mother, who he claims favored Richard over him but cries out in agony whenever he insults her memory. He also has a very bad habit of sucking his thumb intensely at the most inappropriate times, making him appear childish and immature. He is greedy and loves money more than anything else in the world, and continually finds ways to rob and swindle his people in the pursuit of wealth. However, in one of his rages Prince John declared that he would give all his gold if he could 'just get [his] hands on [Robin Hood]'.

Robin Hood
After tricking King Richard into partaking in a crusade beyond England, Prince John becomes the acting monarch of England and quickly asserts his authority over the kingdom. Surrounded by a very large army of henchmen, he easily robs the people of England of all they have, causing misery and despair among the population. He was know for his harsh and unjust taxes, and would gladly tax the people continually until they didn't have a scrap of silver or gold left. He was not above imprisoning his people if they failed to pay their taxes even after they gave up everything they had. By the time of the film, he had set his sights on the wealthy village of Nottingham, and proceeded to assert his rule over the city.

Unfortunately for Prince John, his scheming ways caught the attention of famed robber Robin Hood who, alongside his faithful companion Little John, robbed the rich to give to the poor. During his journey to Nottingham, Prince John ran across two fortune tellers (Actually Robin Hood and Prince John in clever disguises) and eagerly accepted their offer to tell him his fortunes (Despite Sir Hiss warning him of the possible danger). As Robin Hood distracted him by complimenting his more regal features, he and Little John robbed Prince John's caravan of the gold they had been carrying, and escaped into Sherwood Forest right under the noses of the fooled guards. Robin Hood added further insult to the injury by making off with John's royal robe, leaving him in nothing but long underwear. John gave chase, but fell out of his carriage (Little John made off with the golden hubcaps on the wheels). Utterly humiliated, John swore revenge on Robin Hood, labeling him a wanted man in Nottingham.

Upon arriving in Nottingham, Prince John decreed a series of harsh taxes on the villagers, driving them out of their homes and leaving them starving. Those unable to pay were sent to the stocks. Aiding John in his efforts was the cruel Sheriff of Nottingham, who had no shame in robbing the people on behalf of the prince. During John's rule, Robin Hood, Little John, and Friar Tuck of the local Church did everything they could to keep hope alive in the town, secretly distributing money among the starving population. The people viewed Robin Hood as a hero, so he was never turned in for his crimes against the prince.

Prince John also set up his residence in his mother's castle in Nottingham where Maid Marian, Robin's former love still resided. Maid Marian had no love for the prince and desperately wished to see Robin again, while at the same time fearing that he had forgotten all about her.

Prince John eventually set up a trap for Robin Hood by hosting an archery tournament, and offering up a kiss from Maid Marian as the winning prize. Unable to resist this opportunity to see his lost love again, Robin eagerly enrolled in the tournament, disguised as a stork while Little John disguised himself as a duke. Although falling for Little John's disguise, the prince expected Robin to be in disguise, and took note of the stork's superior archery skills. When Robin won the tournament as John had planned, he unmasked his enemy in front of the crowd and had him arrested and sentenced to death. Maid Marian pleaded him to show mercy, but her pleas fell on deaf ears, even after Robin proclaimed his undying love for Maid Marian. John labeled Robin a traitor to the crown, but was openly insulted by Robin, who shouted, "Long Live King Richard!" Outraged, John ordered Robin to be executed, but was forced to let Robin go when Little John held him hostage from behind with a knife. The Sheriff discovered this and when Little John got distracted, John ordered his minions to do away with Robin. In the fight that followed, Robin and his friends defeated John's minions and destroyed the tournament grounds, forcing John to cower behind a barrel of ale. Robin and his allies then fled into Sherwood Forest, much to the embarrassed prince's outrage.

In the days that followed, John was further insulted to learn that the villagers were mocking him with the song "Prince John, Phony King of England". Pushed to the end of his rope, he placed even harsher taxes on the people, and arrested dozens of helpless villagers who were unable to pay. The town was driven into poverty and everybody was losing hope. Although John now had all the money left in the village, he still wasn't satisfied, and longed to kill Robin Hood. He once again came up with a plan to lure out his adversary when he learned Friar Tuck had been arrested. John sentenced Friar Tuck to the gallows in an attempt to lure out Robin, hoping to finally do away with him. Although Robin caught on to this plan, he and Little John agreed to trigger a jailbreak to save the Friar's life.

That night, Robin and Little John broke into the castle. Little John proceeded to free Friar Tuck and all of the prisoners. Meanwhile, Robin sneaked past the guards and found the prince sleeping in his royal quarters. Keeping quiet, he recovered all the gold in the room and gave it back to the overjoyed prisoners, who prepared to make off with what was rightfully theirs. Unfortunately, Sir Hiss awoke to find Robin escaping, and the prince also woke up to the scene. He ordered his minions to kill Robin, causing a large fight to break out within the castle. Robin and Little John defended the prisoners as they fled, and opened the gates to Sherwood Forest. Unfortunately, Robin was left behind after rescuing one of the children who nearly got left behind, and found himself pursued by John's guards and the Sheriff. The Sheriff trapped Robin in a tower by setting fire to the castle, forcing Robin to jump in the moat, where he was shot at by archers. John watched gleefully as he waited to see if Robin was dead, and was overjoyed when he did not resurface.

Unfortunately for John, Robin swam underwater back to the shore, uninjured and mocking the foolish prince. John again began whining like a child when he realized he had lost again, and proceeded to suck his thumb and chase Sir Hiss around in a fit of rage when the latter tried to criticize him for his arrogance. Eventually, King Richard returned home and found out about the terrible deeds Prince John had inflicted on the people of England. Richard immediately reclaimed his throne from his brother and repealed all of the unjust taxes John had imposed on the people, allowing Nottingham to return to happiness and prosperity. Richard also pardoned Robin Hood for his past crimes, and honored him for his efforts to help the people. Meanwhile, John was sentenced to jail along with Sir Hiss and the Sheriff of Nottingham, and now spends his days working in the royal rock pile.

House of Mouse
Prince John has made numerous appearences on House of Mouse along with other characters. He is usually seen with Sir Hiss.He has speaking role in the episodes "House of Crime" and "Pete's House of Villains". He apparently runs a stock company called "Prince John's savings and loan".

Disney Parks
Prince John is a meetable character in the Disney Parks around the world.