John, King of England have involved only a few of his pack-horses. Modern historians assert that by October 1216 John faced a "stalemate", "a military situation uncompromised by defeat". John's illness grew worse and by the time he reached Newark Castle he was unable to travel any farther; John died on the night of 18/19 October. Numerous – probably fictitious – accounts circulated soon after his death that he had been killed by poisoned ale, poisoned plums or a "surfeit of peaches". His body was escorted south by a company of mercenaries and he was buried in Worcester Cathedral in front of the altar
Hubert de Burgh, 1st Earl of Kent which his brother Geoffrey de Burgh, Bishop of Ely, was a witness. De Burgh is also listed as the person who would act on the king's behalf if the king were out of the country. Soon after the issuing of the Magna Carta, de Burgh was officially declared Chief Justiciar of England. During the First Barons' War of 1215-1217, de Burgh served John as sheriff of Kent and Surrey, as well as castellan of Canterbury and Dover. De Burgh defended Dover Castle during a siege that lasted until John died in October, 1216, and the infant King Henry III (1216-1272)