Henry II, the son of Geoffrey Plantagenet and Henry I''s daughter Matilda,was the first in a long line of 14 Plantagenet kings, stretching fromHenry II''s accession through to Richard III''s death in 1485. Within thatline, however, four distinct Royal Houses can be identified: Angevin,Plantagenet, Lancaster and York.
The first Angevin King, Henry II, began the period as arguably the mostpowerful monarch in Europe, with lands stretching from the Scottishborders to the Pyrenees. In addition, Ireland was added to hisinheritance, a mission entrusted to him by Pope Adrian IV (the onlyEnglish Pope). A new administrative zeal was evident at the beginningof the period and an efficient system of government was formulated. Thejustice system developed. However there were quarrels with the Church,which became more powerful following the murder of Thomas à Becket.
As with many of his predecessors, Henry II spent much of his time awayfrom England fighting abroad. This was taken to an extreme by his sonRichard, who spent only 10 months of a ten-year reign in the country dueto his involvement in the crusades. The last of the Angevin kings wasJohn, whom history has judged harshly. By 1205, six years into his reign,only a fragment of the vast Angevin empire acquired by Henry II remained.John quarrelled with the Pope over the appointment of the Archbishop ofCanterbury, eventually surrendering. He was also forced to sign theMagna Carta in 1215, which restated the rights of the church, the baronsand all in the land. John died in ignominy, having broken the contract,leading the nobles to summon aid from France and creating a precariousposition for his Plantagenet heir, Henry III. [Royal]
Henry II ruled over an empire which stretched from the Scottish border tothe Pyrenees.One of the strongest, most energetic and imaginativerulers, Henry was the inheritor of three dynasties who had acquiredAquitaine by marriage; his charters listed them: ''King of the English,Duke of the Normans and Aquitanians and Count of the Angevins''. TheKing spent only 13 years of his reign in England; the other 21 years werespent on the continent in his territories in what is now France.Henry''s rapid movements in carrying out his dynastic responsibilitiesastonished the French king, who noted ''now in England, now in Normandy,he must fly rather than travel by horse or ship''.
By 1158, Henry had restored to the Crown some of the lands and royalpower lost by Stephen; Malcom IV of Scotland was compelled to return thenorthern counties. Locally chosen sheriffs were changed into royallyappointed agents charged with enforcing the law and collecting taxes inthe counties. Personally interested in government and law, Henry madeuse of juries and re-introduced the sending of justices (judges) onregular tours of the country to try cases for the Crown. His legalreforms have led him to be seen as the founder of English Common Law.
Henry''s disagreements with the Archbishop of Canterbury (the king''sformer chief adviser), Thomas à Becket, over Church-State relations endedin Becket''s murder in 1170 and a papal interdict on England. Familydisputes over territorial ambitions almost wrecked the king''sachievements. Henry died in France in 1189, at war with his son Richard,who had joined forces with King Philip of France to attack Normandy.[Royal]
GIVEN NAMES: Also shown as Henry II of England
The first Angevin King, Henry II, began the period as arguably the mostpowerful monarch in Europe, with lands stretching from the Scottishborders to the Pyrenees. In addition, Ireland was added to hisinheritance, a mission entrusted to him by Pope Adrian IV (the onlyEnglish Pope). A new administrative zeal was evident at the beginningof the period and an efficient system of government was formulated. Thejustice system developed. However there were quarrels with the Church,which became more powerful following the murder of Thomas à Becket.
As with many of his predecessors, Henry II spent much of his time awayfrom England fighting abroad. This was taken to an extreme by his sonRichard, who spent only 10 months of a ten-year reign in the country dueto his involvement in the crusades. The last of the Angevin kings wasJohn, whom history has judged harshly. By 1205, six years into his reign,only a fragment of the vast Angevin empire acquired by Henry II remained.John quarrelled with the Pope over the appointment of the Archbishop ofCanterbury, eventually surrendering. He was also forced to sign theMagna Carta in 1215, which restated the rights of the church, the baronsand all in the land. John died in ignominy, having broken the contract,leading the nobles to summon aid from France and creating a precariousposition for his Plantagenet heir, Henry III. [Royal]
Henry II ruled over an empire which stretched from the Scottish border tothe Pyrenees.One of the strongest, most energetic and imaginativerulers, Henry was the inheritor of three dynasties who had acquiredAquitaine by marriage; his charters listed them: ''King of the English,Duke of the Normans and Aquitanians and Count of the Angevins''. TheKing spent only 13 years of his reign in England; the other 21 years werespent on the continent in his territories in what is now France.Henry''s rapid movements in carrying out his dynastic responsibilitiesastonished the French king, who noted ''now in England, now in Normandy,he must fly rather than travel by horse or ship''.
By 1158, Henry had restored to the Crown some of the lands and royalpower lost by Stephen; Malcom IV of Scotland was compelled to return thenorthern counties. Locally chosen sheriffs were changed into royallyappointed agents charged with enforcing the law and collecting taxes inthe counties. Personally interested in government and law, Henry madeuse of juries and re-introduced the sending of justices (judges) onregular tours of the country to try cases for the Crown. His legalreforms have led him to be seen as the founder of English Common Law.
Henry''s disagreements with the Archbishop of Canterbury (the king''sformer chief adviser), Thomas à Becket, over Church-State relations endedin Becket''s murder in 1170 and a papal interdict on England. Familydisputes over territorial ambitions almost wrecked the king''sachievements. Henry died in France in 1189, at war with his son Richard,who had joined forces with King Philip of France to attack Normandy.[Royal]
GIVEN NAMES: Also shown as Henry II of England
- 5 MAR 1133 - Birth - ; Le Mans, France
- 6 JUL 1189 - Death - ; Chinon, France
- From 1154 to 1189 - Reign - King of the English
- 1215 - Magna Carta -
- Nobility Title - King of the English
- Nobility Title - Duke of the Normans and Aquitanians
- Nobility Title - Count of the Angevins
PARENT (M) Geoffrey Plantagenet | |||
Birth | |||
Death | |||
Marriage | unknown mistress | to ? | |
Marriage | to Matilda of England | ||
Father | Fulk V of Anjou | ||
Mother | Ermengarde of Maine | ||
PARENT (F) Matilda of England | |||
Birth | |||
Death | |||
Marriage | to Henry V | ||
Marriage | to Geoffrey Plantagenet | ||
Father | Henry I of England | ||
Mother | Eadgith (or Matilda) | ||
CHILDREN | |||
M | Henry II of England | ||
Birth | 5 MAR 1133 | Le Mans, France | |
Death | 6 JUL 1189 | Chinon, France | |
Marriage | to Ida de Tosny | ||
Marriage | 18 MAY 1152 | to Eleanor of Aquitaine at Poitiers, France |
PARENT (M) Henry II of England | |||
Birth | 5 MAR 1133 | Le Mans, France | |
Death | 6 JUL 1189 | Chinon, France | |
Marriage | to Ida de Tosny | ||
Marriage | 18 MAY 1152 | to Eleanor of Aquitaine at Poitiers, France | |
Father | Geoffrey Plantagenet | ||
Mother | Matilda of England | ||
PARENT (F) Ida de Tosny | |||
Birth | |||
Death | |||
Marriage | to Roger Bigod, 2nd Earl of Norfolk | ||
Marriage | to Henry II of England | ||
Father | Ralph V de Tosny | ||
Mother | Margaret de Beaumont | ||
CHILDREN |
PARENT (M) Henry II of England | |||
Birth | 5 MAR 1133 | Le Mans, France | |
Death | 6 JUL 1189 | Chinon, France | |
Marriage | to Ida de Tosny | ||
Marriage | 18 MAY 1152 | to Eleanor of Aquitaine at Poitiers, France | |
Father | Geoffrey Plantagenet | ||
Mother | Matilda of England | ||
PARENT (F) Eleanor of Aquitaine | |||
Birth | |||
Death | |||
Marriage | 18 MAY 1152 | to Henry II of England at Poitiers, France | |
Father | William X, Duke of Aquitaine | ||
Mother | Aenor de Châtellerault | ||
CHILDREN | |||
M | John of England | ||
Birth | 24 DEC 1167 | Beaumont Palace, Oxford, England | |
Death | 19 OCT 1216 | Newark Castle, Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire, England | |
Marriage | to Clemence | ||
Marriage | 24 AUG 1200 | to Isabella of Angoulême | |
Marriage | 29 AUG 1189 | to Isabel of Gloucester at Marlborough Castle, Wiltshire, England | |
Marriage | mistress | to Ela de Warenne | |
F | Eleanor of England | ||
Birth | |||
Death | |||
Marriage | BEF 17 SEP 1177 | to Alfonso VIII of Castile at Burgos |
[S240] | Official Web Site of the British Monarchy, The |
1 Henry II of England b: 5 MAR 1133 d: 6 JUL 1189
2 John of England b: 24 DEC 1167 d: 19 OCT 1216
+ Clemence
+ Isabella of Angoulême b: 1188 d: 31 MAY 1246
3 Henry III b: 1 OCT 1207 d: 16 NOV 1272
4 Edward I b: 17 JUN 1239 d: 7 JUL 1307
+ Eleanor of Castile b: ABT 1245 d: 1290
5 Edward II b: 25 APR 1284 d: 21 SEP 1327
6 Edward III b: 13 NOV 1312 d: 21 JUN 1377
7 John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster b: 6 MAR 1340 d: 3 FEB 1399
+ Blanche
8 Henry Beaufort b: ABT 1375 d: 11 APR 1447
+ ?
+ ?
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3 Richard FitzRoy b: ABT 1190 d: JUN 1246
4 Isabel de Dover d: 7/07 JUL 1276/1277
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5 Thomas de Berkeley, 1st Baron Berkeley b: 1245 d: 23 JUL 1321
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8 Thomas de Berkeley b: ABT 1334 d: BEF 29 SEP 1361
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9 Maurice Berkeley b: 1 JUN 1358 d: 2 OCT 1400
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10 Maurice Berkeley b: 2/02 FEB 1400/1401 d: 26 NOV 1464
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9 John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster b: 6 MAR 1340 d: 3 FEB 1399
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9 John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster b: 6 MAR 1340 d: 3 FEB 1399
+ Blanche
10 Henry Beaufort b: ABT 1375 d: 11 APR 1447
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8 Edward III b: 13 NOV 1312 d: 21 JUN 1377
9 John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster b: 6 MAR 1340 d: 3 FEB 1399
+ Blanche
10 Henry Beaufort b: ABT 1375 d: 11 APR 1447
+ Marie of Brabant, Queen of France b: 13 MAY 1254 d: 12 JAN 1321
+ Edward I b: 17 JUN 1239 d: 7 JUL 1307
+ Edward III b: 13 NOV 1312 d: 21 JUN 1377
8 John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster b: 6 MAR 1340 d: 3 FEB 1399
+ Blanche
9 Henry Beaufort b: ABT 1375 d: 11 APR 1447
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7 Edward III b: 13 NOV 1312 d: 21 JUN 1377
8 John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster b: 6 MAR 1340 d: 3 FEB 1399
+ Blanche
9 Henry Beaufort b: ABT 1375 d: 11 APR 1447