Henry II
Henricus II
King of England · Duke of Normandy · Duke of Aquitaine · Count of Anjou
1133 – 1189
Biography
Founder of the Plantagenet line on the English throne and architect of the Angevin Empire that stretched from the Scottish border to the Pyrenees. His marriage to Eleanor of Aquitaine yoked half of France to the English crown, and his reforms laid the foundation of English common law. His later years were consumed by rebellions led by his own sons.
Events
Two months after Eleanor's annulment from Louis VII of France, she married Henry, Duke of Normandy and Count of Anjou, in Poitiers on 18 May 1152. The match brought her vast duchy under Henry's control and, when he became king of England two years later, created the Angevin Empire — a French king's vassal who now controlled more of France than the king himself.
Also there: Eleanor of Aquitaine, Louis VII
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