Henry II
Portrait by François Clouet
King of France
Reign31 March 1547 – 10 July 1559
Coronation25 July 1547
PredecessorFrancis I
SuccessorFrancis II
Born31 March 1519
Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye
Died10 July 1559(1559-07-10) (aged 40)
Place des Vosges
Burial13 August 1559
Saint Denis Basilica
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1533)​
Issue
among others...
HouseValois-Angoulême
FatherFrancis I of France
MotherClaude, Duchess of Brittany
ReligionRoman Catholicism

Henry II (French: Henri II; 31 March 1519 – 10 July 1559) was King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I, he became Dauphin of France upon the death of his elder brother Francis III, Duke of Brittany, in 1536. Henry was the tenth king from the House of Valois, the third from the Valois-Orléans branch, and the second from the Valois-Orléans-Angoulême branch.

As a child, Henry and his elder brother spent over four years in captivity in Spain as hostages in exchange for their father. Henry pursued his father's policies in matter of arts, wars and religion. He persevered in the Italian Wars against the House of Habsburg and tried to suppress the Protestant Reformation, even as the Huguenot numbers were increasing drastically in France during his reign.

The Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis (1559), which put an end to the Italian Wars, had mixed results: France renounced its claims to territories in Italy, but gained certain other territories, including the Pale of Calais and the Three Bishoprics. France failed to change the balance of power in Europe, as Spain remained the sole dominant power, but it did benefit from the division of the holdings of its ruler, Charles V, and from the weakening of the Holy Roman Empire, which Charles also ruled.

Henry suffered an untimely death in a jousting tournament held to celebrate the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis at the conclusion of the Eighth Italian War. The king's surgeon, Ambroise Paré, was unable to cure the infected wound inflicted by Gabriel de Montgomery, the captain of his Scottish Guard. He was succeeded in turn by three of his sons, whose ineffective reigns helped to spark the French Wars of Religion between Protestants and Catholics.

Early years

Henry as a child

Henry was born in the royal Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris, the son of King Francis I and Claude, Duchess of Brittany (daughter of Louis XII of France and Anne, Duchess of Brittany, and a second cousin of her husband).

His father was captured at the Battle of Pavia in 1525 by the forces of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, and held prisoner in Spain.[1] To obtain his release, it was agreed that Henry and his older brother be sent to Spain in his place.[2] They remained in captivity for over four years.[3]

Henry married Catherine de' Medici, a member of the ruling family of Florence, on 28 October 1533, when they were both fourteen years old. At this time, his elder brother was alive and there was little prospect of Henry coming to the throne. The following year, he became romantically involved with a thirty-five-year-old widow, Diane de Poitiers. Henry and Diane had always been very close: the young lady had fondly embraced Henry on the day he, as a 7-year-old child, set off to captivity in Spain, and the bond had been renewed after his return to France.[4] In a tournament to honor his father's new bride, Eleanor, Henry and his older brother were dressed as chevaliers, in which Henry wore Diane's colors.[4]

Extremely confident, mature and intelligent, Diane left Catherine powerless to intervene.[5] She did, however, insist that Henry sleep with Catherine in order to produce heirs to the throne.[5]

When his elder brother Francis, the Dauphin and Duke of Brittany, died in 1536 after a game of tennis, Henry became heir apparent to the throne. He succeeded his father on his 28th birthday and was crowned King of France on 25 July 1547 at Reims Cathedral.[6]

Reign

Attitude towards Protestants

Henry's reign was marked by wars with Austria and the persecution of Protestants, mainly Calvinists known as Huguenots. Henry II severely punished them, particularly the ministers, for example by burning at the stake or cutting off their tongues for uttering heresies.

Henry II was made a Knight of the Garter, April 1515.[7]

The Edict of Châteaubriant (27 June 1551) called upon the civil and ecclesiastical courts to detect and punish all heretics and placed severe restrictions on Huguenots, including the loss of one-third of their property to informers, and confiscations. The Edict also strictly regulated publications by prohibiting the sale, importation or printing of any unapproved book. It was during the reign of Henry II that Huguenot attempts at establishing a colony in Brazil were made, with the short-lived formation of France Antarctique.[8]

Italian War of 1551–1559

Entrance of Henri II in Metz in 1552, after the signature of the Treaty of Chambord

The Eighth Italian War of 1551–1559, sometimes known as the Habsburg–Valois War, began when Henry declared war against Holy Roman Emperor Charles V with the intent of recapturing Italy and ensuring French, rather than Habsburg, domination of European affairs. Persecution of Protestants at home did not prevent Henry II from becoming allied with German Protestant princes at the Treaty of Chambord in 1552. Simultaneously, the continuation of his father's Franco-Ottoman alliance allowed Henry II to push for French conquests towards the Rhine while a Franco-Ottoman fleet defended southern France.[9] An early offensive into Lorraine was successful. Henry captured the three episcopal cities of Metz, Toul, and Verdun, and secured them by defeating the Habsburg army at the Battle of Renty in 1554.[10] However the attempted French invasion of Tuscany in 1553 was defeated at the Battle of Marciano.

Engraving of Henry II

After the abdication of Charles V in 1556, the Habsburg empire was split between Philip II of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I. The focus of Henry's conflict with the Habsburgs shifted to Flanders, where Phillip, in conjunction with Emmanuel Philibert of Savoy, defeated the French at the Battle of St. Quentin (1557). England's entry into the war later that year led to the French capture of Calais, and French armies plundered Spanish possessions in the Low Countries. Henry was nonetheless forced to accept the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis, in which he renounced any further claims to territories in Italy.[11]

The Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis was signed between Henry and Elizabeth I of England on 2 April[12] and between Henry and Philip II of Spain on 3 April 1559 at Le Cateau-Cambrésis. Under its terms, France restored Piedmont and Savoy to the Duke of Savoy, but retained Saluzzo, Calais, and the bishoprics of Metz, Toul, and Verdun. Spain retained Franche-Comté. Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy, married Margaret of France, Duchess of Berry, the sister of Henry II, and Philip II of Spain married Henry's daughter Elizabeth of Valois.[13]

Henry raised the young Mary, Queen of Scots, at his court, hoping to use her ultimately to establish a dynastic claim to Scotland. On 24 April 1558, Henry's fourteen-year-old son Francis was married to Mary in a union intended to give the future king of France not only the throne of Scotland, but also a claim to the throne of England. Henry had Mary sign secret documents, illegal in Scottish law, that would ensure Valois rule in Scotland even if she died without an heir.[14] Mary's claim to the English throne quickly became an issue when Mary I of England died later in 1558.

Patent innovation

Henry II

Henry II introduced the concept of publishing the description of an invention in the form of a patent. The idea was to require an inventor to disclose his invention in exchange for monopoly rights to the patent. The description is called a patent "specification". The first patent specification was submitted by the inventor Abel Foullon for "Usaige & Description de l'holmetre" (a type of rangefinder). Publication was delayed until after the patent expired in 1561.[15]

Death

The fatal tournament between Henry II and Montgomery (Lord of "Lorges")

Henry II was an avid hunter and a participant in jousts and tournaments. On 30 June 1559, a tournament was held near Place des Vosges to celebrate the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis with his longtime enemies, the Habsburgs of Austria, and to celebrate the marriage of his daughter Elisabeth of Valois to King Philip II of Spain. During a jousting match, King Henry, wearing the colors of his mistress Diane de Poitiers,[16] was wounded in the eye by a fragment of the splintered lance of Gabriel Montgomery, captain of the King's Scottish Guard.[17] Despite the efforts of royal surgeon Ambroise Paré, the king died of septicemia on 10 July 1559.[18] He was buried in a cadaver tomb in Saint Denis Basilica. Henry's death played a significant role in the decline of jousting as a sport, particularly in France.[19]

Tombs of Henry II of France and his wife Catherine de' Medici in Basilica of St Denis, Paris

As Henry lay dying, Queen Catherine limited access to his bedside and denied his mistress Diane de Poitiers permission to see him, even though he repeatedly asked for her. Following his death, Catherine sent Diane into exile, where she lived in comfort on her own properties until her death.[16]

It was the practice to enclose the heart of the king in an urn. The Monument to the Heart of Henry II is in the collection of the Louvre, but was originally in the Chapel of Orleans beneath a pyramid. The original bronze urn holding the king's heart was destroyed during the French Revolution and a replica was made in the 19th century. The marble sculpture of the Three Graces holding the urn, executed from a single piece of marble by Germain Pilon, the sculptor to Catherine de' Medici, survives.[20]

Henry was succeeded by his sickly fifteen-year-old son, Francis II. Francis was married to sixteen-year-old Mary, Queen of Scots, who had been his childhood friend and fiancée since her arrival at the French court when she was five. Francis II died 18 months later in 1560, and Mary returned to Scotland the following summer. Francis II was succeeded by his ten-year-old brother Charles IX. His mother, Catherine de Medici, acted as Regent.

Ancestors and descendants

Catherine de' Medici bore 10 of Henry's children:[32] (See Children of Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici)

Francis II, King of France, born 19 January 1544, married Mary Stuart Queen of Scots
Elizabeth of France, born 2 April 1545, married Philip II, King of Spain.
Claude of France, born 12 November 1547, married Charles III, Duke of Lorraine.
Louis, Duke of Orléans, born 3 February 1549, died 24 October 1550.
Charles IX, King of France, born 27 June 1550.
Henry III, King of France, born 19 September 1551, also briefly King of Poland.
Margaret of France, born 14 May 1553, married Henry IV, King of France.
Hercules, Duke of Anjou, born 18 March 1555, later known as Francis, Duke of Alençon and Anjou.
Victoria of France, born 24 June 1556, died 17 August 1556.
Joan of France, stillborn 24 June 1556.

Henry II also had three illegitimate children:

Diane, duchesse d'Angoulême (1538–1619). At the age of fourteen, the younger Diane married Orazio Farnese, Duke of Castro,[34] who died in battle in 1553. Her second marriage was to François, Duke of Montmorency.[35]
Henri d'Angoulême (1551 – June 1586).[37] He was legitimized and became governor of Provence.
Henri de Saint-Rémy (1557–1621).[38] He was given the title of Count of Saint-Rémy. One of his last descendants was Jeanne de Valois-Saint-Rémy, Countess de la Motte, famous for her role in the Affair of the Diamond Necklace at the court of Louis XVI.

Prophecy

Royal styles of
King Henry II
Reference styleHis Most Christian Majesty
Spoken styleYour Most Christian Majesty
Alternative styleMonsieur le Roi

Nostradamus (1503–1566), a French apothecary and astrological writer known for his prophecies, is said by most commentators to have become famous when one of his quatrains was construed as a prediction of the death of King Henry II:

CI, Q 35 The young lion shall overcome the older one,
on the field of combat in single battle,
He shall pierce his eyes in a golden cage,
Two forces one, then he shall die a cruel death.

But, in fact, the link was first proposed in print only in 1614,[39] fifty-five years after the event and forty-eight after Nostradamus' death; thus it qualifies as a postdiction, or vaticinium ex eventu. The Italian astrologer Luca Gaurico, a contemporary of Nostradamus, also later claimed to have foretold Henry II's death, though in fact he had predicted "a most happy and green old age" for the king.[40]

Portrayals

Henri or Henry has had three notable portrayals on the screen. He was played by a young Roger Moore in the 1956 film Diane, opposite Lana Turner in the title role and Marisa Pavan as Catherine de Medici.[41] In the 1998 film Ever After, the Prince Charming figure who is portrayed by Dougray Scott, shares his name with the historical monarch.[42] In the 2013 CW series Reign he is played by Alan van Sprang.[43]

Notes

  1. ^ Tazón 2003, p. 16.
  2. ^ Knecht 1984, p. 189.
  3. ^ Watkins 2009, pp. 79–80.
  4. ^ a b Wellman 2013, p. 197.
  5. ^ a b Wellman 2013, p. 200.
  6. ^ Thevet 2010, pp. 24–25.
  7. ^ Loach 2014, p. 107.
  8. ^ Felix & Juall 2016, p. 2.
  9. ^ Inalcik 1995, p. 328.
  10. ^ Thevet 2010, p. 92.
  11. ^ Konnert 2006, p. 97.
  12. ^ Nolan 2006, p. 127.
  13. ^ Knecht 2000, p. 1.
  14. ^ Guy 2012, p. 91.
  15. ^ Frumkin 1945, p. 143.
  16. ^ a b Wellman 2013, p. 213.
  17. ^ Baumgartner 1988, p. 250.
  18. ^ Baumgartner 1988, p. 252.
  19. ^ Barber, Richard; Barker, Juliet (1 January 1989). Tournaments: Jousts, Chivalry and Pageants in the Middle Ages. Boydell. pp. 134, 139. ISBN 978-0-85115-470-1.
  20. ^ Goldberg 1966, p. 206-218.
  21. ^ a b Knecht 1984, pp. 1–2.
  22. ^ a b Anselme 1726, p. 131.
  23. ^ a b c d e Adams, Tracy (2010). The Life and Afterlife of Isabeau of Bavaria. Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 255.
  24. ^ a b c Gicquel, Yvonig [in French] (1986). Alain IX de Rohan, 1382-1462: un grand seigneur de l'âge d'or de la Bretagne (in French). Éditions Jean Picollec. p. 480. ISBN 9782864770718. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  25. ^ a b Jackson-Laufer, Guida Myrl (1999). Women Rulers Throughout the Ages: An Illustrated Guide. ABC-CLIO. p. 231.
  26. ^ a b c d Wilson, Katharina M. (1991). An Encyclopedia of Continental Women Writers. Taylor & Francis. p. 258. ISBN 9780824085476. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  27. ^ a b Robin, Diana Maury; Larsen, Anne R.; Levin, Carole (2007). Encyclopedia of Women in the Renaissance: Italy, France, and England. ABC-CLIO. p. 20. ISBN 978-1851097722.
  28. ^ a b Palluel-Guillard, André. "La Maison de Savoie" (in French). Conseil Savoie Mont Blanc. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  29. ^ a b Leguai, André (2005). "Agnès de Bourgogne, duchesse de Bourbon (1405?-1476)". Les ducs de Bourbon, le Bourbonnais et le royaume de France à la fin du Moyen Age [The dukes of Bourbon, the Bourbonnais and the kingdom of France at the end of the Middle Ages] (in French). Yzeure: Société bourbonnaise des études locales. pp. 145–160.
  30. ^ a b Anselme 1726, p. 207.
  31. ^ a b Desbois, François Alexandre Aubert de la Chenaye (1773). Dictionnaire de la noblesse (in French). Vol. 6 (2nd ed.). p. 452. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  32. ^ Anselme 1726, pp. 134–136.
  33. ^ Merrill 1935, p. 133.
  34. ^ Baumgartner 1988, p. 70.
  35. ^ Lanza 2007, p. 29.
  36. ^ Sealy 1981, p. 206.
  37. ^ Wellman 2013, p. 212.
  38. ^ Knecht 2014, p. 38.
  39. ^ Nostradamus 1614.
  40. ^ Thorndike 1941, p. 101.
  41. ^ Diane at the TCM Movie Database
  42. ^ Ever After at AllMovie
  43. ^ Wilford, Denette (16 October 2013). "'Reign' Cast Gets Down And Dirty With Details on Royal TV Show". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 7 February 2014.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Henry II of France.
Henry II of France House of Valois, Orléans-Angoulême branchCadet branch of the Capetian dynastyBorn: 31 March 1519 Died: 10 July 1559 Regnal titles Preceded byFrancis I King of France 31 March 1547 – 10 July 1559 Succeeded byFrancis II French nobility VacantTitle last held byLouis II Duke of Orléans 1519–1536 Succeeded byCharles II Preceded byFrancis III Duke of Brittany 10 August 1536 – 31 March 1547 Merged in crown French royalty Preceded byFrancis Dauphin of France 10 August 1536 – 31 March 1547 Succeeded byFrancis
Early monarchs
c. 578–907
Viking occupation
c. 907–938
  • Hroflr
  • Rognvaldr
  • Incon
House of Nantes
938–958
House of Rennes
958–1072
House of Cornouaille
1072–1156
House of Penthièvre
1156–1196
House of Plantagenet
1196–1203
House of Thouars
1203–1221
House of Dreux
1221–1341
War of the Breton Succession
1341–1365
Montfort of Brittany
1365–1514
House of Valois
1514–1547
Courtesy title
1547–present
Monarchs of France
Merovingians (509–751)
Carolingians,
Robertians and Bosonids (751–987)
House of Capet (987–1328)
House of Valois (1328–1589)
House of Lancaster (1422–1453)
House of Bourbon (1589–1792)
House of Bonaparte (1804–1814; 1815)
House of Bourbon (1814–1815; 1815–1830)
House of Orléans (1830–1848)
House of Bonaparte (1852–1870)
Debatable or disputed rulers are in italics.
International
National
Artists
People
Other
Categories