he named his daughter, Matilda, as his successor. Although Henry’s barons swore to
support her in 1127, they became disenchanted after Matilda married Geoffroi IV, count
of Anjou, especially after the couple demanded Normandy in 1135. Matilda retained
possession of Normandy after Henry’s death but lost the crown of England to Henry’s
nephew Stephen of Blois.
Lois Huneycutt
[See also: ANJOU; NORMANDY]
Orderic Vitalis. The Ecclesiastical History of Orderic Vitalis, ed. and trans. Marjorie Chibnall. 6
vols. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1972–80.
Hollister, C.Warren. “Courtly Culture and Courtly Style in the Anglo-Norman World.” Albion
20(1988):1–17.
——
. Monarchy, Magnates and Institutions in the Anglo-Norman World. London: Hambledon, 1986.
Poole, Austin Lane. From Domesday Book to Magna Carta: 1087–1216. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 1964.
HENRY II
(1133–1189). King of England. The son of Geoffroi IV, count of Anjou, and Matilda,
daughter of Henry I of England, Henry II ruled most of western France, yet despite the
power at his disposal faced recurrent conflicts with his lord, the king of France, and his
own family. Henry amassed his territories largely between 1150 and 1154, gaining
Normandy by grant from his father in 1150 and Anjou by inheritance on Geoffroi’s death
in 1151. A year later, Henry added the duchy of Aquitaine to his possessions when he
married its heiress, Eleanor, shortly after her marriage to Louis VII was annulled; in
1154, England came to Henry on the death of his rival, King Stephen. Louis VII of
France organized a coalition to oppose Henry’s growing power, but without success; the
two kings were reconciled by 1154. Relations between them remained cordial for half a
decade. In 1158, Louis betrothed his daughter Marguerite to Henry’s eldest son (also
Henry), and gave his blessing to Henry’s attempts to exert control over Brittany, attempts
that soon gained overlordship there for the English king.
This amicable relationship ended in 1159, when Henry asserted his wife’s claim to
Toulouse, whose count was brother-in-law to Louis. Louis stymied the attack by
defending the town in person, setting off a wider conflict, which (despite an abortive
peace made in 1160) dragged on until 1161. Henry then concentrated on tightening his
grip on his continental domain, deposing the duke of Brittany, Conan IV, in 1166 and
betrothing the duke’s daughter to his son Geoffroi. In 1167, war between Henry and
Louis broke out once more, caused mainly by Henry’s intervention in a dispute over the
county of Auvergne. Peace came in 1169, and Louis betrothed his daughter Alice to
Henry’s son Richard.
Henry’s next serious conflict was with his family as much as his lord. In 1173, Eleanor
and Henry’s three eldest sons rebelled against him in alliance with Louis; the revolt took
two years to put down. War with Louis threatened again in 1177, but the Treaty of Ivry
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