Henry II was born in 1133 in Le Mans, France to Geoffrey Plantagenet and Matilda. He was well educated as a child. In 1152, he married Eleanor of Aquitaine, greatly increasing his wealth and lands. Henry became embroiled in a civil war with his mother Matilda against King Stephen. He was crowned king of England in 1154 after the death of Stephen. As king, Henry established common law and improved the financial system. However, tensions grew with Thomas Becket and his sons, leading to rebellions against Henry before his death in 1189.

1. By Meredith Gummerson

2. Birth and Early Years

 Date: March 5, 1133
 Place: Le Mans, France
 Parents:
 Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou
 Matilda (the daughter of Henry I and
granddaughter of William the Conqueror)
 Henry was well-educated by various
scholars throughout the years in notable
schools and by renowned tutors in both
France and England. Geoffrey

3. Civil War: Stephen and Matilda

 Stephen was the nephew of Henry I’s
daughter Matilda, Henry II’s mother.
She was named heir by Henry I, and
many nobles swore to make sure she
received the throne upon his death.
However, Stephen took the throne in
December, 1135 with the support of the
nobles, who desired a weak leader.
Matilda invaded in 1139 and civil war
The wife of Stephen, pleading for mercy
ensued. at the feet of Matilda, Henry’s mother

4. Marriage and Inheritance

 Early 1151, Henry’s father
died, leaving him his lands and title.
 In May, 1152, Henry wed Eleanor of
Aquitaine, the ex-wife of Louis VII of
France who was 11 years his senior.
This doubled the amount of land he owned
and dramatically increased his wealth.
While the marriage was not a happy
one, they did have eight children.
Eleanor

5. Civil War: Stephen and Matilda
(Continued)

 In 1942, Henry II came to England and
left a year later. It was during this time
that his father captured Normandy. In
1947 and 1949, Henry attempted to help
with his mother’s efforts, but failed. In
1153, the Treaty of Wallingford was drawn
out which stated that Henry II would
receive the crown after Stephen’s death,
which took placed only a year later in
1154.
 In 1154, he was crowned at Westminster
Abbey as the King of England. Henry II’s Coronation

6. Thomas Becket

 In 1154, Thomas Becket was appointed the
Chancellor of England and became a friend of
Henry II’s.
 In 1162, Henry made Beckett the Archbishop of
Canterbury in order to give himself more control
over the Church courts.
 In 1163, Thomas Becket and Henry had a falling
out over church law, and Becket was exiled to
France.
 6 years later, he came back, but after attempting
to have an archbishop excommunicated, and Henry
stated that he wished the man to be killed, which
he was in his own cathedral by knights. Thomas
Becket was canonized by the Pope in 1173 and
Henry II was whipped monks as penance. The Killing of Thomas Beckett

7. The Children of Henry II


8. Family Rebellion

 In 1173, Henry II’s wife encouraged her sons to stage the Revolt of 1173-74.
Earlier, Henry II had had his son Henry (the Young King) crowned in order to ensure
his ascension to the throne; however, the boy felt he had no real power so he rebelled
with the help of Louis VII . Later in the year, his mother was arrested and the rebellion
ended soon after with a treaty stating that Henry the Young King would inherit half of
his father’s later that year and the rest would be divided between his two
brothers, Richard I and John.

9. Family Rebellion (Continued)

 Henry the Young King and Richard also fought
over territory, leading to Richard allying with
his father against Henry, causing the latter to
destroy much of Aquitaine.
 Henry II was forced to redistribute his land
after the death of the Henry the Young King in
1183 and Richard I became the next in line for
the throne. Geoffrey, another son of Henry II,
died in 1186. In that same year, Richard I told
his father he wished to marry Princess Alice of
France, and he refused, causing a rift between
them that resulted in Richard swearing
allegiance to Phillip Augustus, the king of
France and didn’t end until 15 years later when Richard and Phillip
John also joined Richard.

10. Death

 On July 4, 1189, Richard and Phillip
Augustus defeated Henry, forcing him to
sign of treaty that named Richard as heir to
the throne and approved his marriage to
Alice, forced Henry to pay homage to
Phillip, and gave castles to Phillip.
 Henry II died on July 6, 1189 of blood
poisoning and was buried in Fontevraud
Abbey. His last words were supposedly
“”Shame, shame on a conquered King.”
 He was succeeded by Richard I, and later
by John. Henry II’s Final Campaign

11. Accomplishments

 Gained Scotland and was paid homage by its
king, William.
 First of the Plantagenet Kings
 He set the basis for English Common Law.
 Improved the Exchequer (money/tax
portion of government) by keeping written
financial accounts and issuing receipts and
making nobles give money, not military
service to the monarchy
 Implemented trial by jury because he
considered church courts inadequate.
The Lands of Henry II

12. Bibliography


http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/timeline-of-king-henry-ii.htm
 http://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/plantagenet.htm
 http://www.englishmonarchs.co.uk/normans_4.htm
 http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/thomas_becket.htm
 http://www.stewy6.com/henry2.htm
 http://www.h2g2.com/approved_entry/A2654741
 http://www.britannia.com/history/monarchs/mon26.html
 http://www.art-prints-on-demand.com/kunst/hermann_wislicenus/heinrichiikroenung1014.jpg
 http://www.nndb.com/people/838/000086580/becket-3-sized.jpg
 http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_BYJ31rwo_x8/R31qea9G6WI/AAAAAAAAAEU/hKWNxW9Qz3c/s400/geoffrey+plantagenet.jpg
 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/47/The_Children_of_Henry_II.jpg
 http://womenshistory.about.com/od/empressmatilda/ss/Empress-Matilda-With-Matilda-Of-Boulogne.htm
 http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_FQyiPMYiL4s/TVEgxPhDCeI/AAAAAAAAAMA/imulzmej-vM/s1600/Richard%2Band%2BPhilip%2Bsmall.jpg
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Henry_II_Final_Campaign.png
 http://0.tqn.com/d/atheism/1/0/m/I/EnglandUnderHenryII-l.jpg
 http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/jo/history/henry2.jpg