The Lion in Winter (Historical Context)

Historical Context

King Henry II of England

King Henry II of England, also known as Henry Plantagenet, was born in the year 1133 in Normandy, in what is now northern France. Though he became the king of England, he spent most of his life in Normandy, and the spoken language of his royal court was French. Henry was given the title Duke of Normandy in 1150, while he was still a teenager, and he inherited the title Count of Anjou upon the death of his father in 1151.

Eleanor of Aquitaine

Eleanor of Aquitaine was born about 1122 and lived to become one of the most influential and politically powerful women of her time. When her father died, Eleanor inherited the Aquitaine region, an area in western France that was larger than the domain ruled by the French king. While still a teenager, Eleanor married the heir to the French throne, who became King Louis VII soon afterward. This marriage brought the Aquitaine under French rule and made Eleanor the queen of France.

Eleanor was married to Louis for fifteen years, during which time she gave birth to two daughters, but no sons. She exerted significant political influence over her husband's reign. A daring and adventurous woman, she also traveled with him on the Second Crusade during the late 1140s. However, Louis eventually became jealous of Eleanor's attentions to other men, and their marriage was annulled. With the end of her first marriage, Eleanor was once again the sole ruler of the Aquitaine region.

Eleanor and Henry

In 1152, just a few months after the annulment of her marriage to Louis, Eleanor of Aquitaine married Henry Plantagenet, who was eleven years younger than she. With his marriage to Eleanor, Henry acquired the title Duke of Aquitaine. A year later, Henry invaded England and was granted by treaty the status of heir to the English throne. He was crowned King Henry II of England in 1154, making him the ruler of one of the largest territories in Europe, sometimes referred to as the Angevin empire, encompassing most of the British Isles and about half of France — a region stretching from Scotland in the north to the Pyrenees mountains in the south. Henry's powers eventually extended to Ireland and Wales, as well. Eleanor was instrumental in the political administration of Henry's kingdom, and she was also an important patron of the arts, promoting the development of courtly music and poetry.

Henry and Eleanor together had eight children, some of whom died before reaching adulthood. The surviving daughters were married off to powerful dukes, counts, and princes throughout Europe. Their eldest surviving son, Henry, was named heir to the throne. In the early 1170s, Eleanor, young Henry, Geoffrey, and Richard supported a revolt against Henry and John, on the grounds that Henry was unfairly doling out parcels of land to his sons. Henry was able to put down the rebellion, and he forgave his sons, but he kept Eleanor imprisoned in a castle in England until his death.

In 1181, another rebellion was incited by a quarrel between Richard and his brother, the young Henry, over the rule of the Aquitaine region. This dispute ended, however, when young Henry died in the summer of 1183. The following year, a dispute broke out between Richard, who controlled the Aquitaine, and John, who had been granted permission by his father to take over the Aquitaine.

King Philip II of France

King Philip II of France, also known as Philip Augustus, was born in 1165 in Paris, the son of King Louis VII of France (Eleanor's first husband). Philip became king of France in 1179, at the age of fourteen, inheriting the throne from his father. In 1180, he married Isabella. Throughout the reigns of Henry II and his heirs, Philip fought to regain the French territories that had come under English rule. By the time of his death in 1223, Philip was the wealthiest and most powerful king in Europe.

King Richard I of England

Richard Plantagenet was born in 1157. After his brother Henry died, Richard was the eldest surviving son of Henry and Eleanor. As a boy, Richard's parents gave him the title Duke of Aquitaine and of Poitier. A celebrated soldier from an early age, Richard throughout his life incited rebellions against his father in efforts to win the right to inherit Henry's throne as king of England. During the late 1880s, Richard allied with King Philip II of France in a revolt against King Henry and Richard's brother John. In 1889, Henry was defeated by Philip and Richard and was forced by treaty to name Richard as the heir to his throne.

Upon Henry's death a few months later, Richard became the new king and Eleanor was released from prison. After fifteen years of imprisonment, Eleanor once again took up an active and important role in the government of the realm. When Richard left England for three years to go on the Third Crusade, Eleanor ruled in his name. During this period, John attempted a rebellion to usurp the throne from Richard, but Eleanor's forces defeated him. When Richard returned from the Crusades, he forgave John for rebelling and promised to name him as heir to the throne.

Throughout their reigns, Richard and Philip fluctuated between alliances, truces, and battles. While they fought on the same side during Richard's final rebellion against his father, they were more often fighting in opposition to one another over French territories. Richard was killed in 1199, at the age of forty-two, during a local skirmish over a hoard of gold.

King John of England

John Plantagenet, the youngest son of Eleanor and Henry, was born in 1167. After Richard I died without an heir, Eleanor was an important factor in securing the throne for John as his successor. Geoffrey, the middle son of Eleanor and Henry, had died by this time, but his son, Arthur, claimed himself as the rightful heir to the English throne, based on the fact that Geoffrey had been Henry's next eldest son after Richard. Arthur was given support from King Philip of France in fighting his uncle John over the English throne, but Arthur was captured and is believed to have been killed by John.

Soon after ascending the throne, John signed a treaty with Philip, ceding important lands to France. Like Richard and Philip, John and Philip fought many battles over French lands, occasionally ending in treaties, but ultimately resulting in Philip's recapture of most of France from the English crown. John's mother Eleanor died in 1204, at the age of about eighty-two.

John has often been described as the worst king in the history of England. However, because he was so unpopular among the landed gentry, he was eventually forced in 1215 to sign the Magna Carta (Great Charter), a document which curtailed the powers of the monarchy and became the foundation of English government. When John died the following year, his son became King Henry III of England. When Philip died in 1223, he was succeeded on the French throne by King Louis VIII.

COMPARE & CONTRAST

• 1180s: King Henry II rules over a vast region, sometimes referred to as the Angevin Empire, that encompasses most of the British Isles, Normandy, and over half of France. King Philip II of France rules over the southern and eastern portions of France not included in Henry's domain. The rulers of England and France engage in continual land disputes over the French regions held sometimes by English kings and sometimes by French kings.
  1960s: England, Scotland, and Wales constitute Great Britain, which, together with Ireland, constitute the United Kingdom. The nation of France includes all of the French regions once held by English kings. France is among the original six nations of the European Economic Community (EEC), a multinational alliance formed in 1957. In 1961, Great Britain bids for membership in the EEC, but France vetoes it. In 1967, the EEC is reorganized into the European Communities (EC).
  Today: The United Kingdom and France are among the many member nations of the European Union, a multinational economic and political alliance that developed out of the EC.
• 1180s: England is ruled by a feudal kingship, passed down from generation to generation through family inheritance or transferred from one ruler to another through war. King Henry II of England rules over most of the British Isles, and over half of France.
  1960s: The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy. Parliament consists of the monarch, the elected House of Commons, and the appointed House of Lords. The prime minister, who is the leader of the majority political party in the House of Commons, serves as head of government. The monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, serves as head of state. Citizens of the United Kingdom enjoy universal suffrage for all men and women.
  Today: The United Kingdom remains a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy with universal suffrage. Queen Elizabeth II continues to serve as head of state. As of 1999, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland each have their own national assembly of representatives, chosen by proportional representation, which have taken on some of the powers of the central Parliament of the United Kingdom, while remaining subordinate to it.
• 1180s: France under King Philip II is ruled by a feudal kingship, passed down from generation to generation through family inheritance.
  1960s: Since the ratification of the 1958 constitution, the French system of government is a parliamentary constitutional democracy known as the Fifth Republic. The French president appoints the prime minister and serves as head of state. The French Parliament, headed by the prime minister, consists of the National Assembly and the Senate. French citizens enjoy universal suffrage for all men and women.
  Today: The French government of the Fifth Republic continues to be organized as a parliamentary constitutional democracy with universal suffrage.