Henry II of France
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Henry II (French: Henri II) (March 31, 1519 – July 10, 1559), a member of the Valois Dynasty, was King of France from March 31, 1547, until his death.
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[edit] Early years
Henry was born in the Royal Château at Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France, the son of Francis I and Claude de France and the grandson of Louis XII of France and Anne de Bretagne. With his brother, he spent three years in Spain as a hostage to Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, as surety for his father, who had been captured at the Battle of Pavia. Henry married Catherine de Medici (13 April 1519–January 5, 1589) on 28 October 1533, when both were fourteen years old.
The following year he became involved with the thirty-five-year-old, recently widowed, Diane de Poitiers, who became his most trusted confidante and for the next twenty-five years wielded considerable influence behind the scenes, even signing royal documents. Extremely confident, beautiful, mature and intelligent, she left Catherine powerless to intervene.
When his older brother Francis died in 1536 after a game of tennis, Henry became heir to the throne; he was crowned King of France on July 25, 1547 in the cathedral at Reims.
[edit] Reign
Henry's reign was marked by wars with Austria, and the persecution of the Protestant Huguenots. Henry II severely punished them, burning them alive or cutting out their tongues for speaking their Protestant beliefs. Even those suspected of being Huguenots could be imprisoned for life.
The Italian War of 1551–1559, sometimes known as the Habsburg-Valois War, began when Henry declared war against Charles V with the intent of recapturing Italy and ensuring French, rather than Habsburg, domination of European affairs. An early offensive into Lorraine was successful, with Henry capturing the three episcopal cities of Metz, Toul, and Verdun, but the attempted French invasion of Tuscany in 1553 was defeated at the Battle of Marciano.
After Charles' abdication in 1556 split the Habsburg empire between Phillip II of Spain and Ferdinand I, the focus of the war shifted to Flanders, where Phillip, in conjunction with Emmanuel Philibert of Savoy, defeated the French at St. Quentin. 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; but Henry was nonetheless forced to accept the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis, in which he renounced any further claims to Italy.
The Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis was signed between Elizabeth I of England and Henry on April 2 and between Henry and Philip II of Spain on April 3, 1559, at Le Cateau-Cambrésis, around twenty kilometers south-east of Cambrai. 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 Elisabeth.
Henry raised the young Queen Mary I of Scotland at his court, hoping to use her as a tool of Valois imperialism. On April 24, 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 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 heir (Guy 2004:91). Mary's claim to the English throne quickly became current when Mary I of England died later in 1558, Henry and his Catholic advisors regarding Elizabeth Tudor as illegitimate.
[edit] Death
Henry II was an avid hunter and participant in jousting tournaments. On July 1, 1559, at the Place des Vosges in Paris, during a match to celebrate the Peace Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis with his longtime enemies, the Habsburgs of Austria and to celebrate the marriage of his daughter Elizabeth of Valois to King Philip II of Spain, King Henry was mortally wounded by a sliver from the shattered lance of Gabriel Montgomery, captain of the King's Scottish Guard. It penetrated the closed visor, pierced his left eye, penetrated the brain and came out via his ear. He suffered terribly, and, despite the efforts of royal surgeon Ambroise Paré, died on July 10, 1559 and was buried in a cadaver tomb in Saint Denis Basilica. Prior to his death, Queen Catherine limited access to his bedside and denied his mistress (Diane de Poitiers) access to him, even though he repeatedly asked for her. Following his death, Catherine sent de Poitiers into exile, where she was to live in comfort on her own properties until her death.
Henry was succeeded by his son, Francis II, who died the following year and was succeeded by his two brothers. Their mother acted as Regent. For the forty years following Henry II's death, France was filled with turbulence as Protestants and Catholics fought the bitter Wars of Religion
[edit] Marriage and Issue
On October 28, 1533, he married Catherine of Medici (April 13, 1519 - January 5, 1589)
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Francis II, King of France | January 19, 1544 | December 5, 1560 | Married Mary, Queen of Scots (1542 - 1587) in 1558. Had no issue. |
| Elizabeth, Princess of France | April 2, 1545 | October 3, 1568 | Married Philip II, King of Spain (1527 - 1598) in 1559. Had issue. |
| Claude of Valois | November 12, 1547 | February 21, 1575 | Married Charles III, Duke of Lorraine (1543 - 1608). Had issue. |
| Louis of France | February 3, 1549 | October, 1549 | Died young. Had no issue. |
| Charles IX, King of France | June 27, 1550 | May 30, 1574 | Married Elizabeth of Austria (1554 - 1592) in 1570. Had issue. |
| Henry III, King of France | September 19, 1551 | August 2, 1589 | Married Louise of Lorraine in 1575. Had no issue. Briefly King of Poland in 1574. |
| Margaret, Princess of France | May 14, 1553 | March 27, 1615 | Known as Margot. Married Henry IV, King of France. Divorced and had no issue. |
| Hercules, Prince of France | March 18, 1555 | June 19, 1584 | Later known as Francis, Duke of Alencon and Anjou. |
| Joan, Princess of France | June 24, 1556 | June 24, 1556 | Twin with Victoria, Princess of France. Died young. Had no issue. |
| Victoria, Princess of France | June 24, 1556 | August 1556 | Twin with Joan, Princess of France. Died young. Had no issue. |
Henry II also had three illegitimate children:
- By Filippa Duci: Diane, Duchesse d'Angoulême (1538-1619). Some sources have stated that the little girl was the natural daughter of Henry's long-time mistress, Diane de Poitiers. This is probably not the case since Henry had Filippa Duci monitored closely throughout her pregancy, and there is a record of this. She gave birth to the baby in a convent and it appears that she remained there for the rest of her life. The younger Diane married (at the age of 14) Orazio Farnese, Duke of Castro. He died young in battle. Her second marriage was to François, Duc de Montmorency.
- By Lady Janet Stewart (1508-1563), herself an illegitimate daughter of James IV of Scotland: Henri de Valois (1551- June 1586). He was legitimized and became governor of Provence.
- By Nicole de Savigny: a son, Henri (1557-1621), whom Henry did not legitimize because he was unsure about his paternity. He gave him the title of Comte de Saint-Rémy. One of his last descendant was to be Jeanne de Valois-Saint-Rémy, Comtesse de la Motte, famous for her role in the diamond necklace affair.
[edit] Prophecy
| Monarchical Styles of King Henry II Par la grâce de Dieu, Roi de France |
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| Reference style | His Most Christian Majesty |
| Spoken style | Your Most Christian Majesty |
| Alternative style | Monsieur Le Roi |
Michel Nostradamus, the French astrologer known for his prophecies, first became famous when one of his quatrains was construed as the prediction of the death of King Henry II:
CI, Q 35 The young lion will overcome the older one,
on the field of combat in single battle,
He will pierce his eyes through a golden cage,
Two wounds made one, then he dies a cruel death.
The Italian astrologer Luca Gaurico, a contemporary of Nostradamus, is also said to have predicted the king's death.
[edit] References
Guy, John, My Heart is my Own, London, Fourth Estate, 2004, ISBN 0–00–71930–8
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| Preceded by: Francis I |
King of France July 31, 1547–July 10, 1559 |
Succeeded by: Francis II |
| Preceded by: Francis IV |
Duke of Brittany 1536–1547 |
Succeeded by: merged in the crown |
