Position abolished (Brittany absorbed into the crown lands of France)
Born
Henry, Duke of Orléans 31 March 1519 Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye
Died
10 July 1559 (aged 40) Hôtel des Tournelles
Burial
13 August 1559
Saint Denis Basilica
Spouse
Catherine de' Medici
(m. 1533)
Issue more...
Francis II, King of France
Elisabeth, Queen of Spain
Claude, Duchess of Lorraine
Louis, Duke of Orléans
Charles IX, King of France
Henry III, King of France
Margaret, Queen of France
Francis, Duke of Anjou
Illegitimate :
Diane, Duchess of Angoulême
Henri, Duke of Angoulême
Henri, Count of Saint-Rémi [fr]
House
Valois-Angoulême
Father
Francis I of France
Mother
Claude, Duchess of Brittany
Religion
Catholicism
Signature
Henry II (French: Henri II; 31 March 1519 – 10 July 1559) was King of France from 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I and Duchess Claude of Brittany, he became Dauphin of France upon the death of his elder brother Francis in 1536.
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 matters of art, war, and religion. He persevered in the Italian Wars against the Habsburgs and tried to suppress the Reformation, even as the Huguenot numbers were increasing drastically in France during his reign.
Under the April 1559 Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis which ended the Italian Wars, France renounced its claims in Italy, but gained certain other territories, including the Pale of Calais and the Three Bishoprics. These acquisitions strengthened French borders while the abdication of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor in January 1556 and division of his empire between Spain and Austria provided them with greater flexibility in foreign policy. Nostradamus also served King Henry as physician and astrologer.
In June 1559, Henry was injured in a jousting tournament held to celebrate the treaty, and died ten days later after his surgeon, Ambroise Paré, was unable to cure the wound inflicted by Gabriel de Montgomery, the captain of his Scottish Guard. Though he died early, the succession appeared secure, for he left four young sons – as well as a widow (Catherine de' Medici) to lead a capable regency during their minority. Three of those sons lived long enough to become king; but their ineffectual reigns, and the unpopularity of Catherine's regency, helped to spark the French Wars of Religion between Catholics and Protestants, and an eventual end to the House of Valois as France's ruling dynasty.
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HenryII (French: Henri II; 31 March 1519 – 10 July 1559) was King ofFrance from 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I and Duchess...
son of King HenryIIofFrance, he was not expected to inherit the French throne and thus was a good candidate for the vacant throne of the Polish–Lithuanian...
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policy mindful of the limitations of the French monarchy. A member of the House of Capet, Henry was born in Reims, the son of King Robert II (972–1031) and...
establishing the House of Bourbon as the new French royal dynasty. Charles Maximilien ofFrance, third son of King HenryIIofFrance and Catherine de' Medici...
The Parade Armour ofHenryIIofFrance, now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, is believed to date from c 1553–55 and its decoration is attributed...
HenryII (5 March 1133 – 6 July 1189), also known as Henry Fitzempress and Henry Curtmantle,[why?] was King of England from 1154 until his death in 1189...
Claude of Valois (12 November 1547 – 21 February 1575) was a French princess as the second daughter of King HenryIIofFrance and Catherine de' Medici...
her paternal grandparents were HenryIIofFrance and Catherine de' Medici. Born at the Louvre Palace in Paris, France, Marie Elisabeth was loved by her...
Eleanor. Francis returned to France in exchange for his two sons, Francis and Henry, Duke of Orléans, the future HenryIIofFrance, but once he was free he...
succession through the female line (as exemplified by HenryIIof England, son of Matilda). The French rejected Isabella's claim, arguing that since she herself...
under Henry V and Henry VI, but the House of Valois, a cadet branch of the Capetian dynasty, was ultimately victorious and retained control ofFrance, except...
Philip II (21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), byname Philip Augustus (French: Philippe Auguste), was King ofFrance from 1180 to 1223. His predecessors had...
Renaissance, and became the lifelong mistress of Claude's son, HenryII. Claude was crowned Queen ofFrance at St. Denis Basilica on 10 May 1517 by Cardinal Philippe...
Diane de France, suo jure Duchess of Angoulême (25 July 1538 – 11 January 1619) was the natural (illegitimate) daughter ofHenryIIofFrance and his Italian...
Burgundians until 1435 as King HenryIIofFrance. He was crowned King ofFrance on 16 December 1431. In practical terms, King Henry's claim to de jure sovereignty...
HenryII (13 January 1334 – 29 May 1379), called Henryof Trastámara or the Fratricidal (el Fratricida), was the first King of Castile and León from the...
Henryof Valois may refer to: HenryIIofFrance (1519–1559), King ofFranceHenry III ofFrance (1551–1589), King ofFrance and Poland Henri Valois (1603–1676)...
Estates of Brittany, after the death of Queen Claude ofFrance, the last sovereign duchess. Her sons Francis III, Duke of Brittany and then HenryIIof France...
1500 – 25 April 1566) was a French noblewoman and prominent courtier. She wielded much power and influence as King HenryII's royal mistress and adviser...
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