The Ultimate HENRY II Tribute

HENRY II, 1133-1189

By Amanda Hallay

“Who will rid him of this troublesome quote?”

Name: Henry Plantagenet (II)

Occupation: King of England (and some of France.)

Marital Status: Married to Eleanor of Aquitaine (but had a lot of girlfriends, too.)

Dependents:  Father of four. Two died. Two were let-downs.

Hobbies and Interests: Travel, hunting, law, girls. And ruling the Angevin Empire.

Why I Dig Him

Henry II was perhaps one of England’s very finest sovereigns. He gave the country the Common Law, and believed that administration and ‘office work’ were more important than fighting battles (and not just because he was a bit scared of fighting.)

Married to the beautiful, impossible Eleanor of Aquitaine (nine years his senior and a match for anyone), the couple produced four sons;  Young Henry (who died in youth), Geoffrey (who died a little later), Richard the Lionheart (the ‘star’ of the family) and ‘bad King John’.  Henry’s surviving sons spent most of their time conniving and betraying both each other and their father, the dying king’s only companion at death the bastard son he had produced as the result of one of his countless affairs.

Henry’s accomplishments are many and varied. Crowned King of England at 21, he truly took the job seriously. No tyrant was Henry (although – when pushed – he wasn’t shy of executing his power), and his genuine interest in providing a Law by which all his subjects could benefit is truly remarkable in a time when to be ‘King’ meant to be ‘God’.

Why Others Don’t Dig Him

Henry II should truly rank up there with the ‘best’ British monarchs.  He seldom does.  If he is remembered at all, it is for two entirely unrelated acts; fathering the glamorous Richard the Lionheart, and (of course) ordering the murder of his best friend, Thomas Becket.

Let's be honest; Thomas Becket was kinda asking for this.

Historians now think that Henry probably didn’t order the murder of Thomas Becket. He certainly never uttered the quote for which he will always be remembered (‘Who will rid me of this troublesome priest?’) Henry had an incendiary temper, and whilst this is hardly fatal in the hands of mortals, when kings are ‘gods’, their words of fury are taken as direct commands.  Four knights rode out to Canterbury, and murdered Archbishop Becket, this ‘murder in the cathedral’ spawning a famous play (with a famous line), and condemning Henry to be forever remembered as England’s kingly killer.

Having given the matter much thought, I feel that Thomas Becket was more to blame than his royal friend. Henry was ready to forgive his Archbishop.  Becket accepted his king’s forgiveness, but was unable to forgive in return. The flexible Henry faced an immovable Becket. A king was questioned.  A friend betrayed.

Walking barefoot on a pilgrimage to Becket’s tomb at Canterbury (and flagellated by the monks therein), it is said that Henry never recovered from the death of his old, best friend. He certainly never recovered from the death of his mistress, Rosamund Clifford. The antithesis to his Queen, Rosumund was said to be sweet, gentle, quiet and giving.  Eleanor was a fireball of brains and wit; it was not only her beauty which Henry fell in love with, but her sense of humour and thirst for life.  Although she was married to the nineteen year old Henry for political alliance, theirs was a true ‘love match’.  The passions which had brought them together resulted in tearing them apart, Henry finally imprisoning his wife so that she’d cease making trouble for him (although he did, evidently, let her out from time to time, their ‘love-hate’ relationship a lifelong source of pleasure and irritation to them both.)

Why I’m Right

A learned man who could read and (some say) even write, Henry II should not be remembered for the Becket affair.  He should not be remembered as the father of Richard the Lionheart (who never really did very much, and who only spent about twenty seconds in the nation he ruled.)   He certainly shouldn’t be remembered as the father of King John, his very favourite son who betrayed both him – and the country – so miserably.  Nor should he be remembered as the husband of the wonderfully maddening Eleanor; she can be remembered in her own right, regardless of her spouse.

No. What Henry II should be remembered for is his very ‘human’ ability to meet his opponents ‘half way’, his diplomacy, and – above all – for his desire to turn England into a ‘civilised’ nation, a nation in which both peasant and prince could be both tried – and defended – in a court of law.

I found this pic while searching for
'Henry II' and thought it was really cute.

The Lion in Winter is a very good film about the Plantagenet family. Ever since I first saw 'Lion in Winter', I cannot think of Henry II without seeing the face of Peter O'Toole.