Henry II and England's Overseas Territories

Question 1

What is an empire?

Answer 1

A group of countries or regions that are controlled by one ruler or one government

Question 2

What were the problems with empires?

Answer 2

Empires were really expensive and was hard to control all areas as some were overseas

Question 3

What other titles did King Henry II have?

Answer 3

Duke of Normandy
Count of Anjou
Count of Maine
Count of Touraine
Duke of Aquitaine

Question 4

Was Henry powerful in France?

Answer 4

Yes he was a powerful french prince as he owed so much land

Question 5

Technically, who did Henry’s lands belong too?

Answer 5

The king of France but he was in a weaker position than Henry

Question 6

Who was the king of France in 1154?

Answer 6

Louis VII

Question 7

Why was the relationship between Henry II and Louis VII complicated?

Answer 7

Louis VII was previously married to Eleanor of Aquitaine but in 1152 their marriage was annulled partly because Eleanor struggled to provide a male heir to the throne and as a result of the divorce, Louis VII lost Aquitaine.
Eleanor and Henry II then got married, Henry received the Aquitaine and had 5 sons with Eleanor which was embarrassing for Louis VII.

Question 8

Why was the French crown threatened by Henry II?

Answer 8

The French crown was threatened and overwhelmed with combination of land Henry II had which was Aquitaine and Greater Anjou (Anjou, Maine and Touraine)

Question 9

What was Henry’s attitude towards Louis VII?

Answer 9

Henry II respected the French king and repeatedly performed homage to him but he made no effort to disguise the difference in power each other had

Question 10

Give an example which shows Henry II to brag about his success

Answer 10

Henry II sent an embassy to Paris in 1158 and Thomas Becket was there as a kings representative and made open and clear displays of wealth granted to him by Henry II.
The message Becket was trying to get across to Louis VII was that even him being a loyal servant to Henry II was extremely wealthy

Question 11

How did Henry’s relationship remain with France?

Answer 11

Mostly cordial in between 1154 and 1159.
Louis VII invited Henry II to an agreement which established rules for a good lordship when it was arranged for Henry II’s son, Henry was arranged to marry Louis VII’s daughter, Margaret.

Question 12

What did Henry II do to disrupt the peace between him and Louis VII?

Answer 12

Henry II invaded Tolouse in 1159

Question 13

How did Louis respond to Henry’s invasion of Toulese?

Answer 13

Louis VII blocked the invasion by placing himself in the city itself.
Louis VII tried to repair the peace and damage by restating the commitment to the eventual marriage.

Question 14

How did Henry react to Louis’s response?

Answer 14

Henry tricked Louis by arranging papal dispensation that allowed the marriage of the children many years before Louis had envisaged

Question 15

How did Henry’s trick affect Louis VII?

Answer 15

Louis VII lost land as Margaret’s dowry was vital territory called Vexin which included castles of Gisors that dominated it
Louis VII was humiliated

Question 16

When and where was the final peace negotiated between Henry II and Louis VII?

Answer 16

1161 in Freteval

Question 17

How was Henry’s II relation with Flanders?

Answer 17

Henry was keen to restore a good relation with Flanders for political and economical reasons.

Question 18

What trade happened between Flanders and England?

Answer 18

The wool trade was lucrative to both as English wool was shipped to towns in Flanders where it was spun into cloth

Question 19

What else did Flanders import from England?

Answer 19

English grain

Question 20

At which point was England’s relation with Flanders a problem?

Answer 20

In 1153, Count Thierry of Flanders was a deep supporter of Louis VII and acted against Henry II throughout the dispute

Question 21

How did Count Thierry of Flanders’s support of Louis VII affect England relations?

Answer 21

It had cost Henry II the castle of Vernon

Question 22

Why did Henry need a good relation with Flanders?

Answer 22

To strategically protect Normandy and it’s borders

Question 23

When and what was the treaty created between England and Flanders?

Answer 23

In 1163, the treaty provided the English king with 1000 knights from Flanders when required in return for 500 marks each year

Question 24

What did the relation between England and Flanders show?

Answer 24

It was fundamentally linked to trade and french policies.
It was also evidence of the impact of Henry’s growing wealth, primarily raised in England

Question 25

What areas was under the Angevin Empire?

Answer 25

Normandy
Aquitaine and Gascony
Brittany

Question 26

How did Henry II get Normandy?

Answer 26

Normandy favoured King Stephen until his capture in 1141 in which the Barons defected to the rising Geoffrey of Anjou (Henry II’s father) who was Duke of Normandy.
In 1150, Geoffrey resigned and the title was then inherited to his son, Henry II

Question 27

What problems did Henry face in Normandy?

Answer 27

The problem that Henry II faced was defence and securing Normandy.
Henry II’s father, Geoffrey, was forced to give a small but vital territory called Vexin to the king of France. Without this land, the Norman capital was likely to attack

Question 28

What did Henry do to solve his problem in Normandy?

Answer 28

In order to secure Vexin, Henry II’s arranged for his son, Henry to marry one of Louis VII’s daughter, Margaret.
As a result of the marriage, Vexin was given to Henry II’s son as Margaret’s dowry

Question 29

What is a dowry?

Answer 29

Property that is transferred from the bride’s family to the groom’s family in a medieval marriage

Question 30

Was Henry’s actions in Normandy successful?

Answer 30

Henry was successful in terms of creating a defence for Normandy by securing Vexin by helping Alexander III to become pope and as a result, he granted the marriage of Henry and Margaret despite Henry being 5 years old and Margaret only 3 years old.
Henry was less successful in regards to the Normans church which had broken free under the reign of Stephen

Question 31

How did Henry get Aquitaine and Gascony?

Answer 31

Henry II gained Aquitaine and Gascony through his marriage with the Duchess of Aquitaine, Eleanor as part of her dowry

Question 32

What problems did Henry face in Aquitaine and Gascony?

Answer 32

The power to control lands was weak and difficult to exercise and the lords of Aquitaine saw themselves as independent from the Duke

Question 33

What did Henry do to solve his problems in Aquitaine and Gascony?

Answer 33

Henry tried to reassert his authority by claiming Toulouse which was an extremely wealthy and important county.
In June 1159, Henry marched south with a large army and made a rapid progress towards the capital, Toulouse.

Question 34

Was Henry actions in Aquitaine and Gascony successful?

Answer 34

Henry wasn’t successful in Aquitaine and Gascony as the count of Toulouse resisted Henry’s attack with assistance from the King of France, Louis VII

Question 35

What did Henry II use Gascony for?

Answer 35

Securing the support of the Spanish allies

Question 36

How did Henry get Brittany?

Answer 36

Through his title of Duke of Normandy so is unsuprising that Henry II had a degree of contol in Gascony

Question 37

What problems did Henry face in Brittany?

Answer 37

Henry II hesitated to support Conan IV’s overthrow of his step-father in 1156

Question 38

How did Henry solve his problems in Brittany?

Answer 38

In 1166, Henry sent his forces in to assert his authority and arranged for Conan’s daughter to marry his son Geoffrey

Question 39

Was Henrys actions in Brittany successful?

Answer 39

Yes as Conan was forced to abdicate in favour of the couple

Question 40

How secure was Henry II’s position by 1161?

Answer 40

Very secure as the Angevin empire was repeatedly expanding throughout France and had most support of it’s citizens