Henry III of England (1207-1272)

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Henry III of England
Effigy of Henry III on his tomb in Westminster Abbey.
Birth:	1 October 1207 Winchester Castle, Hampshire, England, United Kingdom
Death:	16 November 1272 Westminster Palace, London, England, United Kingdom
Father:	John of England (1167-1216)
Mother:	Isabelle of Angoulême (1186-1246)
Titles:	King of England Lord of Ireland Duke of Aquitaine
Spouse / partner:	Éléonore de Provence (1223-1291)
Wedding:	1 January 1236 Canterbury, Kent, England, United Kingdom
Sex:
Edit Facts

• 1216-1272: King of England
• Lord of Ireland
• Duke of Aquitaine

Henry III Plantagenet of Winchester, King of England, Lord of Ireland, Duke of Aquitaine, was born 1 October 1207 in Winchester Castle, Hampshire, England, United Kingdom to John of England (1167-1216) and Isabelle of Angoulême (1186-1246) and died 16 November 1272 Westminster Palace, London, England, United Kingdom of unspecified causes. He married Éléonore de Provence (1223-1291) 1 January 1236 ^JL Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, England, United Kingdom.

Biography

A 13th-century depiction of Henry III's coronation

King Henry III of England was born on October 1, 1207, and ruled England from 1216 until his death in 1272. He was the eldest son of King John of England and his queen, Isabelle of Angoulême (1186-1246).

Henry III came to the throne at the age of nine, following the death of his father. During his early reign, power was wielded by a group of regents, but Henry gradually began to assert himself as he grew older. He was crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey in 1220.

Henry was known for his piety and his devotion to the Church. He was a patron of religious art and architecture, and he founded many religious houses, including Westminster Abbey. He also made numerous donations to the Church, and his reign saw the construction of many cathedrals and churches across England.

Henry's reign was marked by several conflicts, including the Second Barons' War, a civil war that took place between 1264 and 1267. This war was fought between the forces of Henry and those of Simon de Montfort, a baron who had become disillusioned with the king's rule. The war ended with de Montfort's defeat at the Battle of Evesham in 1265.

Despite the conflicts that marked his reign, Henry was generally regarded as a good king, and he is remembered for his patronage of the arts, his devotion to the Church, and his efforts to improve the administration of justice in England. He died on November 16, 1272, and was succeeded by his son, Edward I of England (1239-1307).

Background and childhood

Main articles: Angevin Empire and First Barons' War

King John's lands in France, c.1200

Henry was born in Winchester Castle on 1 October 1207. He was the eldest son of King John and Isabella of Angoulême. Little is known of Henry's early life. He was initially looked after by a wet nurse called Ellen in the south of England, away from John's itinerant court, and probably had close ties to his mother. Henry had four legitimate younger brothers and sisters – Richard, Joan, Isabella and Eleanor – and various older illegitimate siblings. In 1212 his education was entrusted to Peter des Roches, the bishop of Winchester; under his direction, Henry was given military training by Philip D'Aubigny and taught to ride, probably by Ralph of St Samson.

At the start of the 13th century, the Kingdom of England formed part of the Angevin Empire spreading across Western Europe. Henry was named after his grandfather, Henry II, who had built up this vast network of lands stretching from Scotland and Wales, through England, across the English Channel to the territories of Normandy, Brittany, Maine and Anjou in north-west France, onto Poitou and Gascony in the south-west. For many years the French Crown was relatively weak, enabling first Henry II, and then his sons Richard I and John, to dominate France.

Marriage

Early chronology showing Henry (top) and his children, (l to r) Edward, Margaret, Beatrice, Edmund and Katherine, 1300–1308

Henry investigated a range of potential marriage partners in his youth, but they all proved unsuitable for reasons of European and domestic politics. In 1236 he finally married Eleanor of Provence, the daughter of Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Provence, and Beatrice of Savoy. Eleanor was well-mannered, cultured and articulate, but the primary reason for the marriage was political, as Henry stood to create a valuable set of alliances with the rulers of the south and south-east of France. Over the coming years, Eleanor emerged as a hard-headed, firm politician. Historians Margaret Howell and David Carpenter describe her as being "more combative" and "far tougher and more determined" than her husband.

The marriage contract was confirmed in 1235 and Eleanor travelled to England to meet Henry for the first time. The pair were married at Canterbury Cathedral in January 1236, and Eleanor was crowned queen at Westminster shortly afterwards in a lavish ceremony planned by Henry. There was a substantial age gap between the couple – Henry was 28, Eleanor only 12 – but historian Margaret Howell observes that the King "was generous and warm-hearted and prepared to lavish care and affection on his wife".

Issue

Henry and Eleanor had five children:

1. Edward I of England (1239-1307) - Edward was the eldest son of Henry III and Eleanor of Provence. He succeeded his father as King of England in 1272 and reigned until his death in 1307. Edward was known for his military campaigns in Wales and Scotland, as well as his efforts to reform the English legal system. He also founded the famous Parliament of England.
2. Margaret of England (1240-1275) - Born in February 1240, Margaret was the first daughter of Henry III and Eleanor of Provence. She married King Alexander III of Scotland in 1251, but died just six years later at the age of 20, having given birth to three children.
3. Beatrice of England (1242-1275) - Born in June 1242, Beatrice was the second daughter of Henry III and Eleanor of Provence. She married John II, Duke of Brittany, in 1260, and had several children with him. Beatrice died in 1275.
4. Edmund Crouchback, 1st Earl of Lancaster (1245-1296) - Edmund was the second son of Henry III and Eleanor of Provence. He was given the nickname "Crouchback" due to a deformity in his back. Edmund married Blanche of Artois in 1269 and had several children with her.
5. Richard of England (c1247-1256) - died young
6. John of England (c1250-1256) - died young
7. Henry of England (c1252-c1252) - died young
8. William of England (c1251-1256) died young.
9. Katherine of England (1253-1257) - Born in November 1253, Katherine was the youngest child of Henry III and Eleanor of Provence. Probably born deaf and with other disabilities, she died at age 3 and buried in an elaborate ceremony.

Henry had no known illegitimate children.

Children

Offspring of Henry III of England and Éléonore de Provence (1223-1291)
Name	Birth	Death	Joined with
Edward I of England (1239-1307)	17 June 1239 Palace of Westminster, London, England, United Kingdom	7 July 1307 Burgh by Sands, Cumberland, England, United Kingdom	Eleanor of Castile (1241-1290) Marguerite Capet (1282-1317)
Margaret of England (1240-1275)	29 September 1240	26 February 1275	Alexander III of Scotland (1241-1286)
Beatrice of England (1242-1275)	25 June 1242	1275	Jean II de Bretagne (1239-1305)
Edmund Crouchback, 1st Earl of Lancaster (1245-1296)	16 January 1244 London, Greater London, England, United Kingdom	5 June 1296	Aveline de Forz, Countess of Holderness (1259-1274) Blanche of Artois (1248-1302)
Richard of England (c1247-1256)	1247 England	1256 England
John of England (c1250-1256)	1250 England	1256 England
Henry of England (c1252-c1252)	1252 England	1252 England
William of England (c1251-1256)	1247 England	1256 England
Katherine of England (1253-1257)	25 November 1253 Westminster Palace, Westminster, Greater London, England, United Kingdom	3 May 1257 Windsor Castle, Windsor, Berkshire, England, United Kingdom

Siblings

Offspring of John of England (1167-1216) and Isabelle of Angoulême (1186-1246)
Name	Birth	Death	Joined with
Henry III of England (1207-1272)	1 October 1207 Winchester Castle, Hampshire, England, United Kingdom	16 November 1272 Westminster Palace, London, England, United Kingdom	Éléonore de Provence (1223-1291)
Richard of Cornwall (1209-1272)	5 January 1209 Winchester	12 April 1272 Berkhamsted	Isabel Marshal (1200-1240) Sancie de Provence (1228-1261) Beatrijs van Valkenburg (?-?) Joan de Valletort (?-?)
Joan of England (1210-1238)	22 July 1210	4 March 1238	Alexander II of Scotland (1198-1249)
Isabella of England (1214-1241)	1214	12 December 1241	Friedrich II of the Holy Roman Empire (1195-1250)
Eleanor of England (1215-1275)	1215 Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England, United Kingdom	13 April 1275 Montargis, Loiret, France	William Marshal, 2nd Earl of Pembroke (1190-1231) Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester (c1208-1265)

Offspring of John of England (1167-1216) and Clementia (1166-1201)
Name	Birth	Death	Joined with
Joan of England (1190-1236)	1188	3 February 1237	Llywelyn ab Iorwerth (c1173-1240)

Offspring of John of England (1167-1216) and Adela de Warenne (c1170-c1218)
Name	Birth	Death	Joined with
Richard Fitzjohn, Baron of Chilham

Offspring of John of England (1167-1216) and unknown parent
Name	Birth	Death	Joined with
Isabel FitzRoy (-bef1211)	9999 England	1211 England	Richard FitzIves (c1211)

Some information in this article or section has not been verified and may not be reliable.
Please check for any inaccuracies, and modify and cite sources as needed.

Henry had four legitimate younger brothers and sisters – Richard, Joan, Isabella and Eleanor – and various older illegitimate siblings. He also had various half-siblings - his father's bastards and the children of his mother's second marriage. The latter are:

• Adhémar de Lusignan, Bishop of Winchester (?-1260)
• Agnès de Lusignan (?-After 1269)
• Alix de Lusignan (?-1256)
• Geoffroi de Lusignan, Seigneur de Jarnac (?-1272)
• Guillaume de Valence, Earl of Pembroke (About 1225-1296)
• Guy de Lusignan, Seigneur de Couha (?-After 1248)
• Hugues XI de Lusignan, Comte de La Marche (?-1250)
• Isabelle de Lusignan, Dame de Beauvoir (?-1299)
• Marguerite de Lusignan (?-1288)

See Also

• wikipedia:en:Henry III of England
• Henry III of England at thePeerage
• Henry III of England - Geni.com
• Henry III of England at Find A Grave
• English Kings 1066-1603 - Foundation for Medieval Genealogy
• Aurell, Martin (2003) (in fr). L'Empire des Plantagenêt, 1154–1224. Paris, France: Tempus. ISBN 978-2-262-02282-2. 
• Baker, David (1979). "Excavations in Bedford 1967–1977: The Excavations – Bedford Castle". Bedfordshire Archaeological Journal 13: 7–64. 
• Beeler, John (1972). "Military Developments from Prehistoric Times to 1485". In Higham, Robin. A Guide to the Sources of British Military History. London: Routledge and Keegan Paul. pp. 43–64. ISBN 978-0-7100-7251-1. 
• Bolton, Jim L. (2012). Money in the Medieval English Economy: 973–1489. Manchester: Manchester University Press. ISBN 978-0-7190-5040-4. 
• Bradbury, Jim (1998). Philip Augustus, King of France 1180–1223. London: Longman. ISBN 978-0-582-06058-6. 
• Carpenter, David A. (1990). The Minority of Henry III. Berkeley, US and Los Angeles, US: University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-07239-8. 

     (1996). The Reign of Henry III. London: Hambledon Press. ISBN 1-85285-137-6. 

     (2004). The Struggle for Mastery: The Penguin History of Britain 1066–1284. London: Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-014824-4. 

     (2005). "The Meetings of Kings Henry III and Louis IX". In Prestwich, Michael. Thirteenth Century England: Proceedings of the Durham Conference, 2004. 10. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 1–30. ISBN 978-1-84383-122-8. 

     (2020). Henry III. London: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-3002-3835-8. 

• Clanchy, M. T. (1998). England and its Rulers: 1066–1307 (3rd ed.). Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4051-0649-8. 
• Cole, Virginia A. (2002). "Ritual Charity and Royal Children in 13th Century England". In Rollo-Koster, Joëlle. Medieval and Early Modern Ritual: Formalized Behavior in Europe, China and Japan. Leiden, the Netherlands: BRILL. pp. 221–241. ISBN 978-90-04-11749-5. 
• Davies, R. R. (2006). Domination and Conquest: the Experience of Ireland, Scotland and Wales 1100–1300. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-02977-3. 
• Davis, John Paul (2013). The Gothic King: a Biography of Henry III. London: Peter Owen. ISBN 978-0-7206-1480-0. 
• Duffy, Mark (2003). Royal Tombs of Medieval England. Stroud: Tempus. ISBN 978-0-7524-2579-5. 
• Eaglen, R. J. (1992). "The Evolution of Coinage in Thirteenth-Century England". In Coss, Peter R.. Thirteenth Century England: Proceedings of the Newcastle upon Tyne Conference, 1991. 4. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 15–24. ISBN 0-85115-325-9. 
• Frame, Robin (1992). "King Henry III and Ireland: the Shaping of a Peripheral Lordship". In Coss, Peter R.. Thirteenth Century England: Proceedings of the Newcastle upon Tyne Conference, 1991. 4. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 179–202. ISBN 0-85115-325-9. 
• Fritts, Stephanie (2008). "Henry III of England". In Ruud, Jay. Critical Companion to Dante: a Literary Reference to his Life and Work. New York: Facts on File. p. 466. ISBN 978-0-8160-6521-9. 
• Gillingham, John (1984). The Angevin Empire (1st ed.). London: Edward Arnold. ISBN 0-7131-6249-X. 
• Goebel, Stefan (2007). The Great War and Medieval Memory: War, Remembrance and Medievalism in Britain and Germany, 1914–1940. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-85415-3. 
• Goodall, John (2011). The English Castle. New Haven, US and London: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-11058-6. 
• Hallam, Elizabeth M.; Everard, Judith A. (2001). Capetian France, 987–1328 (2nd ed.). Harlow: Longman. ISBN 978-0-582-40428-1. 
• Hillaby, Joe (2003). "Jewish Colonisation in the Twelfth Century". In Skinner, Patricia. Jews in Medieval Britain. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 15–40. ISBN 978-1-84383-733-6. 

    ; Hillaby, Caroline (2013). The Palgrave Dictionary of Medieval Anglo-Jewish History. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 978-0-23027-816-5. 

• Hillen, Christian (2007). "The Minority Governments of Henry III, Henry (VII) and Louis IX Compared". In Weiler, Björn K.. Thirteenth Century England: Proceedings of the Gregynog Conference, 2005. 11. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 46–60. ISBN 978-1-84383-285-0. 
• Holt, James Clarke (1984). "The Loss of Normandy and Royal Finance". In Holt, James Clarke. War and Government in the Middle Ages: Essays in Honour of J. O. Prestwich. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 92–105. ISBN 978-0-389-20475-6. 
• Howell, Margaret (1992). "The Children of King Henry III and Eleanor of Provence". In Coss, Peter R.. Thirteenth Century England: Proceedings of the Newcastle upon Tyne Conference, 1991. 4. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 57–72. ISBN 0-85115-325-9. 

     (2001). Eleanor of Provence: Queenship in Thirteenth-Century England. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers. ISBN 978-0-631-22739-7. 

• Huscroft, Richard (2006). Expulsion: England's Jewish solution. Stroud: Tempus. ISBN 978-0-752-43729-3. 
• Jobson, Adrian (2012). The First English Revolution: Simon de Montfort, Henry III and the Barons' War. London: Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-1-84725-226-5. 
• Kalof, Linda (2007). Looking at Animals in Human History. London: Reaktion Books. ISBN 978-1-86189-334-5. 
• Langmuir, Gavin (1972). "The Knight's Tale of Young Hugh of Lincoln". Speculum 47 (3): 459–482. DOI:10.2307/2856155. 
• Lewis, Suzanne (1987). The Art of Matthew Paris in the Chronica Majora. Berkeley, US and Los Angeles, US: University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-04981-9. 
• Maddicott, John R. (2004). Simon de Montfort. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-37636-5. 
• Maier, Christoph T. (2003). Preaching the Crusades: Mendicant Friars and the Cross in the Thirteenth Century. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-63873-9. 
• Mayr-Harting, Henry (2011). Religion, Politics and Society in Britain, 1066–1272. Harlow: Longman. ISBN 978-0-582-41413-6. 
• McGlynn, Sean (2013). Blood Cries Afar: the Forgotten Invasion of England, 1216. Stroud: The History Press. ISBN 978-0-7524-8831-8. 
• Moss, V. D. (2007). "The Norman Exchequer Rolls of King John". In Church, Stephen D.. King John: New Interpretations. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 101–116. ISBN 978-0-85115-947-8. 
• Pounds, Nigel J. G. (1994). The Medieval Castle in England and Wales: a Social and Political History. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-45099-7. 
• Ridgeway, Huw (1988). "King Henry III and the 'Aliens', 1236–1272". In Coss, Peter R.. Thirteenth Century England: Proceedings of the Newcastle upon Tyne Conference, 1987. 2. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 81–92. ISBN 978-0-85115-513-5. 
• Robson, Michael (2010). "The Greyfriars of Lincoln, c.1230–1330: the Establishment of the Friary and the Friars' Ministry and Life in the City and its Environs". In Robson, Michael. Franciscan Organisation in the Mendicant Context: Formal and Informal Structures of the Friars' Lives and Ministry in the Middle Ages. Berlin, Germany: Lit. pp. 119–146. ISBN 978-3-643-10820-3. 
• Saul, Nigel. "King Henry III: The Rise to Power and Personal Rule, 1207-1258" History Today. (July 2020) 70#7 pp 94–97 online.
• Senocak, Neslihan (2012). The Poor and the Perfect: the Rise of Learning in the Franciscan Order, 1209–1310. New York: Cornell University Press. ISBN 978-0-8014-6471-3. 
• Spufford, Peter (1989). Money and its Use in Medieval Europe. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-37590-0. 
• Stacey, Robert C. (1997). "Parliamentary Negotiation and the Expulsion of the Jews from England". In Prestwich, Michael. Thirteenth Century England: Proceedings of the Durham Conference, 1995. 6. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 77–102. ISBN 978-0-85115-674-3. 

     (2003). "The English Jews Under Henry III: Historical, Literary and Archaeological Perspectives". In Skinner, Patricia. Jews in Medieval Britain. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 41–54. ISBN 978-1-84383-733-6. 

• Turner, Ralph V. (2009). King John: England's Evil King?. Stroud: History Press. ISBN 978-0-7524-4850-3. 
• Tyerman, Christopher (1996). England and the Crusades, 1095–1588. Chicago, US: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-82013-2. 
• Vincent, Nicholas (2006). The Holy Blood: King Henry III and the Westminster Blood Relic. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-02660-4. 

     (2007). "Isabella of Angoulême: John's Jezebel". In Church, Stephen D.. King John: New Interpretations. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 165–219. ISBN 978-0-85115-947-8. 

• Warren, W. Lewis (1991). King John. London: Methuen. ISBN 0-413-45520-3. 
• Weiler, Björn K. U. (1999). "Henry III's Plans for a German Marriage and their Context". In Prestwich, Michael. Thirteenth Century England: Proceedings of the Durham Conference, 1997. 7. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 173–188. ISBN 978-0-85115-719-1. 

     (2012). Henry III of England and the Staufen Empire, 1216–1272. Paris: Royal Historical Society: Boydell Press. ISBN 978-0-86193-319-8. 

• Wild, Benjamin L. (2011). "A Captive King: Henry III Between the Battles of Lewes and Evesham 1264-5". In Burton, Janet E.. Thirteenth Century England: Proceedings of the Paris Conference 2009. 13. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. pp. 41–56. ISBN 978-1-84383-618-6. 

Ancestry Trees

• Rollo Family Ancestry
• Plantagenet Family Line
• House of Normandy

External links

• Henry III at the official website of the British monarchy
• Henry III at BBC History
• Henry III at Genealogics
• King Henry III of England -

Contemporary Resources

There are several contemporary references about the life of King Henry III of England. Here are some of the most notable ones:

1. Matthew Paris - Matthew Paris was a medieval chronicler and monk who lived during the reign of Henry III. He was a member of the Benedictine Abbey of St Albans and wrote several works chronicling the history of England during his lifetime. His most famous work is the "Chronica Majora," a detailed history of England from the Norman Conquest to 1259. Paris was a contemporary of Henry III and provides a valuable insight into the events of his reign.
2. Roger of Wendover - Roger of Wendover was another medieval chronicler who lived during the reign of Henry III. He was a monk at the Abbey of St. Albans and wrote a chronicle of English history from the time of the Saxons to 1235. His work, "Flores Historiarum," is a valuable source of information on the early part of Henry III's reign.
3. William Rishanger - William Rishanger was a monk and chronicler who lived in the 13th century. He was a contemporary of Henry III and wrote several works on English history, including a chronicle of events from 1259 to 1307. Rishanger's work provides valuable insight into the latter part of Henry III's reign.
4. The Close Rolls - The Close Rolls are a collection of official documents from the reign of Henry III. They include charters, letters patent, and other official documents relating to the administration of England during his reign. They are an important source of information on the legal and administrative system in England at that time.
5. The Patent Rolls - The Patent Rolls are another collection of official documents from the reign of Henry III. They include grants of land, titles, and other privileges issued by the king. They provide valuable information on the distribution of wealth and power during the reign of Henry III.

Henry III of England (1207-1272) House of Plantagenet Born: 1 October 1207 Died: 16 November 1272
Regnal titles
Preceded by John	King of England Duke of Aquitaine Lord of Ireland 1216–1272	Succeeded by Edward I

Footnotes (including sources)

John Kenney, Robin Patterson, AMK152, Phlox, Rtol, Thurstan, MainTour, Lascorpia64, Pmalish