Henry came to the throne of England at the age of nine, accepted as means of preventing Prince Louis of France’s claim from succeeding. Henry was the son of King John and Queen Isabella, and his regents gained the support of the barons against the French claimant by declaring acceptance of the terms of Magna Carta. The regents retained control until 1227, when the king was twenty years old.

Henry’s later years were marked by the encroaching power of the Scots, and difficult relations with the nobility which culminated in the king bringing legal charges against Simon de Montfort, which the peerage refused to uphold. The division between factions for and against the king reached the point of civil war. Henry was captured by de Montfort’s forces at the Battle of Lewes in 1264 and had to accede to the barons’ demands to reduce royal power. Henry’s son, Edward, was freed by Roger Mortimer who perhaps feared that the de Montfort clan was likely to replace the Plantagenets as monarchs. Edward defeated de Montfort at the Battle of Evesham in 1265.

Henry died in 1272, having enjoyed a fifty-six year reign. He had at least four children with his wife, Eleanor of Provence; there are several other reputed offspring. He was succeeded by his eldest son, Edward.

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