Henry II
He restored order in the government, and introduced reforms into the administration of justice; and the benefits of his rule have continued to the present day.
As King, Henry II improved the military system in two ways. First, those English barons who did not wish to follow him in his wars in France were permitted to remain at home, but were required to pay a tax called "scutage," or shield money. With this money Henry hired and payed foreign soldiers. Thus the barons themselves placed in the king's hands a means of keeping them in order. In the second place, King Henry proclaimed a law which required every free man to provide himself with weapons and armor according to his means, and to be ready to serve in the army when needed. The highest class of common freemen were to have each a helmet, a coat of mail, a shield, and a lance. These improvements gave the King a stronger army, and made him independent of the barons.
Henry also made a major improvement to the court system. He wished to unify all parts of England under the same court system. Throughout England there were many courts, some held by the lords on their estates, or manors, and some held by the sheriffs in the shires; but there was no connection among them, and the same kind of offense might be punished more severely in one place than in another. To remedy this problem, the King appointed learned judges, whose duty it was to travel about the country and preside over each shire court, at least once a year. All people then had an opportunity to get justice from the King's own officers.
The older models of trial depended largely upon superstition, accident, or force, called "trial by ordeal". In the "ordeal by fire" the accused person was required to carry a piece of red-hot iron in his bare hand for a distance of nine feet. His hand was then bandaged by the priest, and if at the end of three days the wound was "clean," he was declared innocent. In the "ordeal by hot water" the hand was plunged into a kettle of boiling water, and then bandaged. In the "ordeal by cold water" the person accused was thrown into running water, with his hands and feet tied together. If he floated he was guilty; if he sank he was innocent, and must be hauled out.
By these judicial reforms, the administration of justice was made surer, speedier, and more certain. Henry's court system developed into our "trial by jury" system.
Now, Henry II wished to place the members of the clergy under the control of the state courts, so that a churchman who committed a crime might be tried by the same law and suffer the same penalties as other persons. At the time, a churchman was tried in a Church court, and often escaped with very light punishment. Henry saw the evils of this system, and sought to secure a reform by appointing his friend, Thomas Becket, to the highest position in the English church.
Thomas Becket was Henry's Chancellor, or chief secretary. Becket had received the highest education of the time. Henry showered riches and favors upon his new Chancellor; and Becket adopted a magnificent style of life, and rivaled the King himself in the splendor of his robes and the number of his servants. This did not displease Henry, so long as Thomas in return rendered him good service.
Henry carried out his plan, and made Becket Archbishop of Canterbury.
Becket seemed to change his nature at once. He resigned his office of Chancellor, saying that he must now give all his time to the Church.
The King was determined to make his law supreme over all persons in the kingdom, while the archbishop was equally determined to keep the independence of the Church. Thus a quarrel arose. Becket soon fled to France, and there for seven years he kept appealing to the Pope and to the King of France for help against King Henry. At last a reconciliation was agreed to, and Becket returned to England. But he soon showed that he had forgotten and forgiven nothing. He punished with the power of the Church all those who had sided against him; even the Archbishop of York, the second great churchman of England, was "excommunicated"—that is, cut off from the fellowship of the Church—because he had, in Becket's absence, performed some acts which, as Becket claimed, only the Archbishop of Canterbury could perform.
When news of these events reached Henry, in Normandy, he was beside himself with rage.
"What a pack of cowards have I kept about me," he cried, "that not one of them will avenge me against this upstart priest."
Four knights who heard the King took him at his word. They slipped across to England, where they found Becket in his cathedral church at Canterbury. Thereupon, they struck him to the ground, and slew him as he lay.
Henry made his peace with the Church. He swore that he was innocent of any part in Becket's murder, and promised to recall his reforms concerning the Church. Later he paid a visit to Canterbury, to do penance for his sin. After walking barefoot, from the city walls to the cathedral, he knelt at the tomb of Saint Thomas, and prayed all night for forgiveness, while the monks of the place passed by and smote with rods his bared back.
Plotting against the King:
Eleanor of Aquitaine became queen of France when she married King Louis VII. She was a powerful and involved queen. She took part as a military leader during the Second Crusade traveling to Constantinople and Jerusalem.
In 1152, Eleanor had her marriage with King Louis VII annulled and then married Henry II, the duke of Normandy. Two years later, in 1154, Henry II became king of England and Eleanor was now queen of England. Eleanor was a devious queen and worked with her sons in a plot to overthrow her husband. She was imprisoned until her husband died and her son Richard I became king.
At last, in 1189, his son, Richard, formed a widespread conspiracy, and with the aid of the King of France suddenly seized some of his father's French territories. Henry II. was now old and ill; he was surrounded by enemies, and was taken by surprise. He was forced to accept a humiliating treaty, and to agree that Richard's allies might transfer their allegiance from himself to Richard. A list was given to him of those who were in the secret league with Richard, and at its head he saw the name of his youngest and favorite son, John.
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