The Devil's Brood examines the Angevin Dynasty, otherwise known as the Plantagenets, which ruled over England and the greater part of France until John lost most of the family lands in Europe. Henry II was the first Angevin king of England,and Part II will present the rise of Henry II as he first married Eleanor of Aquitaine and then gained the throne of England.
Cast of Characters:
Empress Matilda-Henry's official heir, claimant to the English throne, widow of German Emperor Henry V
Stephen-rival claimant to the English throne, count of...
The Devil's Brood examines the Angevin Dynasty, otherwise known as the Plantagenets, which ruled over England and the greater part of France until John lost most of the family lands in Europe. Henry II was the first Angevin king of England,and Part II will present the rise of Henry II as he first married Eleanor of Aquitaine and then gained the throne of England.
Cast of Characters:
Empress Matilda-Henry's official heir, claimant to the English throne, widow of German Emperor Henry V
Stephen-rival claimant to the English throne, count of Boulogne, Henry's nephew
Geoffrey Plantagenet-Count of Anjou, Maine and Touraine, later duke of Normandy, Matilda's husband
Henry FitzEmpress-eldest son of Matilda and Geoffrey
Theobald II-count of Champagne, most powerful vassal of the King of France, Henry's nephew
Hugh Bigod-Earl of Norfolk, former steward of King Henry I of England, supporter of King Stephen, leading noble in East Anglia
Robert de Beaumont-earl of Leicester, key supporter of Stephen
Waleran de beaumont-count of Meulan, Robert's twin brother
Ranulf-earl of Chester, powerful lord in the Welsh border region
Sources:
The Plantagenets: the Warrior Kings and Queens Who Made England-Dan Jones
The Greatest Knight: The Remarkable Life of William Marshal, the Power Behind Five English Thrones-Thomas Asbridge
Tales from the Long Twelfth Century: The Rise and Fall of the Angevin Empire-Richard Huscroft
King Stephen-Edmund King
The Empress Matilda, Queen Consort, Queen Mother and Lady of the English-Marjorie Chibnall
Henry II-W.L. Warren
The Accession of Henry II in England: Royal Government Restored 1149-1159-Emilie Amt
Henry Plantagenet-Richard Barber
The Restless Kings: Henry II, His Sons and the War for the Plantagenet Crown-Nick Barratt
Eleanor of Aquitaine and the Four Kings-Amy Kelly
Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life-Alison Weir
Thomas Becket: Warrior, Priest, Rebel, Victim, A 900-Year-Old Story Retold-John Guy
The Angevin Empire-John Gillingham
Angevin England 1154-1258-Richard Mortimer
The Plantagenet Empire: 1154-1224, Martin Aurell, translated from the French by David Crouch
Brittany and the Angevins: Province and Empire 1158-1203-J.A. Everard
Image Credit: King Henry II and his chlidren (left to right: William, Henry the young King, Richard Lionheart, Matilda, Geoffrey, Eleonor, Joan, John Lackland)
By Anonymus - http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/illuminatedmanuscripts/ILLUMIN.ASP?Size=mid&IllID=49987, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=14711475
