The plain Englishman's historian, or, A compendious chronicle of England from its first being inhabited to this present year 1679 but more especially containing the chief remarques of all our Kings and Queens since the conquest, their lives and reigns, policies, wars, laws, successes, and troubles : with the most notable accidents, as dearths, tempests, monstrous births, and other prodigies that happened in each of their times respectively / by H.C.

CHAP. VI. King Henry the Second

WAs Crowned at Westminster the se∣venteenth of December 1155. Being a greater Prince than any of his Auncestours, and not inferior to any in Christendome in his time. For he had England, Normandy and Anjou in his own Right; and in the Right of his Wife, the Dutchy of Guyen and Earldom of Poictou: At his first coming to the Crown, he made Choice of Wise and Discreet Councellors, banisht Strangers, reformed Abuses of the Laws, and made many excellent Regulations to heal the Bo∣dy Politick of those Distempers and Fra∣ctures which the late Wars had occasi∣oned.

He had married Eleanor late Wife to Lew∣is the seventh of France, but by reason of their nearness of Blood from him divorced; with this Lewis he had some Differences ta∣ken up at last by a Peace, to render which more firm he matcht his eldest Son Henry not seven Years old to Margaret the French Kings Daughter scarce three.

In the sixteenth Year of his Reign he Caused this Henry his Son to be Crowned King and reign with himself in his own time, who going back with his Queen to his Father-in-Law in France, he is there evilly perswaded to oppose his Father, and what was worse, his two Brothers Richard and Geoffry joyn in the Confederacy; nor was the King of Scots wanting to assist them, whence several bloody Battels in di∣vers Parts were fought between them, in which their Fathers Arms were generally blest with Success. At last a Reconciliation is made, and the French Kings other Daugh∣ter betrothed to Richard the Second Son of the King of England, but afterwards his elder Brother Henry being dead, because that Marriage was not Solemniz'd and some fits of Jealousy, as if his Father were too kind to his intended Spouse, Richard falls again into discontent, and by the Aid of the French King took the City Mentz, forcing his Father to retreat. However, a Peace was clapt up between them shortly after.

Besides these troubles with his Children, he had others almost as bad with Thomas Beck∣et Arch-Bishop of Canterbury, who would by no means consent that Clergy-men who

were Malefactors should be tried before the secular Magistrate as Lay men were; the Contention growing hot the King seizes on his Temporalities, and the Bishop excom∣municated the King, and fled beyond Sea, at length he was admitted to return to his Office, but still persisting in his Insolence he was soon after by some Persons mur∣dered at Church, who was Canoniz'd for a Saint, and the King himself visited his Tomb, and suffered Penance there with a strange Humility, of which Saint some Au∣thors report abundance of Miracles, but the greatest I observe is, that he was a Mi∣racle of Pride.

This King was the first that Conquered Ireland, and 'tis thought left in his Coffers at his Death nine hundred thousand Pounds, beside Plate and Jewels.

In the twenty third Year of his Reign it rained Blood in the Isle of Wight two Hours together.

He had five Sons, of which three lived to be Kings, viz. John crowned, and dying without Issue in his Life time, Richard who succeeded him, Geofry Plantaginet who dying in his Fathers Life time left a Son named Arthur; the fourth John, who after∣wards was King, and William who died

young. And of his three Daughters were Queens, Elenor married to Alphonse King of Castile, and Jane to William King of Sicily.

He died, as 'tis suppos'd, of Grief, in the Year 1189. when he had lived sixty one Years, and Reigned near thirty five, being buried in France. This was that Prince that kept fair Rosamond in her Bower at Wood∣stock, which enraging his Queen with Jealou∣sy, she stirred up her Sons to Revenge her Injuries, and occasion'd most of his Trou∣bles.