Henry, determined to add
Normandy to the English crown, crossed the channel with a large army and
defeated his brother at Tinchebrai in 1106. With the accession of
Stephen to the English throne in 1135, came the long struggle between
that king and Maud. When Henry II. married Eleanor of Aquitaine, not
only that great province but also Maine and Anjou came under his sway,
so that for a time Normandy was only a portion of the huge section of
France belonging to the English Crown. During his long reign Henry spent
much time in Normandy, and Argentan and Avranches are memorable in
connection with the tragedy of Thomas a Becket. During the absence of
Richard Coeur-de-Lion in Palestine John became exceedingly friendly with
Philip Augustus, the French King, but when Richard was dead he found
cause to quarrel with the new English king and, after the fall of the
Chateau Gaillard, John soon discovered that he had lost the Duchy of
Normandy and had earned for himself the name of "Lackland."
From this time, namely, the commencement of the thirteenth century,
Normandy belonged to the crown of France although English armies were,
until 1450, in frequent occupation of the larger towns and fortresses.
Pages:
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99