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Henry II

Type Figure Region France Time 1519–1559 Also known as Henry II de Valois

King of France of the Valois dynasty (1547–1559), son of Francis I; he continued the wars against the Habsburg Empire, ended the Italian Wars with th…

Timeline

  1. 1519–1547Saint-Germain-en-Laye · Île-de-FranceBorn at Saint-Germain-en-Laye, second son of Francis I. Captured after the defeat at Pavia in 1526, later released. Married Catherine de' Medici in 1533 and succeeded on his father's death in 1547.
  2. 1547–1559Paris · Île-de-FranceDuring his reign he fought continuously against the Habsburg Empire, capturing Metz and other places in the Duchy of Lorraine in 1552. In 1559 he signed the Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis, ending the war on the condition that his daughter Elizabeth marry the Spanish heir Philip II. He relied on the House of Guise to suppress Protestantism and established special courts to persecute heretics.

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