Hannah takes the "reigns" for part 1 in a series about the kings and queens of England. Because royalty in England just cycled through the same three names over and over, today we learn about two kings named Henry:

Henry II: the highlights of his reign were murdering his best friend in a cathedral, getting whipped within an inch of his life in the same cathedral, and giving a gorgeous castle to a six year-old out of spite.

We talk about several movies: Becket (1964, starring Peter O'Toole as King Henry II), The Lion in Winter (1968, starring...Peter O'Toole as King Henry II again!) and Robin Hood, about vagabonds causing trouble for Prince John in England whilst his brother Richard I (the "Lionheart") is galavanting around the Holy Land.

Henry III: Basically, he was pretty lame. He fled the battlefield, got captured, and had to be rescued by his son. Also, his brother-in-law called him a simpleton, which is worse than all that other stuff.

References:
Online: Historic UK has many excellent articles on the history of the British monarchy, including this comprehensive summary, "Kings and Queens of England & Britain" by Ben Johnson.

Print: The Kings and Queens of England by Ian Crofton. (Note: affiliate link. Thank you for your support!)

Video: Britain's Bloodiest Dynasty -- a 4-part documentary about the Plantagenet kings.

Music: "The Battle of Agincourt," by The Twilight

Music: "Splancnics Riff" composed and performed by Clare T. Walker

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Theme music: “Splanchnics Riff” composed and performed by Clare T. Walker