Henry II of Navarre

Henry II (18 April 1503 – 25 May 1555), nicknamed Sangüesino because he was born at Sangüesa, was the King of Navarre from 1517, although his kingdom had been reduced to a small territory north of the Pyrenees by the Spanish conquest of 1512. Henry succeeded his mother, Queen Catherine, upon her death.[1] His father was her husband and co-ruler, King John III, who died in 1516.[1]

Henry II
Portrait by unknown French artist
King of Navarre
Reign12 February 1517 – 25 May 1555
PredecessorCatherine
SuccessorJeanne III
Born(1503-04-18)18 April 1503
Sangüesa
Died25 May 1555(1555-05-25) (aged 52)
Hagetmau
Spouse
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(
m. 1526; died Expression error: Unexpected < operator)
IssueJeanne III
Jean of Navarre
HouseAlbret
FatherJohn III of Navarre
MotherCatherine of Navarre
ReligionRoman Catholic, although strongly sympathized with Calvinists throughout his life

King of Navarre

After the latest failed reconquest attempt of Navarre in 1516, John III died, followed by Catherine I's demise in her independent dependencies of Béarn (1517). Heir apparent Henry was proclaimed King of Navarre, and was lavishly crowned in Lescar. The title was also claimed by Ferdinand II of Aragon, who had invaded the realm in 1512 and usurped the title, and the claim was continued by his grandson Charles V. Henry II enjoyed the protection of Francis I of France.

After ineffectual conferences at Noyon in 1516 and at Montpellier in 1518, an active effort was made in 1521 to establish him in de facto sovereignty in Pamplona and occupied territory. A French and Navarrese expedition made another attempt at reconquering occupied Navarre, but were ultimately repelled by Charles after the Battle of Noain (June 1521).[2]

Henry in contemporary miniature

In 1525, Henry was taken prisoner at the Battle of Pavia,[3] but he contrived to escape under a guise and in 1526, married Margaret, sister of King Francis I and widow of Charles, Duke of Alençon. In 1530, after the Treaty of Cambrai between Castile and France, Charles V evacuated the northernmost county (merindad) of Navarre, Lower Navarre, allowing Henry to seize it. The Pyrenean border between Lower and Upper Navarre now constitutes the Franco-Spanish border in this sector.

Henry had some strong sympathy with the Huguenots, and was fluent in both French and Spanish, according to the seigneur de Brantôme.[4] He died at Hagetmau on 25 May 1555.[5]

Marriage

In 1526, he married Margaret of Angoulême[6] who became known as Marguerite de Navarre (11 April 1492 – 21 December 1549) and had issue:

Ancestry
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gollark: You can have a usable one in less than 100 lines of python.
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gollark: Anyway, logger reimplementation opinions?
gollark: ++magic reload_ext irc_link

References
  1. Vernier 2008, p. 4.
  2. Tucker 2011, p. 489.
  3. Stephenson 2017, p. 5.
  4. Hillgarth 2000, p. 238.
  5. Commire 2000, p. 251.
  6. Cholakian & Cholakian 2006, p. xxii.

Sources
  • Cholakian, Patricia Francis; Cholakian, Rouben Charles (2006). Marguerite de Navarre: Mother of the Renaissance. Columbia University Press.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Commire, Anne (2000). Women in World History. Volume 10.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Hillgarth, J. N. (2000). The Mirror of Spain, 1500–1700: The Formation of a Myth. University of Michigan.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Stephenson, Barbara (2017). The Power and Patronage of Marguerite de Navarre. Routledge.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Tucker, Spencer C., ed. (2011). A Global Chronology of Conflict:From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East. Vol. II. ABC-CLIO.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Vernier, Richard (2008). Lord of the Pyrenees: Gaston Fébus, Count of Foix (1331-1391). The Boydell Press.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)


Henry II of Navarre
Born: April 18 1503 Died: May 25 1555
Preceded by
Catherine		 King of Navarre
Count of Foix
1517 – 25 May 1555		 Succeeded by
Joan III
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