Henry,
the eldest son of John I and Isabella
of Angouleme, was born in Winchester
in 1207. Henry was only nine when his father died in 1216. Hubert
de Burgh ruled as regent but in 1234 took over the administration
of the country.
Henry III married Eleanor of Provence in 1236 and the couple had
two sons and four daughters. Henry had a passion for castles and
houses which he filled with works of art. He was an extremely religious
man and spent a great deal of money on church buildings. The most
important of these being the rebuilding of Westminster
Abbey.
Henry also spent a lot of money on warfare. However, he was not
a very successful soldier. Attempts to win back back territory in
France that had been lost by his father, King
John, ended in failure. Eventually he was forced to sign an
agreement acknowledging that Normandy,
Maine, Poitou, Touraine and Anjou were no longer part of the empire.
Unhappy with his rule, the barons, under the leadership of Simon
de Montfort, forced Henry III to accept a programme of reform.
Further conflicts with his barons led to the Battle
of Lewes in 1264. Although defeated at Lewes, Henry III regained
control of his kingdom after the death of Montfort at the Battle
of Evesham in 1265. Henry III died in 1272.
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