A Family Conflict Set in Stone: The story of Henry, eldest son of Henry II of England
By Janet Gillepsie
Medieval History Magazine, Vol. 12 (2004)
Introduction: One such sanitised tomb stands forgotten on the north side of the ambulatory of the cathedral of Rouen, in France. It originally held the mortal remains of Henry (1155-1183), the eldest surviving son of King Henry II of England – untiled it was emptied by the San Coulottes during the French revolution. The lid of the sarcophagus has a fine, stone effigy of a young medieval knight calmly gazing upwards into heaven, with his feet resting on a lion. Strange then, tht such spiritual serenity and focus of purpose were so rarely seen in young Henry’s life – and how much more the pity.
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Tags: Art History, England, France, Politics
