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Henry III (1207-72) King of England (1216-72):

The elder son of John and Isabella of Angoulême. At the age of nine he followed his father to the throne. The regent at that time was William Marshal, Earl of Pembroke. Henry declared an end to his minority in 1227. Some years later he married Eleanor of Provence who gave him six children. Henry was a very pious king spending enormous sums rebuilding Westminster Abbey. Politically he was less successful. He abandoned his claim to most of his French dominions and held Gascony as a fief of the French king. In England he had to face the baronial opposition led by his brother-in-law, Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester. Open revolt erupted in 1263. The King and his brother were defeated and captured at the battle of Lewes, but with the help of his son Edward he overcame baronial opposition by 1267. Nevertheless, Henry's reign defined kingship as limited by law.