Cine s-a întâlnit cu Alys of France, Countess of Vexin?

Alys of France, Countess of Vexin (4 October 1160 – c. 1218–1220), known in English as "Alice", was a French princess, initially betrothed to Richard I of England. Her engagement was broken in 1190, through negotiations between Richard and her half-brother Philip II of France. Philip then attempted to betroth her to Richard's brother John but this betrothal was rejected. Alys married William IV, Count of Ponthieu, on 20 August 1195. She died between 1218 and 1220.

Richard I (n. 8 septembrie 1157, Oxfordshire, Anglia, Regatul Unit – d. 6 aprilie 1199, Châlus, Limousin, Franța) a fost rege al Angliei în perioada 1189-1199. Era cunoscut și sub numele de Richard Inimă-de-Leu datorită reputației sale de mare lider militar.

De asemenea, el a domnit ca Duce al Normandiei, Aquitaniei și Gasconiei, ca Lord al Ciprului și conte al Poitiers, Anjou, Maine și Nantes și a fost Lord al Bretaniei în diferite momente în aceeași perioadă. El a fost al treilea din cei cinci fii ai regelui Henry al II-lea al Angliei și Eleanor al Aquitaniei și părea puțin probabil să devină rege, dar toți frații săi, cu excepția celui mai mic, Ioan, și-au predecedat tatăl. Richard este cunoscut sub numele de Richard Cœur de Lion (franceză normandă: Le quor de lion) sau Richard Inimă de Leu datorită reputației sale de mare lider militar și războinic.

La vârsta de 16 ani, Richard a preluat comanda propriei sale armate, provocând rebeliuni în Poitou împotriva tatălui său. Richard a fost un important comandant creștin în timpul celei de-a treia cruciade, conducând campania după plecarea lui Filip al II-lea al Franței și obținând victorii considerabile împotriva liderului musulman, Saladin, deși a finalizat un tratat de pace și a încheiat campania fără a cuceri Ierusalimul.

Richard vorbea probabil atât franceză, cât și occitană. S-a născut în Anglia unde și-a petrecut copilăria; înainte de a deveni rege, a trăit însă cea mai mare parte a vieții sale adulte în Ducatul Aquitaniei, în sud-vestul Franței. El a petrecut foarte puțin timp, poate doar șase luni, în Anglia. Cea mai mare parte a vieții sale ca rege a fost petrecută în cruciadă, în captivitate sau în apărarea activă a pământurilor sale în Franța. În loc să-și considere regatul ca o responsabilitate care necesită prezența sa ca conducător, el a fost perceput ca preferând să-l folosească doar ca o sursă de venit pentru a-și sprijini armatele. Cu toate acestea, supușii lui l-au vazut ca pe un erou evlavios .

Henry II ( (1133-March-05) (1189-July-06)5 March 1133 – 6 July 1189) was King of England from 1154 until his death in 1189. During his reign he controlled England, substantial parts of Wales and Ireland, and much of France (including Normandy, Anjou, and Aquitaine), an area that was later called the Angevin Empire, and also held power over Scotland for a time and the Duchy of Brittany.

Henry was the eldest son of Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou, and Matilda, daughter of Henry I of England. By the age of fourteen, he became politically and militarily involved in his mother's efforts to claim the English throne, at that time held by her cousin Stephen of Blois. Henry's father made him Duke of Normandy in 1150, and upon his father's death in 1151, Henry inherited Anjou, Maine and Touraine. His marriage to Eleanor of Aquitaine brought him control of the Duchy of Aquitaine. Thus, he controlled most of France. Henry's military expedition to England in 1153 resulted in King Stephen agreeing, by the Treaty of Wallingford, to leave England to Henry; he inherited the kingdom at Stephen's death a year later.

Henry was an energetic and ruthless ruler, driven by a desire to restore the royal lands and prerogatives of his grandfather Henry I. During the early years of his reign Henry restored the royal administration in England and led expeditions into Wales in 1157. However, Henry was defeated at the Battle of Ewloe, nearly being killed in the fighting. Henry's desire to control the English Church led to conflict with his former friend Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury. This controversy lasted for much of the 1160s and resulted in Becket's murder in 1170. Soon after his accession, Henry came into conflict with Louis VII of France, his feudal overlord, and the two rulers fought over several decades in what has been termed a "cold war". Henry expanded his empire at Louis's expense, taking Brittany and pushing east into central France and south into Toulouse. Despite numerous peace conferences and treaties, no lasting agreement was reached.

Henry and Eleanor had eight children. Three of their sons were kings, Henry the Young King as co-ruler with his father and Richard I and John as sole monarchs. As his sons grew up, Henry struggled to find ways to satisfy their desires for land and immediate power, and tensions rose over the future inheritance of the empire, encouraged by Louis VII and his son Philip II, who ascended to the French throne in 1180. In 1173 Henry's heir apparent, "Young Henry", rebelled against his father. He was subsequently joined in his rebellion by his brothers Richard and Geoffrey as well as their mother. Several European states allied themselves with the rebels, and the Great Revolt was defeated only by Henry's vigorous military action and talented local commanders, many of them "new men" appointed for their loyalty and administrative skills. Young Henry and Geoffrey led another failed revolt in 1183, during which Young Henry died of dysentery. Geoffrey died in 1186. The Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland provided lands for Henry's youngest son, John. By 1189, Philip swayed Richard to his side, leading to a final rebellion. Suffering from a bleeding ulcer which sapped the extraordinary energy that was a hallmark of his earlier reign, Henry was decisively defeated by Philip and Richard. He then retreated to Chinon Castle in Anjou. He died soon afterwards and was succeeded by his son Richard.

Henry's empire quickly collapsed during the reign of his son John, but many of the changes Henry introduced during his lengthy rule had long-term impacts. Henry's legal reforms are generally considered to have laid the basis for the English Common Law, while his intervention in Brittany, Wales, Ireland, and Scotland shaped the development of their societies, histories, and governmental systems. Contemporary chroniclers such as Gerald of Wales and William of Newburgh, though sometimes unfavourable, generally lauded Henry's achievements. In the 18th century, scholars argued that Henry was a driving force in the creation of a genuinely English monarchy and, ultimately, a unified Britain. During the Victorian expansion of the British Empire, historians were keenly interested in the formation of Henry's own empire, but they also criticized certain aspects of his private life and treatment of Becket.