| King Francis II | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Biographical Information | |
| Title: | King of France King Consort of Scotland |
| Reign: | 10 July 1559 – 5 December 1560 |
| Coronation: | 21 September 1559 |
| Predecessor: | Henry II |
| Successor: | Charles IX |
| Born: | 19 January 1544 |
| Died: | 5 December 1560 |
| Burial: | Saint Denis Basilica, France |
| Religion: | Roman Catholic |
| House: | Valois |
| Relationship Information | |
| TV Character Information | |
| Portrays: | King Francis |
| Portrayed by: | Toby Regbo |
Francis II was King of France from from 1559 to 1560. He was also King Consort of Scotland as a result to his marriage to Mary, Queen of Scots, from 1558 until his death in 1560.
Childhood[]
Francis was named after his grandfather, King Francis I. Francis was raised at the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye. He was baptized on February 10 1544, at the Chapelle des Trinitaires in Fontainebleau. He became the governor of Languedoc in 1546 and Dauphin of France in 1547, when his grandfather Francis I passed. [1]
Arranged Marriage[]
His father, King Henry II, arranged the betrothal of his son to Mary, Queen of Scots, in the Châtillon agreement on 27 January 1548, when Francis was only four years old. Mary was six when she was sent to France to be raised at court until the marriage after the marriage agreement was formally ratified.
- "From the very first day they met, my son and she got on as well together as if they had known each other for a long time."
- —King Henry II about the young couple
On 24 April 1558, Francis and Mary married in the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. As a result of the marriage, Francis became King Consort of Scotland. The marriage produced no children, and the question of whether their marriage was consummated or not remains unanswered.
His Reign[]
A little over a year after his marriage, the fifteen-year-old Francis became King upon his father's death in a jousting accident on 10 July 1559. On 21 September 1559, Francis was crowned King of France. According to French law, Francis was an adult who did not need a regent, but since he was young, inexperienced, and in fragile health, he delegated his power to his wife's uncles from the House of Guise. [2]
Francis II's reign was dominated by religious crisis. His unpopular and repressive policy toward Protestantism motivated the Amboise conspiracy, in which a few Protestant leaders attempted a coup d'état against the king and the House of Guise. Due to growing discontent, the government tried conciliation. Under the influence of Catherine de' Medici. Until the end of Francis's reign, the kingdom was paralyzed by local revolts. He reacted by becoming more authoritarian.
With the marriage of Francis II of France and Mary I of Scotland, the future of Scotland was linked to that of France. The Crown Matrimonial, a secret clause signed by the Queen provided that Scotland would become part of France if the royal couple did not have children. The Queen's mother, Marie de Guise, became Regent of Scotland.
Because of French control over their country, a congregation of Scottish lords made the Regent and her French council leave the capital, Edinburgh, in May of 1559. Having taken refuge at the fortress of Dunbar, Marie of Guise asked France for help. Francis II and Mary Stuart sent troops right away. By the end of 1559, France was back in control of Scotland.
Nothing seemed to stand in the way of France controlling Scotland apart from English support for the uprising of the Scottish nobles. Queen Elizabeth of England was still offended that Francis II and Mary Stuart had put on their coat of arms those of England, thus proclaiming Mary's claims on the throne of England.
In January 1560, the English fleet blockaded the port of Leith, which French troops had turned into a military base. Months later they were supported by the arrival of 6000 soldiers and 3000 horsemen, which began the siege of the city.
After losing another battle with England, On 6 July 1560, they signed the Treaty of Edinburgh, which ended French occupation of Scotland. Francis II and Mary Stuart had to withdraw French troops and stop displaying England's arms.
Weeks later, Scotland's parliament established Protestantism as the state religion. When Francis II and Mary Stuart were presented with the Treaty of Edinburgh, they were outraged and refused to sign it. [3]
Death[]
The King's health rapidly deteriorated. After only 17 months on the throne, Francis II died on 5 December 1560 in Orléans, Loiret, from an ear condition. Francis II died childless, so his younger brother, Charles, then ten years old, succeeded him. On 21 December, the ouncil named Catherine de Medici as Regent of France.
The Guises left the court, while Mary Stuart, Francis II's widow, returned to Scotland. On 23 December 1560, the body of Francis II was interred in the Basilica of Saint-Denis by the Prince of La Roche-sur-Yon. [4]
Notes[]
- King Henry II's sister, Madeleine de Valois, was Mary, Queen of Scots' father's first wife.
- His godparents were King Francis I, Pope Paul III, and his great-aunt, Marguerite de Navarre.
- King Francis II was named after his paternal grandfather, King Francis I, and uncle Prince Francis I.
- Prince Francis was born 11 years and 3 months after his parents were married.
- Francis had 3 half-siblings from his father's mistresses, and 9 more siblings from his parents' marriage.
- Francis and Mary were engaged when he was 4, and Mary, Queen of Scots was 5. Contemporary accounts indicate that the couple really did love one another dearly.
- Prince Francis II was 13 in the year 1557, the start of Season One.
- Francis and Mary's public wedding took place on April 24 1558 at the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.
- King Francis I knighted him during his baptism ceremony.
- Francis learned dancing from Virgilio Bracesco and fencing from Hector of Mantua.
- Mary and Francis had no children during their short marriage, possibly due to Francis' illnesses, or his undescended testicles.
- Francis' crown was so heavy that nobles had to hold it in place for him.
- Mary, Queen of Scots had briefly met her future husband, Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley in February 1561 when she was in mourning for King Francis II. Darnley's parents, Lord and Lady Lennox, who were Scottish aristocrats as well as English landowners, had sent him to France ostensibly to extend their condolences while hoping for a potential match between the two.
- King Francis II died on 5 December 1560 when he was 16 from Syncope.
Family Tree[]
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Francis I |
| Claude of France |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
| Louise of France |
| Charlotte of France |
| Francis III |
| Henry II |
| Catherine de' Medici |
| Madeleine of Valois |
| Charles II |
| Margaret of Valois | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Francis II |
| Elisabeth of Valois |
| Claude of Valois |
|
| Louis of Valois |
| Charles IX |
| Henry III |
| Margaret of Valois | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Related Pages[]
Pages related to King Francis are the following:
• King Francis
• History's King Francis
• Prince Francis and Queen Mary's Wedding
• King Francis' Coronation • King Francis' Funeral
• Francis and Mary • Francis and Lola • Francis and Olivia
• Francis and Catherine • Francis and Henry
• Francis and Leith • Francis and Sebastian
• Francis' Kill Count • Francis' Room
• Toby Regbo
