Henry II. King of France. Was born in 1519; son of Francis I, whom he succeeded in 1547. By his alliance with the German Protestants, he acquired Metz, Toul, and Verdun, while he also regained Calais from the English. He carried on his father's war with Spain, with some success until the disaster at St. Quentin. Died in 1559 of a wound inflicted in a tournament held to celebrate its conclusion by the marriage of his daughter and Philip II.

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