Unite France and England during the time of Henry II of England isn't an easy task. Even if Louis VII were to fail fathering his only son (Philippe II Augustus), the Angevins are not in a good positions for the succession. They were two other great party:
- The House of Dreux, which were a cadet branch of the Capetians (born of Louis VII's younger brother Robert of Dreux). By Salic Law, they would be Louis VII's heirs. They are pretty weak politically, but they have been around Louis VII's court for quite some time. Plus, they were very loyal to Louis VII and the King: it's likely they would make a move to keep the crown in the Capetian family.
- The House of Chamapgne, which was very strong even if it can't compete with the Angevins. The claim of this house are pretty strong: the two daughters of Louis VII and Eleanor of Aquitaine (Marie and Alix) married into the House of Champagne (to Henri I of Champagne and Theobald V of Blois respectively), Louis VII's third wife and queen was Adele of Champagne and, last but not least, the Archbishop of Reims, William White Hands, was of the House of Champagne. If you add to this that their lands encircle the Royal Dosmaine (Champagne & Blois), they probably are the strongest opposing faction of the Plantagenêts.
Comparatively, the Plantagenêts are rather far from the throne and their claim is weak though there is no doubt the King of England is the most powerful French noble of the time (being Duke of Aquitaine & Count of Poitiers
jure uxoris, Duke of Normandy, Count of Anjou, Maine & Tourraine as well as having the Count of Toulouse and Duke of Britanny as vassals).
The first claimant would be Henry the Young King, whose wife is Margaret of France, the eldest daughter of Louis VII and Constance fo Castille. That makes him only third in line though and he has another problem: his wife sufferred a difficult pregnancy (resulting in a child that died young) that rended her sterile OTL. Thus, even if he manages to secure the throne, he might have no heir to hold it.
The second claimant is Richard the Lion Heart as he is bethroed to Alys of France, second daughter to Louis VII and Constance of Castille. The problem is that a bethroal isn't a marriage: Richard needs to wed Alys for his claim to come around. Richard's own character might be an issue here: I am not sure he would want Alys as his wife.
The last problem is the 1173 rebellion: ever since it came around, Henry II and his sons are at each other's throats. Would Henry II really want one of his son to become King of France if that could make him a greater threat?
Faeelin said:
Why couldn't the two realms be united but maintain separate identities?
French culture would still probably have an impact on England as the Anglo-Normands could become Anglo-French in this scenario. What I mean is that the chance of the nobility holding land on the Continent (France) and on the Island (England) would increase. We all know that the Normands had a hell lot of influence on England's culture: imagine what it would be with Anglo-French.
I do not forcibly mean it would result in England becoming "that Big French Island on the other side of the Channel": I do think the two countries could remain separate identities. However, England is gonna be Frenchified: the language might become some sort of
Frenglish (if you pardon me the barbarism) and the English culture will have more French elements. There might be a reverse effect in France with English elements showing up, but I have a doubt they would be pretty important.
pompejus said:
No, the hundred year wars were two French nobles fighting over the throne of France, one happened to be king of England too.
One of the most important decisions Edward III ever made was to enforce English as the language of his court. Edward III may have spoken French, had a French mother (Isabella the She-Wolf), come from a French-born dynasty (the Plantagenêts being Angevins and thus French) and hold the title Duke of Aquitaine/Guyenne but there is no doubt he was English.
Mind you, that's one of the reasons he was rejected by the French nobles: because he was a foreigner. And the French also feared that France would come under personnal union as the weakest side: that's the reason Salic Law came around. Hence why they refused to give the crown to Joan II of Navarra in 1316 (she was the only daughter of Louis X of France) and why they denied it to any female lines of the Capetians in 1328.
According to some, the Hundread Years' War saw the rise of an early form of Nationalism, opposing an England that had become quite English since it had lost most of its continental holdings (only Guyenne remained) to a France that was not wanting to become English.