Capet–Plantagenet feud
The Capet–Plantagenet feud, also referred to as the "First Hundred Years' War" (French: Première Guerre de Cent Ans; 1159–1259) by some French historians[1], was a series of conflicts and disputes during the High Middle Ages during which the House of Capet, rulers of the Kingdom of France, fought the House of Plantagenet (also known as the House of Anjou or the Angevins), rulers of the Kingdom of England. The conflict emerged over the Plantagenet-held Angevin Empire formed by Henry II of England which at its peak covered around half of the territory within France.
This article is about the Anglo–French dispute from 1159 to 1259, sometimes known as the First Hundred Years' War. For the dispute from 1337 to 1453, see Hundred Years' War.
During the feud, the continental possessions of the Kings of England were considered to be more important than their insular ones, covering an area significantly greater than the territories controlled by the Kings of France who, however, were the overlords of the former in regards to the continental lands. Indeed, while the Capetian's nominal suzerainty extended far beyond the small domain of Île-de-France, the actual power they held over many of their vassals, including the Plantagenets, was weak. These reasons, in combination with the Plantagenet's hold on the sovereign kingdom of England adding to the strength of the Plantagenets, can be seen the primary reasons for the feud.
The feud between the two dynasties and the many wars that came with it led to the gradual "reconquest" by the Capetians of most of their own kingdom, and later, the Plantagenet's attempts at retaking what they believed to be their rightful claims in western France. After the Plantagenet claims to western France ended with the Treaty of Paris in 1259, the English kings, in regards to their few remaining possessions on the continent, would remain vassals to the French kings and would become more English in nature. The Capetians were also able to consolidate their power, making the kingdom of France the wealthiest and most powerful state in medieval Western Europe. Ironically, the intermarriage between the two dynasties resulting from multiple peace settlements during the conflict directly led to the Plantagenet's dynastic claim over the French throne and the start of the more commonly known Hundred Years' War.