ABSTRACT
After his coronation at Westminster on 19 December 1154, Henry tried to deal with his two younger brothers, Geoffrey and William. In September 1155 at Winchester, the king and his barons discussed a projected conquest of Ireland. There was papal approval for such a plan, and Ireland may have been intended for William. However, nothing came of this scheme in the short term, and William died in 1164. As for Geoffrey, Henry had promised his father on his death-bed that he would surrender Anjou to his younger brother when he became king of England. Geoffrey now wanted to take charge of what he saw as his lawful inheritance; but Henry had other ideas. In January 1156 Henry crossed the Channel and in February performed homage to King Louis VII of France for his French lands. Thus Geoffrey was deprived of a potentially important ally and he was soon quite isolated. In July 1156 he agreed to abandon his claims in return for the county of Nantes, the lordship of Loudun and an annual pension of £1,500. He died in 1158.
