Before becoming the king of England, Henry II became the duke of Normandy in 1150, and inherited the county of Anjou from his father in 1151. After his marriage to Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry Plantagenet gained control of the large and important region of Aquitaine in southwestern France. So, when he became king of England in 1154, Henry II ruled a huge collection of territories, including England, and much of western and northern France, and these territories constituted the Angevin Empire.