King Henry

**King Henry** is the overarching antagonist of the 2014 Disney live-action fantasy film *Maleficent*.

He was introduced as the main antagonist, only to be replaced by King Stefan in the second half after his death. He is the father of Queen Leila, the father-in-law of King Stefan, and the grandfather of Aurora.

He was portrayed by Kenneth Cranham.

## Origin

Nothing is known about **King Henry** except that he was a tyrannical king of a neighboring human kingdom to the Moors.

Upon his ascension to the throne, Henry had swore to invade the Moors and liberate its treasures.

### *Maleficent*

Near the start of the film, Henry is seen leading a large army of knights and soldiers in another attempt to conquer the Moors. Maleficent, who lived there, stands up to him as the forest's fiercest defender and rallies an army of tree-like warriors to drive back his forces.

During the battle, King Henry is knocked off his horse by Maleficent, who proclaimed he would never have the moors. Gasping in great pain, King Henry pulled his right arm and touched her shoulder. Maleficent recoils in pain as she realized his armor was iron, an element harmful to fairies. Overpowered, the king and his forces retreat.

Upon returning to the castle that night, King Henry's wound becomes gravely infected. On his deathbed, he contemplates on his failure to his people since he swore to overtake the Moors. He demands to be avenged, with the promise of whoever kills Maleficent shall become the new king.

Stefan takes the task by chopping off Maleficent's wings and claiming that he killed her. Seeing Maleficent's wings and believing Stefan's lie, King Henry congratulates him for accomplishing the task and names him his successor.

King Henry dies from his infected wound shortly afterward, and Stefan is crowned as the new King, marrying Henry's daughter Leila, and conceiving with her Henry's granddaughter, Aurora.

## Personality

Henry was a vain, greedy, and unpleasant king that ruled the human kingdom for a long time.

Despite being old, he was still strong enough to lead his army into battle against Maleficent.

For all his negative traits, however, it was clear that Henry loved his daughter, at the very least, for on his deathbed, he intended to choose a successor not just to take the throne, but also to care for his daughter Leila.

## Physical Appearance

King Henry was an elderly man with a white beard and mustache.

On the battlefield, he dressed in iron battle armor.

## Notes

* It seems that King Henry had no male heirs and no chance of fathering an heir, as he promised his kingdom to whomever was able to slay Maleficent.
* In the novelization of the film, it was told that King Henry was responsible for the deaths of Maleficent's parents when Maleficent was a child, which would explain Maleficent's hatred towards King Henry:
	+ It was also revealed that upon even learning that Stefan has brought Maleficent's wings in person, King Henry just mocked Stefan as he still thinks that he's unfit to rule, which provoked an angry Stefan to smother King Henry on his deathbed before forging himself a royal proclamation to declare himself as King.
		- This was possibly based on an early version of the film's script, however, as King Henry was clearly depicted in the film fulfilling his promise and naming Stefan his successor. However, as his killing on Maleficent's parents doesn't contradict the film in any ways, it's unknown if that detail can be considered canonical.
* King Henry's death has had a major influence in the film:
	+ His death paved the way for King Stefan to become the main antagonist of the film.
	+ After Stefan's betrayal and ascension to the throne, Maleficent planned to have her revenge on King Stefan, resulting in Aurora being cursed.
* King Henry is an original character made for the film. In the original 1959 animated film, there was no indication that King Stefan was born in poverty and doesn't specify if Stefan was already a king from birth.
* King Henry gets mistaken for Prince Phillip's father "King Hubert" from Disney's *Sleeping Beauty* by some fans. This is due to that he nearly bears a physical resemblance to the said latter. King Hubert's later appearance in *Maleficent: Mistress of Evil*, albeit renamed as King John, put this confusion to rest.
* Despite not appearing in the original *Sleeping Beauty,* his design seem inspired by King Hubert, who has however a completely different personality.
* King Henry is similar to Pharaoh Seti I; they were the original rulers of their kingdom, but ironically served as the secondary antagonists in their respective films. Their deaths paved the way for someone else to take over and become the main antagonist (King Stefan in King Henry's case, Rameses in Seti's case). However, they both served as Bigger Bads because if it weren't for their actions, the plot wouldn't make any sense.
* He was portrayed by Kenneth Cranham, who, in his film debut, also portrayed Noah Claypole, Mr Sowerberry's thug like apprentice in the 1968 film adaptation of *Oliver!*.
* King Henry is the first villain in the *Maleficent* franchise to die in their first appearance, followed by King Stefan and Gerda.