[1] Being the most highly favored natural son of the King, he was legitimized and made Duke of Angoulême.

Henri would later serve as Abbot of La Chaise-Dieu, Grand Prior of France[2] of the Sovereign Order of Malta [3] and Admiral of the Levantine Sea, further ruling as Governor of Provence from 1579 until his death in 1586.

They thought that Henri's Scottish and French royal ancestry would gain him respect in Scotland and England.

[4] Henri d'Angoulême took a major role in the two extended military battle against Huguenot strongholds during the height of the French Wars of Religion, engaging in the massive Siege of La Rochelle (1572–1573), organized by the Duke of Anjou, future Henry III of France, and leading the five-year Siege of Ménerbes (1573–1578), fought at a citadel in the Luberon foothills cherished by Pope Pius V. While serving as Governor of Provence, his secretary was the poet François de Malherbe.

[2] In 1586, Henri was killed at Aix-en-Provence in a duel with Philip Altoviti, who also was mortally wounded in the fight.