Henri II style

A movement in French art and especially architecture during the reign of Henry II. Essentially an attempt to absorb the ideas of the Italian Renaissance, it can be best seen in the works of the architects Pierre Lescot and Philibert De l'Orme, notably in the châteaus at St-Maur, 1541 and Anet, 1547–52 (both by Delorme). The construction of the Tuileries helped to create an entirely new school of French decoration.

Succeeding Francis I as patron at Fontainebleau, Henry II continued to foster the ideals of the Italian Renaissance by favouring French artists who had assimilated Italian concepts and adapted them to traditional French modes. This was seen mainly in royal building programmes, though other fields in which French artists developed a national style based upon Italian ideals included tapestries and medals.