In June 1170, the fifteen-year-old Henry was crowned king during his father's lifetime, a practice originally practised by the French Capetian dynasty and adopted by the English kings Stephen and Henry II. A Latin poem by a court official written to commemorate the coronation hints at the charisma of this young prince. There he is described as a charming youth of striking beauty, tall but well proportioned, broad-shouldered with a long and elegant neck, pale and freckled skin, bright and wide blue eyes, with a thick mop of the reddish-gold hair characteristic of his dynasty.[citation needed]
He was known in his own lifetime as "Henry the Young King" to distinguish him from his father. Because he predeceased his father, he is not counted in the numerical succession of kings of England. Nonetheless, he was an anointed king and his royal status was not disputed. If he lacked political weight, the Young King's patronage gave him celebrity status throughout western Europe. The baron and troubador, Bertran de Born, who knew him, said that he was "...the best king who ever took up a shield, the most daring and best of all tourneyers. From the time when Roland was alive, and even before, never was seen a knight so skilled, so warlike, whose fame resounded so around the world if even if Roland did come back, or if the world were searched as far as the River Nile and the setting sun." There was a perception amongst his contemporaries and the next generation that his death in 1183 marked a decline both in the tournament and knightly endeavor. His former chaplain, Gervase of Tilbury, said that "his death was the end of everything knightly".