Pernoud was born at chateau chinon, which eleanor and henry ii knew well. Eight weeks after her divorce, on may 18, 1152, at the cathedral of poitiers, henry married eleanor of aquitaine, in a quiet ceremony, swift and discreet. Upon williams death in 17 she inherited the duchy of aquitaine and in july 17 married the heir to the french throne, who succeeded his father, louis vi, the following month. In the twelfth century there was no concept of nationhood or patriotism, and subjects owed loyalty to their ruler, rather than the state. The longest reigning female ruler was the formidable eleanor of aquitaine who ruled over the duchy of aquitaine in her own right. Eleanor of aquitaine 11241204 is the most famous queen in all the middle ages and one of the most infamous women in history. A renowned beauty, with a headstrong, spirited personality, she has been compared to cleopatra, the celebrated egyptian queen, elizabeth i of england and many others. Their marriage was annulled in 1152, and louis maintained custody of their daughters. I have always known i would write a book on eleanor of aquitaine. Eleanor of aquitaine 1122 1204 married prince louis of france, later louis vii of france 1120 1180, on july 25, 17. Going the distance by elizabeth chadwick it is now four and a half years since i was contracted to write three novels about the life of eleanor of aquitaine the summer queen, the winter crown and the autumn throne. Eleanor of aquitaine 1122 1 april 1204 was queen consort of france 171152 and england 11541189 and duchess of aquitaine in her own right 171204. Eleanor of aquitaine, by the wrath of god, queen of. Facts and stories about eleanor of aquitaine live as.
Eleanor was the daughter and heiress of william x, duke of aquitaine and count of poitiers, who possessed one of the largest domains in francelarger, in fact, than those held by the french king. She had a younger sister called petronilla of aquitaine. On 18 may 1152, henry married eleanor of aquitaine, divorced from louis vii, king of france. Most of the activities are only offered in french, but the guide book. One of the oldest manuscripts in the kb is a beautifully illustrated prayer book from. Sadly, eleanors pleading with the pope proved fruitless. It was captured by the french in the early th century and was used as a prison in the second half of the 16th century. So, eleanor of aquitaine was a medieval badass, in case. She brought the province of aquitaine to england when she married henry ii of england. So she has used a lot of imagination but as the story of a truly remarkable woman, it works.
Eleanor herself was briefly imprisoned in chinon before being moved to england. Eleanor of aquitaine 1122 april 1, 1204 was a medieval firebrand, and no question about it. These books about eleanor of aquitaine are historicallyaccurate testaments to this strongwilled woman of the middle ages. Henry died testate at chinon chateau, normandy, 6 july 1189 during a rebellion by his sons. The castle at chinon served as a treasury for henry, who died there, and for the couples son, richard the lionheart. Guess who or the debate over the radegonde mural in chinon. Weir offers a full portrait of eleanor from both the primary sources and the myths surrounding the queen consort and, like schiff, does so in a biography that is storybased, richly. Historical tour of northern france with author sharon kay penman to explore places connected with eleanor of aquitaine june 3, 2011. One of marion meades problems, as she freely admits, was lack of sources. Eleanor of aquitaine by alison weir overdrive rakuten. Chinon and fontevrault, are thought to represent henry ii and eleanor of aquitaine, and date from c. Henry and margaret shared two older halfsisters, marie and alix. Europe fontevrault abby, burial place of eleanor of aquitaine my husband and i are both very interested in medievalmostly englishhistory but will be in france in october. Opulent aquitaine eleanor of aquitaine was born into a europe dominated by feudalism.
Eleanor, duchess of aquitaine was one of the leading personalities of the middle ages adn also one of the most controversial. Is kellys eleanor of aquataine and the four kings a reissue of the 1950 book, or did she rewrite it. She lies serenely in company with her husband henry ii in fontevraud abbey near chinon in the loire valley. Eleanor of aquitaine archives history of royal women. A life i was able to sate my eagerness to know what kind of life this woman, that was the duchess of aquitaine in her own right and queen of both france and england, lived. See the complete eleanor of aquitaine series book list in order, box sets or omnibus editions, and companion titles. Best historicalfiction about eleanor of aquitaine score a books total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book. Her father was louis vii of france, eleanor of aquitaines first husband, and her mother was louis second wife, constance of castile.
Her sons were kings of england and her daughters queens of castile and sicily, while her later descendants. When his brother john took the throne, he mostly cast his mother aside. Best historicalfiction about eleanor of aquitaine 24 books. Alison weir in eleanor of aquitaine, by the wrath of god queen of england. Henry ii and eleanor of aquitaines palace would have stood on this site. Eleanor of aquitaine, like cleopatra, played a pivotal role in her era, often pitted against powerful men and holding a driving agenda and ambition of her own. You can encounter medieval queen eleanor of aquitaine in the french village of chinon. Chadwick is working on a trilogy of novels about eleanor of aquitaine. Little did i know that in 2003 that i would be visiting the last resting place of my 24th greatgrandmother, eleanor of aquitaine. Recent research indicates that it was made for eleanor of aquitaine, the most. Now, one could say this is the shadow of scorpio and it would be fair. Their son john married isabella of angouleme at the fortress before departing for england.
Eleanor of aquitaine lived a long life of many contrasts, of splendor and desolation, power and peril, and in this stunning narrative, weir captures the woman and the queenin all her glory. Her portrail of eleanor of aquitaine, in the movie version of. Bottom line, eleanor never gave up plotting against henry until he died at chinon in 1189. Though the exact year and place of birth is unknown, it is speculated that she was born on either 1122 or 1124 in poitiers, bordeaux, or nieulsurlautise. The next 15 years of eleanors life were split between england, normandy and her beloved aquitaine. Fontevrault abby, burial place of eleanor of aquitaine. Eleanor of aquitaine by alison weir, paperback barnes. She wrote two definitive books about joan of arc and others about women closer to eleanors time. Ive been curious about the historical figure of eleanor of aquitaine for a long time. He later regretted this portrayal, and in the novel myself as witness he recast.
Queen eleanors castle of the republic of aquitaine. Eleanor of aquitaine is my bestselling book to date. At a time when women were regarded as little more than chattel, eleanor managed to defy convention as she exercised power in the political sphere and crucial influence over her husbands and sons. Why eleanor was a great queen in 1189, when king henry ii died, his queen, eleanor of aquitaine was released after sixteen years of imprisonment. Louis and eleanor were married in july 17, but had little time to get to know one another before louis father the king fell ill and died. Pernoud was born at chateau chinon, which eleanor and. She was beautiful, intelligent and wilful, and in her lifetime there were rumours about her that were not without substance. Best historicalfiction about eleanor of aquitaine score a book s total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book. Marion meade has told the story of eleanor, wild, devious, from a thoroughly historical but different point of view.
However, keeping in mind that the sun in a chart is the spirit, the spark, the vitality of our soul, eleanors penchant for plotting like a military general, the analytical. Today we went to chinon to see the ruins of the fortress where eleanor of aquitaine and. Great grandma eleanor of aquitaine sierraridges blog. See more ideas about eleanor of aquitaine, aquitaine and plantagenet. Eleanor of aquitaine, page 1 read online free books archive. By the time of her death she had become one of western europes most powerful medieval women. Katherine hepburn was one of my ultimate favorite actresses, from hollywoods golden years. Eleanor of aquitaine reads like a really upmarket historical novel and that is a compliment.
Eleanor of aquitaine alison weir this book is dedicated with heartfelt thanks to my agent, julian alexander and to jill black who has edited so many of my books. Renowned in her time for being the most beautiful woman in europe, the wife of two kings and mother of three, eleanor of aquitaine was one of the great heroines of the middle ages. She has also written biographies of woody allen, buster keaton, eleanor of aquitaine, victoria woodhull, and madame blavatsky, as. Henry and eleanor married on 18 may 1152 at bordeaux, france. Twelfth century folk did not jot down every passing thought. With astonishing historic detail, mesmerizing pageantry, and irresistible accounts of royal scandal and intrigue, she recreates not only a remarkable. It is more likely that she had red or auburn hair since a mural in the church of sainte radegonde in chinon which almost certainly depicts eleanor and was painted during her lifetime in a region in which she was well known, shows a woman with reddishbrown hair. Regine pernoud may have written the best modern historical biography of eleanor of aquitaine. As a member of the ramnulfids house of poitiers rulers in southwestern france, she was one of the wealthiest and most powerful women in western europe during the high middle ages. During this time she produced another seven children, acted as regent when henry was away from england and played an active part in political negotiations. Eleanor of aquitaine lived a long life of many contrasts, of splendor and desolation, power and peril, and in this stunning narrative, weir captures the womanand the queenin all her glory. It is currently home to the information desk and shop, and nothing remains of the palace. Henry 1155 1183 the young king married margaret of france betrothed november 2, 1160, married august 27, 1172.
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