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Eleanor of Aquitaine: The Art of Governing

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Norman to Early Plantagenet Consorts

Part of the book series: Queenship and Power ((QAP))

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Abstract

During her long life, Eleanor of Aquitaine (1124–1204) had to struggle to preserve and to rule her important heritage: a Duchy that comprised the centre and south of Western France. At 12 years old, she became the heiress of her father Duke William X. Her marriage to King Louis VII of France did not stop her influence in her principality and she even participated in the Second Crusade. Her first marriage was cancelled and she wedded Henry II, who became King of England in 1154. Their lands constituted the so-called Plantagenet Empire. Her husband tried to rule Aquitaine and she revolted against him with her children in 1173. As a widow, she exercised real power under the reign of her sons Richard I and John I. Her motherhood, her patronage of letters and arts, and her matrimonial strategies show the agency of a Queen who never gave up her rights and her power.

Thank you to Sharon Bennett Connolly for her translation of the original draft of this chapter.

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Notes

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Poitiers, Poitiers, France

    Martin Aurell

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  1. Martin Aurell
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Correspondence to Martin Aurell .

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  1. University Campus North Lincolnshire, England, UK

    Aidan Norrie

  2. University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    Carolyn Harris

  3. University of Reading, Reading, UK

    J.L. Laynesmith

  4. York, UK

    Danna R. Messer

  5. University of Winchester, Winchester, UK

    Elena Woodacre

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Aurell, M. (2023). Eleanor of Aquitaine: The Art of Governing. In: Norrie, A., Harris, C., Laynesmith, J., Messer, D.R., Woodacre, E. (eds) Norman to Early Plantagenet Consorts. Queenship and Power. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-21068-6_7

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