Eleanor of Aquitaine was one of the wealthiest and most powerful women in Europe, during her lifetime. She was the Queen of both France and England (not at the same time) but the most powerful period in her life came after both reigns, when she was Dowager Queen of England, and the effective ruler of half of what we now know as France.
Eleanor was born in 1122, the elder of two daughters of the Duke of Aquitaine. Aquitaine was an incredibly powerful duchy in what we now know as France (although it was only barely associated with France at the time). It included almost one third of modern France (the south and west), and some of its richest farmland. When her father died, she became, in effect, at the age of 15, the ruler of this vast land.
Of course, in those days, the idea of a female ruler, particular one so young, wasn’t universally accepted. So Eleanor also became an eligible marriage prize. Three months later, she had been married off to the heir to the King of France, Louis, who was overjoyed to be able to effectively add Aquitaine to the already considerable Kingdom of France. Technically, it wasn’t supposed to become part of France until the next generation, but in practice, the combination could start immediately. Within a week, they were King and Queen, as the old King of France died, his dynastic duties fulfilled.
Eleanor didn’t get on very well with her new husband, or the French court. At the time the south of France was much more cultured than the north, with Eleanor being well educated, familiar with the poetry of the troubadors in her native Langue-d’oc, and very interested in current affairs. Her new husband had been raised to be a monk, until his older brother died, and was much less worldly than Eleanor.
After fifteen years of marriage to Louis, there were two daughters (but no sons) and increasing evidence of disagreement between Louis and Eleanor. The strongest example was when they went crusading together, and disagreed about tactics. Eleanor wanted to follow her uncle’s battle plan, but Louis, sick of her independence, effectively imprisoned her, and forced her to follow his plans. Their marriage was technically illegal (they were third cousins, but that was so normal that the Pope had granted them routine exemption from the rules when they were married) so Eleanor started a campaign for annulment. She won, probably helped by her lack of sons, and, while losing custody of her daughters, got back the sole right to her title of Duchess of Aquitaine.
Very shortly afterwards (suspiciously quickly according to many historians) she secretly married the heir to the English throne, Henry. He became King within two years, so Eleanor became Queen of a second country, England. She and Henry had eight children in thirteen years, including five sons, during which time Eleanor wasn’t seen much around the court, or in documents. Henry also fathered quite a few other children in that time, although it isn’t clear whether Eleanor was particularly troubled by that.
Regardless, after fifteen years of marriage, in 1167, Eleanor effectively separated from Henry, and moved her court back to Poitiers, the capital of Aquitaine. She began to rule Aquitaine herself, with many documents being issued in her own name. By this time, Henry had decided in a split of his Kingdom amongst his sons, and Richard (later the Lionheart), Eleanor’s favourite, was to inherit Aquitaine.
But by 1173, Eleanor’s teenaged sons were becoming restless. They wanted power for themselves. Egged on by their mother, Henry, Richard and Geoffrey rose up against their father, in an attempt to get more power for themselves. The revolt failed, despite being supported by the French King, and Eleanor, for her part in it, was effectively imprisoned for the rest of Henry’s reign. It would have been a pleasant prison, with all available comforts, but prison, nonetheless.
For most women of the time, that would have been it. But when Henry died, in 1189, her son Richard became King, and immediately not only released his mother, but gave her a powerful role in his Kingdom. Once again she was one of the most powerful people in Europe. She ruled England as Richard’s regent when he went off on crusades, and also raised his ransom when he was captured by a German prince.
After Richard died, and the Kingdom passed to his brother John, Eleanor continued to be a powerful player in European politics, managing the marriage of one of her granddaughters to the heir to the King of France, travelling south to Spain and North to France in her late 70s to do so. She died in 1204, aged 82, having outlived most of her children, and remade the dynastic politics of much of western Europe.
Her birth as one of the richest women in Europe undoubtedly helped her path to wielding power in the middle ages. But the astonishing thing about Eleanor, reading about her nearly 900 years after her birth, was how much she managed to make her own decisions. Leaving her marriage with the King of France and becoming the Queen of England was something she did entirely for herself, and her less successful decision to support her sons against their father was also entirely her call. In her long life, she was one of the most important political players in large parts of Western Europe, and she was clearly a woman of decision, who chose her own path.
Useful sources for this post included (as well as wikipedia) are the book She-Wolves: The Women Who Ruled England Before Elizabeth, by Helen Castor, and the podcast about Eleanor of Aquitaine from stuff you missed in history class, a set of podcasts which are great for glances at many different aspects of history, often including notable people.
This is part of a serious of notable women from where we are as we travel the world. I’d love suggestions for future subjects – our itinerary is here.