Living for more than eighty years and surviving all but two of her ten children, Eleanor of Aquitaine was a force to be reckoned with. Arguably the most powerful woman in medieval Europe, Eleanor oversaw the rise and fall of kings, governing and leading in a way which was all but unheard of for a woman in her time. 

Little is known about Eleanor’s early life other than she was likely born around 1122 to William X, Duke of Aquitaine, and Aénor de Châtellerault. She was the eldest of three children and became her father’s heir presumptive upon the death of her only brother, William, when Eleanor was around eight years old. 

Widely educated in languages, literature, and philosophy, Eleanor was well-known for her keen wit and intelligence, and her father made sure she was equipped with a deep understanding of politics and the art of ruling. Eleanor was just fifteen when William X died, leaving her to inherit his expansive lands. Almost immediately, she was married to the French king’s son, who would soon become King Louis VII of France after his father’s death.

Just a teenager, Eleanor was now not only Duchess of Aquitaine but also the queen consort of France. Most women of her time would simply be expected to live out the rest of her days as a loyal, obedient wife, producing sons and heirs for her husband. Eleanor did not accept this fate.

Distinctly unworldly and weak, Louis was devoted to his intelligent, beautiful wife. Eleanor wielded considerable influence through his reign, but their marriage was not to last. The Second Crusade – during which Eleanor was lauded for her strength and wisdom – ended in failure for Louis and only served to drive a deeper wedge between the already quarreling couple. Eleanor was at risk of being accused of treason due to rumours over her relationship with her uncle, Raymond. Further, she had produced only daughters (Marie and Alix), and Louis was becoming suspicious of his wife.

In 1152 the marriage was annulled and Eleanor, now 30, travelled to Poitiers. She was famously beautiful and incredibly wealthy, making her Europe’s most eligible woman. Not two months after the annulment, she was wed to Henry, Count of Anjou, 11 years her junior, soon to become King Henry II of England. Henry was the opposite of Louis in every way: strong-willed and courageous, his personality matched Eleanor’s, creating an intense and often tempestuous union. 

They had eight children together, their three daughters marrying into Europe’s powerful families, and two of their five sons going on to become kings of England. Unlike with her first husband, Eleanor was unable to hold much influence in Henry’s court; he was unwilling to delegate power, especially to a woman. Nevertheless, she played an active role in the administration of the realm, particularly in her own domains of Aquitaine and Poitou. Her role as a ruler became highly notable after her estrangement with Henry in 1167, when she returned to Poitiers and set up her ‘Court of Love’. Inspired by the legend of King Arthur, the court encouraged the pursuit of chivalry and the arts, and it was said to have been the centre of culture – though its existence has been debated.

Eleanor made her boldest move yet in 1173 when their second (and oldest surviving) son, ‘Young Henry’, staged a revolt against his father alongside his brothers, Richard and Geoffrey. Casting aside any loyalty she may have felt to her husband, Eleanor gave military and financial support to her sons – some historians have even gone so far as to suggest that the plot was of Eleanor’s making. Whatever the case, the revolt failed, and Eleanor was imprisoned for sixteen years until Henry II’s death in 1189. 

Young Henry had died in 1183, leaving Richard the Lionheart (purportedly Eleanor’s favourite) to become King Richard I. Though distant during their childhoods, Eleanor became much more involved with her children’s lives once they were involved in politics. Both Richard and, later, John elevated her in their courts, granting her positions higher than those of their own spouses. 

Upon Richard’s ascension, a 67-year-old Eleanor was released from imprisonment and immediately re-entered the political world. With her son on crusade, she held direct authority in England, ruling as regent and securing Richard’s throne against threats – even from her youngest son, John Lackland. She managed this by personally travelling up and down the country, a remarkable feat for a woman of her age, and her efforts gained her a great deal of respect, which came in handy when she had to raise Richard’s hefty ransom after his capture in Germany. 

Two sons remain to my solace, who today survive to punish me, miserable and condemned. King Richard is held in chains. His brother, John, depletes his kingdom with iron and lays it waste with fire.

Eleanor of Aquitaine in a letter to Pope Celestine, begging for the release of her son, Richard.

Richard was killed in 1199, his youngest brother John ascending to the throne. Despite her previous efforts against him, Eleanor threw her full support behind John and continued to assist him, now aged almost 80. She helped to defeat his nephew, Arthur of Brittany, in an attempted revolt in 1202, and negotiated a difficult peace with France by arranging a marriage between her granddaughter Blanche and Louis VIII, personally crossing the Pyrenees in winter to do so. 

Eleanor finally retired from political life in 1202, her health failing. She lived out the remainder of her days in a monastery in Anjou, dying on 1 April 1204, buried next to her husband and her favourite son. The effigy on her tomb – though likely inaccurate – is the only likeness of Eleanor that survives. She is depicted holding a book to symbolise her great intelligence.

Though Eleanor’s legacy is indeed impressive, historians have judged her harshly, criticising the indiscretions of her youth whilst ignoring her wisdom and strength. Regardless, her life was extraordinary for a woman of her era. Described by the nuns of Fontevraud as a queen ‘who surpassed almost all the queens of the world’, she was a woman who refused to be limited by her gender and who shaped the political landscape of medieval Europe for more than eighty years.

Sources:

• https://thehistoryofengland.co.uk/resource/letter-of-eleanor-of-aquitaine-to-pope-celestine-1193/
• https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/women-in-history/eleanor-aquitaine/
• Wilkes, Jonny, ‘The Woman Who Commanded Medieval Europe’, BBC History Revealed, 24 (2015), 47-51
• Bailey, Katherine, ‘Eleanor of Aquitaine’, British Heritage, 26.2 (2005), 28-34
• Turner, Ralph V., ‘Eleanor of Aquitaine and her children: an inquiry into medieval family attachment’, Journal of Medieval History, 14.4 (1988), 321-335