Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life From Beginning to End by Hourly History

Author:Hourly History [History, Hourly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Hourly History
Published: 2018-02-20T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter Five

Continuing Conflict and Courtly Love

“Before the King crossed over [the Channel] on this occasion, the nobles of Maine and Brittany had failed to obey the Queen’s orders and, it is said, had sworn to defend one another if they were attacked.”

—Robert of Torigni

While Eleanor and Henry’s first son, William, died at three years old in 1156, Eleanor proved perfectly capable of bearing more male heirs. Her second son, Henry, was born before William died, in 1155. During the next twelve years, she would have three more sons—Richard, Geoffrey, and John—along with three daughters—Matilda, Eleanor, and Joanna. Despite frequent pregnancies, Eleanor also carried out responsibilities in her roles as queen and duchess. Historians must piece together much of what she did from documents that mention her in passing—the actions of a queen were largely seen as incidental to the activities of male leaders. Yet this does not mean that Eleanor’s actions were inconsequential.

Eleanor traveled extensively, frequently crossing the English Channel to appear in England. She also occasionally is recorded appearing with her husband when he held his court in various places. Between mentions of her presence at different times by different chroniclers, historians have drawn an outline of some of Eleanor’s journeys and the role she played during her almost 20 years as queen before her relationship with Henry began to deteriorate.

In 1155, Louis and Henry agreed to a temporary peace that would last three years. During 1155, while Henry was away, Eleanor had significant power in England, essentially acting as his regent. She traveled with Henry the following year to Poitou and Aquitaine, by her presence helping him gain recognition of his authority since the territories belonged to her as duchess. After returning to England for a time, she played this role again in late 1158, as Henry dealt with rebels in Poitou. Richard of Poitiers noted Henry’s decision to raze the walls of a rebel’s castle because he saw “that it would please the queen.”

The relationship between Henry and Louis improved significantly as they extended their peace by betrothing Henry and Eleanor’s son, young Henry, to Louis’s daughter Marguerite. Yet Louis refused to help Henry in his attempt to take Toulouse based on Eleanor’s claim to the territory—a project Louis had tried many years before. When Louis arrived within the city, Henry stopped his attack; he did not want to attack Louis, who was his overlord, and break the peace they had obtained. Therefore, the attempt to take Toulouse was a failure.

Soon after, in 1160, Eleanor journeyed back to England to rule for Henry, who was busy with continued fighting on the continent. In this role, Eleanor traveled around England often. She not only issued charters and spent money as she saw fit, but also ruled over England’s sheriffs. She returned to Normandy later that year for the wedding of young Henry and Marguerite. Despite their age, the Pope had granted permission for them to marry in return for King Henry’s support against the papal rival. This granted

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