Eleanor of Aquitaine

Map of Aquitaine

Eleanor of Aquitaine was born in 1122 to Aenor of Chatellerault and William X of Aquitaine. “In July 1137, just a few months after the death of her father, Eleanor of Aquitaine married Louis [VII, both of them teenagers,] heir to the throne of France. He became the king of France when his father died less than a month later.” (source)

“As Queen, Eleanor was famous for her beauty and wit. During their 15-year marriage she bore Louis two daughters and exercised considerable influence over her mild husband. In 1147 she coaxed him into undertaking a Crusade.” (source) Her grandfather had fought in the first Crusade, and she was determined to be a part of the second one. “At age 19, she knelt in the cathedral of Vézelay before the celebrated Abbé Bernard of Clairvaux offering him thousands of her vassals for the Second Crusade. It was said that Queen Eleanor appeared at Vézelay dressed like an Amazon galloping through the crowds on a white horse, urging them to join the crusades. While the church may have been pleased to receive her thousand fighting vassals, they were less happy when they learned that Eleanor, attended by 300 of her ladies, also planned to go to help ‘tend the wounded.’” Commentators throughout her adventure criticized the presence of Eleanor, her ladies and wagons of female servants. The women never fought, but they were dressed in armor and carrying lances. (book source, source, Millard 102.)

In Antioch, Eleanor caused a scandal by paying more attention to her handsome and interesting Uncle Raymond than to her husband. She asked for her marriage to be annulled on the terms that they were so closely related that the marriage was prohibited by the Church. Louis VII was furious and made her ride with him to Jerusalem even though she wanted to stay back with Raymond. However, his expedition failed and the couple rode in separate ships back to France. On the way home while resting in Sicily, she was brought the news that Raymond had been killed in battle. In 1152, her request for divorce was granted and she remarried eight weeks later. This time “Eleanor married Henry, duke of Normandy and count of Anjou, uniting her vast possessions with those of her husband. Louis VII feared this powerful combination, and when Henry ascended the English throne in 1154, the stage was set for a long struggle between the English and French kings.” (source) (source, source)

“For the next thirteen years Eleanor constantly bore Henry children, five sons and three daughters… However, all was not well between Henry and Eleanor. When her older sons were of age, her estrangement from her husband grew. In 1173 she led three of her sons in a rebellion against Henry, surprising him with this act of aggression so seemingly unusual for a woman. In her eyes it was justified… Eleanor may have hoped that her prize would have been the right to rule Aquitaine with her beloved third son Richard, and without Henry. The rebellion was put down, however, and fifty-year-old Eleanor was imprisoned by Henry in various fortified buildings for the next fifteen years.” (source)

An interesting twist in her life occurred when Henry died in 1189. “On the accession of her son Richard I to kingship, Eleanor's fortunes rose again. When Richard was fighting…she repeatedly intervened to defend his lands - even against her son John… Her relentless work on behalf of her favorite son increased her fame as an extremely able politician.” (source) “When her son John joined forces with the King of France in rising against his brother King Richard, Eleanor backed Richard and helped bolster his rule when he was on crusade. In 1199 she supported John's claim to the throne against her grandson Arthur of Brittany (Geoffrey's son). Eleanor was 80 years old when she helped hold out against Geoffrey's forces until John could arrive, defeating Arthur and his supporters. In 1204, John lost Normandy, but Eleanor's European holdings remained secure.” (source)

“Eleanor died in 1204 at her favorite religious house, the abbey of Fontevrault, where she had retreated to find peace during various moments of her life.” (source) She lived a life of 82 years that changed history forever. Eleanor of Aquitaine is definitely a very interesting character to study.

Works Cited

Link to video at the end of the 2nd paragraph labeled "book source"

Millard, Dr. Anne and Patricia Vanags. The Usborne Book of World History. London, England: Usborne Publishing Ltd. 1985.

The Part of the Middle Ages Most Interesting to Me

The part of the Middle Ages that is most interesting to me is the Carolingian Empire. Many important things happened during this time that would change the world. Below is a timeline to help you organize the dates in your head.
“The Middle Ages -- 500 A.D. - 1500 A.D.
A. Transition Period, 500 - 700 A.D.
B. Carolingian Empire, 700 - 900 A.D.
C. Feudalism, 900 - 1100 A.D.
D. High Middle Ages, 1100 - 1300 A.D.
E. Late Middle Ages, 1300 - 1500 A.D.” (source)

Before he died in 768, Pepin III divided his Frankish kingdom and gave it to his two sons. Charlemagne got the outer areas of Frankland, and his younger brother received the settled, more secure inner areas. There was much friction between the two until the younger brother died in 771. (source)

Charlemagne was a great military leader and conquered so many lands and people (much of central and western Europe) that others held great fear of him. “Having acquired more territory than any other European monarch of his times, Charlemagne was forced to create new positions and adapt old offices to suit new necessities. He delegated authority over provinces to worthy Frankish nobles. Yet he also understood that the various people he had brought together in one nation were still members of distinct ethnic groups, and he allowed each group to retain its own laws in local areas. To ensure justice, he saw to it that each group's laws were set down in writing and carefully enforced. He also issued capitularies, decrees that applied to everyone in the realm regardless of ethnicity.” (source)

Charlemagne did not have an extensive education, but he understood that it was very valuable. He also saw that education was in a serious decline. “Charlemagne started a school at Aix-la-Chapelle, where he invited students from all over the kingdom to learn. Although the school was established for sons of nobles, he believed that all children should have a chance to learn, so he allowed all children to enroll. He often pointed out that the poorer students did better than the students who were better off. The reputation of the Palace School spread throughout Europe. Students from all across Europe came to the school. Charlemagne picked Alcuin, a monk from England to revise the educational system. Alcuin wrote new textbooks to replace the older ones, and started to train new teachers. By the time of Alcuin's retirement, Charlemagne could offer universal free education… The school at Aix-la-Chapelle soon became a college. Lectures, poetry readings, and conversation…[were] prevalent there.” (source)

However, “this ‘Carolingian Renaissance’ was an isolated phenomenon. Learning did not catch fire throughout Europe. Only in the royal court, monasteries and schools was there any real focus on education. Yet because of Charlemagne's interest in preserving and reviving knowledge, a wealth of ancient manuscripts were copied for future generations. Just as important, a tradition of learning was established in European monastic communities… overcoming the threat of the extinction of Latin culture. While their isolation from the Roman Catholic Church sent the famous Irish monasteries into decline, European monasteries were firmly established as keepers of knowledge thanks in part to the Frankish king.” (source)

In 799, Pope Leo was accused with crime. The people wanted to blind him and cut out his tongue. “However, Leo escaped and fled to the protection of Charlemagne at Paderborn. Precisely what, if any, negotiations took place remains unknown, but shortly thereafter Pope Leo returned to Rome under a safe escort. In November, a commission controlled by the Frankish king arrested and deported Leo's assailants and discredited the accusations that had been made against him.” (source) “On Christmas Day of the year 800, the pope -- supposedly unexpectedly -- placed a tiara on Charlemagne's head and acclaimed him Holy Roman Emperor. It has been remarked that the realm was neither holy, nor Roman, nor an empire, but it lasted for over a thousand years.” (source)

The Middle Ages is a very interesting time, and the Carolingian Empire is a huge example of that. I think it is amazing that Charlemagne conquered more land during this time than any other European monarch. He also stopped the decline of learning even though he was not extremely well educated himself. I also think it is interesting how he did not want the title of emperor, but was content living as a king. That’s pretty unusual.

Well, Here Goes

It's the beginning of the 08-09 school year, everybody! Yay. For all of you who are frightened by my strange cat pictures, I have some good news. I'm actually going to start posting intelligent WORDS on here now. Well, hopefully intelligent. Enjoy/be scared out of your mind even more. It all depends...
Yours truly,
The crazy person whose thoughts make no sense to other people.
(I willingly admit.)