Table Of ContentPraise	for	Eleanor	of	Aquitaine
“Eleanor	 of	 Aquitaine	 was	 among	 the	 powerful	 rulers	 in	 Europe.…	 In	 the
sweeping	pageant	of	Eleanor	of	Aquitaine	…	Weir	convincingly	debunks	some
of	the	more	salacious	fables	about	Eleanor’s	libertine	ways.”
—The	Boston	Globe
“As	 delicately	 textured	 as	 a	 12th-century	 tapestry,	 royal	 biographer	 Weir’s
newest	 book	 is	 exhilarating	 in	 its	 color,	 ambition,	 and	 human	 warmth.	 The
author	 exhibits	 a	 breathtaking	 grasp	 of	 the	 physical	 and	 cultural	 context	 of
Queen	 Eleanor’s	 life	 …	 Her	 account	 parades	 a	 sequence	 of	 extraordinary
characters.…	Above	all,	there	is	the	heroine,	viewed	clear-sightedly	in	all	her
intoxicating	and	imperious	irresistibility.”
—Publishers	Weekly	(starred	review)
“One	 of	 the	 most	 fascinating	 women	 in	 not	 only	 English	 history	 but	 all	 of
European	history	…	The	author’s	well-written	pages—as	in	her	previous	books
—lead	easily	to	a	rich,	deep,	and	accessible	understanding	of	the	topic.”
—Booklist
“Alison	Weir	…	paints	a	vibrant	portrait	of	a	truly	exceptional	woman,	and
provides	new	insights	into	her	life.”
—Koen	Pacific
“Weir	provides	the	necessary	checks	and	cautions	against	believing	all	we	read,
whilst	enjoyably	recording	the	gossip	anyway.	A	balanced	account,	with	myths,
suppositions,	and	misunderstandings	well	ventilated.”
—Literary	Review
“A	fresh	biography	of	a	remarkable	woman.”
—Irish	News	(Belfast)
2008	Ballantine	Books	Trade	Paperback	Edition
Copyright	©	1999	by	Alison	Weir
Reading	group	guide	copyright	©	1999	by	Random	House,	Inc.
All	rights	reserved.
Published	in	the	United	States	by	Ballantine	Books,	an	imprint	of	The	Random
House
Publishing	Group,	a	division	of	Random	House,	Inc.,	New	York.
BALLANTINE	and	colophon	are	registered	trademarks	of	Random	House,	Inc.
RANDOM	HOUSE	READER’S	CIRCLE	and	colophon	are	trademarks	of
Random	House,	Inc.
Originally	published	in	the	United	Kingdom	in	slightly	different	form	by
Jonathan	Cape,	an	imprint	of	Random	House	Group,	Ltd.,	London,	in	1999.
Subsequently	published	in	hardcover	in	the	United	States	by	Ballantine	Books,
an	imprint	of	The	Random	House	Publishing	Group,	a	division	of	Random
House,	Inc.,	in	2000.
A	trade	paperback	edition	was	published	by	Ballantine	Books,	an	imprint	of	The
Random	House	Publishing	Group,	a	division	of	Random	House,	Inc.,	in	2001.
eISBN:	978-0-307-83185-9
www.randomhousereaderscircle.com
v3.1
Contents
Cover
Title	Page
Copyright
A	Note	on	Names	and	Spellings
Illustrations
Map
Preface
Prologue:	18	May	1152
		1	“Opulent	Aquitaine”
		2	“A	Model	of	Virtue”
		3	“Counsel	of	the	Devil”
		4	“To	Jerusalem!”
		5	“A	Righteous	Annulment”
		6	“A	Happy	Issue”
		7	“All	the	Business	of	the	Kingdom”
		8	“Eleanor,	by	the	Grace	of	God,	Queen	of	England”
		9	“The	King	Has	Wrought	a	Miracle”
10	“Conjectures	Which	Grow	Day	by	Day”
11	“The	Holy	Martyr”
12	“The	Cubs	Shall	Awake”
13	“Beware	of	Your	Wife	and	Sons”
14	“Poor	Prisoner”
15	“Shame,	Shame	on	a	Conquered	King!”
16	“The	Eagle	Shall	Rejoice	in	Her	Third	Nesting”
17	“The	Admiration	of	Her	Age”
18	“The	Devil	Is	Loosed!”
19	“The	Staff	of	My	Old	Age”
20	“The	Most	Reverend	Eleanor”
21	“The	Brood	of	the	Wicked	Shall	Not	Thrive”
22	“A	Candle	Goeth	Out”
Notes	on	the	Chief	Sources
Bibliography
Dedication
Acknowledgements
Notes	and	References
Genealogical	Tables
A	Reader’s	Guide
Other	Books	by	This	Author
About	the	Author
A	Note	on	Names	and	Spellings
Different	variations	of	the	names	of	people	and	places	occur	in	twelfth-century
sources.	 For	 example,	 the	 names	 Matilda,	 Maud,	 and	 Mahalde	 are
interchangeable,	as	are	Alice,	Aaliz,	and	Alais.
For	the	sake	of	clarity,	I	have	used	different	spellings	of	the	same	name	to
identify	different	people.	Eleanor’s	daughter	is	called	Alix,	Richard	I’s	betrothed
of	the	same	name	Alys,	and	the	Lord	John’s	betrothed	Alice.	All	are	accurate
renderings.	 A	 similar	 differentiation	 has	 been	 used	 with	 the	 name
Amaury/Aymer/Aimery.	Louis	VII’s	daughter,	often	called	Margaret	in	other
works,	is	here	referred	to	by	the	French	version	of	her	name,	Marguerite.
Eleanor,	who	would	have	called	herself	Aliénore,	is	referred	to	by	the	more
familiar	anglicised	version	of	her	name.
As	in	many	other	history	books,	William	the	Marshal	is	throughout	referred	to
as	such,	even	though	he	did	not	acquire	his	office	of	Marshal	until	1199.
Although	Eleanor	was	Countess	of	Poitou	and	Duchess	of	Aquitaine,	I	have
occasionally	 used	 the	 name	 Aquitaine	 as	 a	 blanket	 term	 covering	 both	 her
domains,	although	I	have	tried	to	differentiate	between	them	wherever	possible.
Many	 place	 names	 have	 changed	 since	 the	 twelfth	 century,	 and	 where
appropriate	I	have	given	the	modern	name	in	parentheses.	Some	places	no	longer
exist;	wherever	possible,	I	have	attempted	to	discover	their	exact	or	approximate
location.
Illustrations
Palais	de	Justice,	Poitiers	©	Roger-Viollet
William	IX,	Duke	of	Aquitaine.	Manuscript	illumination,	fr.	12473	fol.	128	©
Bibliothèque	Nationale,	Paris
Louis	VII,	King	of	France.	Manuscript	illumination	from	“Grands	Chroniques	de
France,”	fr.	2813	fol.	223	©	Bibliothèque	Nationale,	Paris
Rock	crystal	vase,	12th	c.,	from	the	Abbey	of	Saint-Denis,	now	in	the	Louvre	©
Réunion	des	Musées	Nationaux—Daniel	Arnaudet
Retable	of	St.	Bernard	of	Clairvaux	(detail),	anon.,	12th	c.,	Museo	de	Mallorca,
on	loan	from	the	Sociedad	Arqueológica	Luliana
Count	Geoffrey	of	Anjou.	Enamel	tombstone,	c.	1152,	Musée	de	Tessé,	Le	Mans
©	Giraudon
Eleanor’s	 seal,	 from	 a	 charter	 in	 the	 Archives	 de	 France	 ©	 Atelier	 de
photographie	du	Centre	historique	des	Archives	nationales,	Paris
Engaged	capital,	thought	to	portray	Henry	II	and	Eleanor	of	Aquitaine.	©	The
Metropolitan	Museum	of	Art,	The	Cloisters	Collection,	1934	(34.115.4ab)
Tomb	of	Matilda,	daughter	of	Henry	II,	and	Henry	the	Lion,	Duke	of	Saxony,
Brunswick	Cathedral,	late	12th	c.	©	AKG	London
Effigy	of	Henry	the	Young	King	(detail),	late	12th	c.,	Rouen	Cathedral	©	Roger-
Viollet
Effigy	of	Henry	II	(detail),	late	12th	c.,	Fontevrault	Abbey	©	AKG	London
Effigy	of	Richard	I	(detail),	1199–1200,	Fontevrault	Abbey	©	AKG	London
Effigy	 of	 Berengaria	 of	 Navarre	 (detail),	 after	 1230,	 Le	 Mans	 Cathedral	 ©
Geoffrey	Wheeler
Effigy	of	King	John	(detail),	c.	1225–1230,	Worcester	Cathedral	©	Geoffrey
Wheeler
Mural	from	Sainte-Radegonde,	Chinon,	c.	1196	©	By	courtesy	of	Les	Amis	du
Vieux	Chinon
Effigy	 of	 Isabella	 of	 Angoulême	 (detail),	 mid	 13th	 c.,	 Fontevrault	 Abbey	 ©
Geoffrey	Wheeler
Effigy	 of	 Eleanor	 of	 Aquitaine	 (detail),	 c.	 1204,	 Fontevrault	 Abbey	 ©	 AKG
London
The	tombs	of	the	Plantagenets	in	the	Abbey	of	Fontevrault	©	Bildarchiv	Foto
Marburg
Maps
The	Angevin	Empire	in	1154
Europe	and	the	Holy	Land	in	the	Twelfth	Century
Description:Renowned in her time for being the most beautiful woman in Europe, the wife of two kings and mother of three, Eleanor of Aquitaine was one of the great heroines of the Middle Ages. At a time when women were regarded as little more than chattel, Eleanor managed to defy convention as she exercised pow