Eleanor of Aquitaine facts for kids
| Eleanor of Aquitaine | |
|---|---|
| Queen consort of France Queen consort of England |
|
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| Eleanor with her youngest son, King John | |
| Duchess of Aquitaine | |
| Reign | 9 April 1137 – 1 April 1204 |
| Predecessor | William X |
| Successor | John |
| Queen consort of France | |
| Tenure | 1 August 1137 – 21 March 1152 |
| Coronation | 25 December 1137 |
| Queen consort of England | |
| Tenure | 19 December 1154 – 6 July 1189 |
| Coronation | 19 December 1154 |
| Issue | |
| Marie, Countess of Champagne Alix, Countess of Blois William IX, Count of Poitiers Henry the Young King Matilda, Duchess of Saxony Richard I the Lionheart, King of the English Geoffrey II, Duke of Brittany Leonora, Queen of Castile Joan, Queen of Sicily John Lackland, King of England |
|
| House | House of Poitiers |
| Father | William X, Duke of Aquitaine |
| Mother | Aenor de Châtellerault |
| Born | 1124 Belin Castle, Aquitaine |
| Died | 1 April 1204
(aged c. 81/82) |
| Burial | Fontevraud Abbey |
Eleanor of Aquitaine (c. 1122 – March 31, 1204) was the daughter of William X of Aquitaine. She had a younger sister called Petronilla of Aquitaine. She brought the province of Aquitaine to England when she married Henry II of England. It stayed under English control for 300 years.
Life
Eleanor inherited land in France at the age of 15. She married Louis VII of France on July 22, 1137, and had two daughters:
The marriage was later annulled, as there were no male children.
Eleanor then married Henry II of England on May 18, 1152, and had eight children, including:
- Guilhem who died at the age of 3.
- Henry the Young King
- Richard I of England
- John I of England
- Matilda of England
- Joan/Joanna of England
- Eleanor of England
Eleanor was greatly known for her work in the Second Crusade, for she inspired many people to join.
Eleanor supported a revolt by her children against their father's rule in 1173. This revolt was unsuccessful, and King Henry II was so furious that he locked her away in a prison. In 1189, after King Henry II died and her son, Richard, came to be the king, Eleanor was freed. Shortly after, Richard died so she supported her son John to take the English throne against the claim of her grandson Arthur of Brittany. In 1202 during the campaign at Mairebeau, she continued to thwart Arthur. Emerging triumphant, Eleanor retired to a monastery. She died there on April 1, 1204.
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Images for kids
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At left, a 14th-century representation of the wedding of Louis and Eleanor; at right, Louis leaving on Crusade.
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Second Crusade council: Conrad III of Germany, Eleanor's husband Louis VII of France, and Baldwin III of Jerusalem
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Henry II of England
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Palace of Poitiers, the seat of the counts of Poitou and dukes of Aquitaine in the 10th through 12th centuries, where Eleanor's highly literate and artistic court-inspired tales of Courts of Love.
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The obverse of Eleanor's seal. She is identified as Eleanor, by the Grace of God, Queen of the English, Duchess of the Normans. The legend on the reverse calls her Eleanor, Duchess of the Aquitanians and Countess of the Angevins.
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Queen Eleanor by Frederick Sandys, 1858, National Museum Cardiff
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Katharine Hepburn as Queen Eleanor in The Lion in Winter (1968)
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Issue of Eleanor & Henry
