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Eleanor of Aquitaine Marries into the Royal House

Type Event Region Western Europe Time 1137

In July 1137 Duchess Eleanor of Aquitaine inherited her father William X's vast lands and married the new King Louis VII of France in Bordeaux that s…

Timeline

  1. 1137Poitiers · PoitiersAfter the death of Duke William X of Aquitaine, his only daughter Eleanor, aged just fifteen, inherited the duchy, becoming one of the wealthiest heiresses in Western Europe. Her father had arranged before his death that she be betrothed to the French heir to protect the lands from neighboring lords.
  2. 1137Bordeaux Cathedral · BordeauxLouis VII traveled south to wed Eleanor, holding the wedding in Bordeaux. Through the marriage, the vast southern lands of Aquitaine, Poitou, Saintonge, and Gascony were nominally annexed to the Capetian royal house, extending the Kingdom of France south to the foothills of the Pyrenees; it became one of the most important political marriages of medieval Europe.

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