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Eleanor of Aquitaine

Type Figure Region Aquitaine Time c. 1122–1204 Also known as Eleanor of Aquitaine、Aliénor d'Aquitaine

One of the most powerful women of 12th-century Europe, first Queen of France, she remarried Henry II in 1152 to become Queen of England and control t…

Timeline

  1. 1122–1152Poitiers · AquitaineIn 1137 she inherited Aquitaine and married King Louis VII of France at Bordeaux the same year. In 1147 she accompanied Louis on the Second Crusade. In 1152, having borne no male heir, the marriage was declared invalid by the Church, and that same year she married Henry Plantagenet.
  2. 1152–1173Westminster · LondonAfter Henry acceded in 1154, Eleanor was active in court politics as queen and promoted Aquitanian culture. In 1170 she presided over Richard's coronation at Poitiers. During this period she also traveled between England and France, playing a key role in fief administration and royal succession arrangements.
  3. 1173–1189Salisbury · WiltshireDuring her sons' rebellion in 1173 Eleanor supported them against Henry and, after being captured, was long confined in various English castles. Though still detained in the 1180s she was occasionally permitted to attend important ceremonies; between 1183 and 1189, as conflict between Richard and Henry intensified, she could not intervene openly.
  4. 1189–1204Fontevraud · Maine-et-LoireRichard released Eleanor immediately upon his accession in 1189 and appointed her to govern England during his crusade. After Richard's death in 1199 she continued to support John and traveled to Spain to arrange a marriage for her granddaughter. She died at Fontevraud Abbey in 1204 and was buried there.

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