From the Jewish Library: ‘Eleanor of Aquitaine’

Eleanor of Aquitaine, A Life by Alison Weir, Balantine Books, 1999

By Sheila Orysiek

Sheila Orysiek
Sheila Orysiek

SAN DIEGO — In a time when chivalry placed women on a pedestal, knights fought for ladies faire and troubadours sang their praises, the reality of existence was quite different, even for a queen.  This is the time from whence many legends derive – such as Robin Hood, Ivanhoe and Richard the Lion Hearted.

Eleanor, born in 1122 CE, was the daughter of a duke, the wife of two kings and the mother of three kings.  She inherited vast areas of what we now call modern France.  Her marriage to Louis VII of France produced two children.  However, she appealed for an annulment of that marriage claiming consanguinity and then married Henry II of England (though there existed the same degree of consanguinity between them as with Louis) and thus became Queen of England.

Powerful and wealthy as she was, because of her gender Eleanor was always at risk of being kidnapped for ransom, even by her own family.  She was  imprisoned for many years by her husband when he suspected  she had conspired against him.  After Henry’s death, Eleanor remained powerful – and vulnerable – because of the competition between her several sons.  As Richard and John fought one another constantly for supremacy they kept both England and their French possessions in a constant state of war.  Her daughters were pawns in the marriage for money and power market.

It was also a time of the Crusades as Christians in Europe realized that due to the Islamic armies of Turkey, they could no longer visit the shrines in the Holy Land.  Unusual for her time, Eleanor traveled twice with the Crusaders.  Though Henry II did not persecute the Jewish community living within his possessions, he did tax them heavily; especially to help finance the Crusade.

It is probably Richard I, known as the “Lion Hearted,”  who is most celebrated in English legends of the time.  Yet, he spent very little time in England – probably less than a year.  It was during his coronation celebrations that a small group of Jewish leaders appeared at the castle door to congratulate him but the drunken guests  took this as an insult and attacked them.  Though Richard ordered it stopped, the killing and looting soon spread and eventually even Richard could not control it.  Hundreds were killed.

Eleanor outlived almost all of her contemporaries,  ending her days as a vowed nun in an abbey in France – much admired by many and excoriated by others.

This biography is well written and meticulously researched bringing to life an era rich in legend, but the author makes the real history even more worthy of reading.

*
Orysiek is a freelance writer who specializes in arts and literature.  She may be contacted via sheila.orysiek@sdjewishworld.com.  Comments in the space below must include the letter writer’s first and last name as well as his/her city and state of residence. (City and country for those outside the U.S.)