One of the most powerful women of the Middle Ages, and certainly one of the most famous, Eleanor of Aquitaine lived for 80 tumultuous years, surviving two royal husbands, all but two of her children, and most of her numerous, usually clerical, enemies. For 67 of those years she ruled Aquitaine, a region larger than the holdings of the king of France, extending from the Loire in the north to the foothills of the Pyrenees in the south and from the center of the Auvergne region west to the Atlantic Ocean. She governed and held court in her own name, fomented rebellion, endured imprisonment and emerged undaunted. She defied abductors, went on crusade, faced down ecclesiastics and scolded popes. Her life became the stuff of legend, evoking the peevish disapproval of medieval commentators and…
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Citation: M. Davis, Judith. "Eleanor of Aquitaine (Queen)". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 23 August 2006 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=6018, accessed 25 April 2024.]
