Celebrating Eleanor of Aquitaine on Her 900th Birthday

Eleanor of Aquitaine’s name is familiar to anyone who has explored the history of Bordeaux in a wine course. Her 1152 marriage to Henry Plantagenet, the future king of England, significantly reduced the French territory and set the stage for centuries of conflict and cultural exchange, conflicts that lasted until France regained Aquitaine, where Bordeaux is located, at the end of the Hundred Years’ War in 1453.

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Eleanor, at your age

Type your age, drag along her 80 years, or press play. The map follows her.

1. 1130 At 6, she lost her mother and her brother.
2. 1137 At 13, she married Louis in Bordeaux; a week later, she was queen of France.
3. 1145 At 21, she gave birth to her first child, Marie.
4. 1147 At 23, she set off on crusade: 2 years, 7,000 miles, Paris to Damascus.
5. 1152 At 28, her marriage was annulled in March; in May, she married Henry.
6. 1154 At 30, she was crowned queen of England at Westminster, beside Henry.
7. 1156 At 32, she spent Christmas in Bordeaux, receiving its homage at Henry’s side.
8. 1157 At 33, she gave birth to Richard, the future Lionheart.
9. 1166 At 42, she gave birth to John, a future king of England.
10. 1172 At 48, in Limoges, she laid the first stone of a new convent.
11. 1173 At 49, she backed her sons against Henry; prison followed, for 16 years.
12. 1189 At 65, Henry died, she walked free, and she governed for her son Richard.
13. 1191 At 67, she brought Richard’s bride, Berengaria of Navarre, all the way to Sicily.
14. 1194 At 70, she went to Germany for Richard’s release from captivity.
15. 1199 At 75, she lost Richard, and paid homage to the French king herself.
16. 1200 At 76, she crossed the Pyrenees to bring her granddaughter Blanche to France.
17. 1202 At 78, she held the castle of Mirebeau against her own grandson’s siege.
18. 1204 She died at 80. Her granddaughters became queens of France and Scotland.

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However, Eleanor’s story is much richer and more complex than a mere footnote in wine history books. She was a dynastic force whose decisions and alliances shaped the geopolitical landscape of medieval Europe. Because much of what is known about Eleanor comes from sources either in favor of her first husband, the king of France, or from narratives written centuries after her passing, bias and a little bit of folklore are recurrent. Her bad reputation is commonly linked to these pro-king writers, and her overly good character is credited to 20th-century Hollywood, where she was usually portrayed as a feminist icon. Luckily, however, contemporary research has begun to paint a clearer picture, much to the credit of historian Sara Cockerill and her impeccable book ‘Eleanor of Aquitaine, Queen of France and England, Mother of Empires,’ on which this article greatly relies. This research includes firsthand accounts, contemporary poems, and songs, as well as scholarly debates that span various perspectives. Regardless of one’s view of her, whether as a figure of disdain or admiration, it is difficult to deny her profound influence on both European history and the wine world.

Born 900 years ago, in 1124, Eleanor was the eldest child of William X, Duke of Aquitaine. Her life took on a rapid pace from an early age: she lost her mother and brother at six and became an orphan at thirteen upon her father’s death. At this young age, she inherited the Duchy of Aquitaine, which covered about a third of what was then considered France and was one of its most prosperous provinces.

She immediately became one of the most eligible heiresses in Europe, so the French king smartly orchestrated her marriage to his eldest son, Louis. The ceremony took place in Bordeaux on July 25, 1137. Unbeknownst to Eleanor, her life would change dramatically just a week later with the death of the king on August 1, propelling her husband to the throne and her into the role of Queen of France at just 13.

In 1147, at the age of 23, Eleanor embarked on an arduous two-year, 7,000-mile journey of the Crusades, underlining her incredible resilience. This formidable undertaking involved roughly 50,000 individuals, who advanced at a slow pace on foot. Many carts were designated for the ladies and the invalids. During an era when medicine was rudimentary, many were routinely afflicted with illness and injuries. Women bore children, and because the King himself was part of the expedition, the governance of France was left in the hands of delegates. Most participants lacked military or battle experience. The journey stretched from Paris to Damascus, culminating in a significant yet ultimately lost battle, before they returned to France.

Adding to the extraordinarily burdensome final part of her trip, while on a sea voyage near Corfu, in Greece, Eleanor was captured by the Byzantines and was held prisoner for several weeks. Eleanor survived the Crusades excursion, but her marriage to Louis VII did not. It was during those challenging times that she decided to initiate the proceedings to annul her marriage on the grounds of consanguinity. They were indeed related in the fifth degree, and this looked like a convenient excuse.

Her marriage was formally annulled on March 21, 1152. Most interestingly, the annulment meant that Eleanor retained full rights to her family lands, the prized Duchy of Aquitaine, but she lost custody of, and any rights to, her two daughters. Even at that time, one can only imagine how hard this might have been for a mother.

Eleanor once again became one of the most eligible heiresses in Europe. Her unprecedented annulment positioned her as a woman of great autonomy in an age where royal women were often mere pawns in the game of thrones. She met Henry, son of Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou, in 1151. They married on May 18, 1152, initiating another phase of her long and eventful life. Her remarriage would mark a turning point in medieval politics. By wedding Henry, who would soon ascend to the English throne, Eleanor became the queen consort of England, a position that bestowed upon her significant influence in the English court. Yet, her vast inheritance of the Duchy of Aquitaine made her a vassal to the French king, her former husband, Louis VII. This duality was unprecedented: Eleanor wielded power in one of medieval Europe’s most significant realms while owing fealty to the ruler of another. This delicate balance of power underscored the intricate feudal ties and loyalties that defined European geopolitics of the era. At Christmas 1156 she was back in Bordeaux, nineteen years after her first wedding there, now at Henry’s side, to receive the homage of its clergy, its nobles, and its citizens.

Eleanor’s marriage to Henry was not without its challenges. In 1173, unhappy with Henry’s authoritative rule and troubled by his infidelities, Eleanor supported her sons, Henry the Young King, Richard the Lionheart, and Geoffrey, in a revolt against their father. This act of defiance was driven by a combination of familial discord and Eleanor’s desire to assert her own territorial rights and influence within the Plantagenet dynasty. Her involvement in the rebellion, however, led to her imprisonment for sixteen years. She was released upon Henry’s death in 1189, when she was 65, and her influence remained substantial. She acted as regent for her son Richard during his participation in the Third Crusade and later managed the kingdom in her own right. The documents bear it out: of the hundred or so that survive with her name, half were drawn up in the fifteen years between Henry’s death and her own, and in those years she granted, alone, franchises to the communes of Aquitaine.

Her later years were marked by efforts to secure her family’s legacy, including arranging advantageous marriages for her grandchildren. Notably, she secured the marriage of her granddaughter Blanche of Castile to Louis VIII of France. She died at the age of 80. After her death, her granddaughter Joan of England married Alexander II of Scotland, further stabilizing relations between the neighboring countries, and her grandson Henry III married Eleanor of Provence, continuing the tradition of political alliances that Eleanor had so adeptly used to her family’s advantage.

Eleanor of Aquitaine not only shaped the political landscape of medieval Europe but also left an indelible mark on the cultural and economic life of her times. As England’s most widely traveled queen until the 20th century’s Queen Elizabeth II, she extended her influence far beyond the confines of her immediate political engagements. Her actions, set 900 years ago, resonate through time, weaving a tale of female empowerment and an indomitable spirit that remains emblematic of one of history’s most remarkable queens.

In the realm of viticulture, Eleanor’s impact is particularly significant. The enduring English affection for Bordeaux wines can be traced directly to her bold actions and the alliances she forged. By marrying into the English royal family and maintaining her ties to Aquitaine, Eleanor effectively laid the groundwork for a cultural exchange that would see Bordeaux wines become a staple at the English court and eventually beloved across the nation.

Antonio "Guto" Assumpção stands at the intersection of law and wine. Admitted to practice law in Florida, New York, and Rio de Janeiro, he is also a French Wine Scholar and a Master of Bordeaux by the Wine Scholar Guild and holds a WSET Level 3 certification. Antonio has been studying, collecting, and tasting Bordeaux wines for the past 20 years, and his articles blend a detailed analysis with a connoisseur's insight into the world of wine. Follow him on Instagram at @BordeauxReviews.