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Eleanor of Aquitaine
Eleanor of Aquitaine (l. c. 1122-1204 CE) was one of the most impressive and powerful figures of the High Middle Ages (1000-1300 CE) – male or female – whose influence shaped the politics, art, medieval literature, and perception of women...
Definition
Courtly Love
Courtly Love (Amour Courtois) refers to an innovative literary genre of poetry of the High Middle Ages (1000-1300 CE) which elevated the position of women in society and established the motifs of the romance genre recognizable in the present...
Interview
Interview: Queens of Jerusalem, the Women Who Dared to Rule by Katherine Pangonis
Join World History Encyclopedia as they chat with medievalist Katherine Pangonis, all about her new book Queens of Jerusalem, the Women Who Dared to Rule. Kelly: Do you want to start off by telling us what your book is all about? Katherine...
Definition
Chretien de Troyes
Chretien de Troyes (l. c. 1130-1190 CE) was the greatest romantic poet of his era, regarded today as the Father of Arthurian Romance (along with Geoffrey of Monmouth) and also Father of the Novel owing to his narrative form. He was most likely...
Definition
Henry II of England
Henry II of England ruled from 1154 to 1189 CE. He gained the throne by negotiation with his predecessor King Stephen of England (r. 1135-1154 CE) following the civil war that had raged between that monarch and Henry's mother Empress Matilda...
Image
Eleanor of Aquitaine
Effigy of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Fontevraud Abbey, France. Eleanor of Aquitaine (l. c. 1122-1204) was one of the most powerful political figures – male or female – in the Middle Ages as a whole. She was the wife of Louis VII of France (r...
Definition
Richard I of England
Richard I of England, also known as Richard the Lionheart (Cœur de Lion), reigned as king of England from 1189 to 1199 CE. The son of Henry II of England (r. 1154-1189 CE) and Eleanor of Aquitaine (c. 1122-1204 CE), Richard was known for...
Article
Twelve Famous Women of the Middle Ages
Women in the Middle Ages were frequently characterized as second-class citizens by the Church and the patriarchal aristocracy. Women's status was somewhat elevated in the High and Late Middle Ages by the cult of the Virgin Mary and courtly...
Image
Tomb of Henry II of England & Eleanor of Aquitane
The effigies of Henry II of England (r. 1154-1189) and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine (l. c. 1122-1204 CE). Fontevraud Abbey, France.
Image
Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine
Face reconstruction of Eleanor of Aquitane (l. c. 1122-1204) based on her effigy from Fontevraud Abbey. She was Queen of France from 1137 to 1152 as the wife of King Louis VII of France, the Queen of England from 1154 to 1189 as the wife...