Skip to main content

Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life by Alison Weir: A Book Review

Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life
Author: Weir, Alison
Genre: Nonfiction, Biography, History
Release Date: 1999
Pages: 441
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Source: Personal Collection
Synopsis: Renowned in her time for being the most beautiful woman in Europe, the wife of two kings and the mother of three, Eleanor of Aquitaine was one of the great heroines of the Middle Ages. At a time when women were regarded as little more than chattel, Eleanor managed to defy convention as she exercised power in the political sphere and crucial influence over her husbands and sons. In this beautifully written biography, Alison Weir paints a vibrant portrait of this truly exceptional woman, and provides new insights into her intimate world. Eleanor of Aquitaine lived a long life of many contrasts, of splendor and desolation, power and peril, and in this stunning narrative, Weir captures the woman--the queen--in all her glory. With astonishing historical detail, mesmerizing pageantry, and irresistible accounts of  royal scandal and intrigue, she re-creates not only a remarkable personality but a magnificent past era.

      My Review: Eleanor of Aquitaine is one of the most influential woman in the Middle Ages. Because of her influence, she has been the symbol of romanticism for centuries. Eleanor defied the standard conventions of her time by her living her life as she pleased. She becomes duchess to wealthiest kingdom in France, queen to both France and England, and queen mother to Richard the Lionheart, known in literature as the hero, and King John, who has been depicted in literature as a villain. Eleanor was also known as a warrior queen accompanying her husband, King Louis VII of France, in the Second Crusade.


     Weir's biography of Eleanor is very sympathetic. It is clear that is passionate about Eleanor. She is portrayed as strong-willed, intelligent, captivating, ambitious, and sometimes ruthless. Because of her influence over her weak-willed and saintly husband, King Louis VII of France, she criticized by men to be a Devil's pawn and a femme fatale.

      Weir captivates the reader about life in the medieval times. She captures the medieval people's beliefs on curses and superstitions so vividly that it seemed as if the medieval era was alive once again. She paints the romanticism of the era and of the courtly love of the troubadours with colorful flair.

     In her biography, we get meet the famous idealistic Abelard, who is known in history for his ill-fated romance with his pupil, Heloise. We get to meet the charismatic Saint Bernard, whose monkish image captured the fascination of people in medieval times. We also get to meet the saintly Thomas Becket, who because he chose God over the king was brutally murdered by King Henry II of England. Weir also takes the reader from France to Jerusalem and to England. She portrays the start of the Second Crusade with pageantry and flair that filled the crusaders with hope, valor, and courage only to turn out that the crusade proved to be a suicide mission and a drastic failure.

     Overall, Weir's biography of Eleanor of Aquitaine shows her as a strong-willed woman in a turbulent era. In a world where women were supposed to be subordinate to men, Eleanor would not be ruled by any man. She was a woman that made her own decisions and gained the influence with both her husbands and her sons. This novel is filled with romance, betrayal, court intrigue, and danger. Eleanor of Aquitaine deserves attention and study for it she that changed England dramatically.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars


   

   

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Amazons: Lives and Legends of Warrior Women Across The AncientWorld by Adrienne Mayor: A Book Review

The Amazons: Lives and Legends of Warrior Women Across The Ancient World Author:  Adrienne Mayor Genre: Nonfiction, History Publisher: Princeton University Press Release Date: 2014 Pages: 530 Source: My State Public Library Synopsis: Amazons—fierce warrior women dwelling on the fringes of the known world—were the mythic archenemies of the ancient Greeks. Heracles and Achilles displayed their valor in duels with Amazon queens, and the Athenians reveled in their victory over a powerful Amazon army. In historical times, Cyrus of Persia, Alexander the Great, and the Roman general Pompey tangled with Amazons.      But just who were these bold barbarian archers on horseback who gloried in fighting, hunting, and sexual freedom? Were Amazons real? In this deeply researched, wide-ranging, and lavishly illustrated book, National Book Award finalist Adrienne Mayor presents the Amazons as they have never been seen before. This is the first comprehensive account of warrio...

A Right Worthy Woman by Ruth P. Watson: A Book Review

A Right Worthy Woman Author: Ruth P. Watson Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: Atria Books Release Date: 2023 Pages: 303 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: In the vein of The Personal Librarian and The House of Eve , a “remarkable and stirring novel” (Patti Callahan Henry, New York Times bestselling author) based on the inspiring true story of Virginia’s Black Wall Street and the indomitable Maggie Lena Walker, the daughter of a formerly enslaved woman who became the first Black woman to establish and preside over a bank in the United States.       Maggie Lena Walker was ambitious and unafraid. Her childhood in 19th-century Virginia helping her mother with her laundry service opened her eyes to the overwhelming discrepancy between the Black residents and her mother’s affluent white clients. She vowed to not only secure the same kind of home and finery for herself, but she would also help others in her community achi...

Queen of Exiles by Vanessa Riley: A Book Review

Queen of Exiles Author: Vanessa Riley Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: William Morrow Release Date: 2023 Pages: 447 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: Acclaimed historical novelist Vanessa Riley is back with another novel based on the life of an extraordinary Black woman from history: Haiti’s Queen Marie-Louise Christophe, who escaped a coup in Haiti to set up her own royal court in Italy during the Regency era, where she became a popular member of royal European society.       The Queen of Exiles is Marie-Louise Christophe, wife and then widow of Henry I, who ruled over the newly liberated Kingdom of Hayti in the wake of the brutal Haitian Revolution.      In 1810 Louise is crowned queen as her husband begins his reign over the first and only free Black nation in the Western Hemisphere. But despite their newfound freedom, Haitians still struggle under mountains of debt to France and indiffe...