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Bowie, Colette Marie (2011) The daughters of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine: a comparative study of twelfth-century royal women. PhD thesis. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/3177/ Copyright and moral rights for this thesis are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Glasgow Theses Service http://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] The Daughters of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Comparative Study of Twelfth-Century Royal Women. Colette Marie Bowie M.A. (Hist), Mphil. (Hist) Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy University of Glasgow School of History April 2011 i Abstract This thesis compares and contrasts the experiences of the three daughters of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. Matilda, Leonor and Joanna all undertook exogamous marriages which cemented dynastic alliances and furthered the political and diplomatic ambitions of their parents. Their later choices with regards religious patronage, as well as the way they and their immediate families were buried, seem to have been influenced by their natal family, suggesting a coherent sense of family consciousness. To discern why this might be the case, an examination of the childhoods of these women has been undertaken, to establish what emotional ties to their natal family may have been formed at this time. The political motivations for their marriages have been analysed, demonstrating the importance of these dynastic alliances, as well as highlighting cultural differences and similarities between the courts of Saxony, Castile, Sicily and the Angevin realm. Dowry and dower portions are important indicators of the power and strength of both their natal and marital families, and give an idea of their access to economic resources which could provide financial means for patronage. The thesis then examines the patronage and dynastic commemorations of Matilda, Leonor and Joanna, in order to discern patterns or parallels. Their possible involvement in the burgeoning cult of Thomas Becket, their patronage of Fontevrault Abbey, the names they gave to their children, and finally where and how they and their immediate families were buried, suggests that all three women were, to varying degrees, able to transplant Angevin family customs to their marital lands. The resulting study, the first of its kind to consider these women in an intergenerational context, advances the hypothesis that there may have been stronger emotional ties within the Angevin family than has previously been allowed for. ii Table of Contents Abstract……………………………………………….………………….. i Contents………………………………………………….…………… ii-iv List of Maps, Tables and Illustrations…………………………………... v Acknowledgements…………………………………………………….. vi Abbreviations………………………………………………...……… vii-ix Introduction…………………………………………………………... 1-25 Queenship: Historiographical Trends and Conceptual Themes……... 2-4 Methodology and Sources…………………………………………….5-8 Ideology and Representation……………………………...………... 8-14 Roles and Functions……………………………………….……… 14-19 Ritual……………………………………………………………… 19-23 Themes and Approaches………………………………………….. 23-25 Chapter 1: Carissima filia nostra: Birth, Childhood and Formative Education………………………………………………………….… 26-61 Birth of an Angevin Princess………………………………….….. 27-30 Childhood Experiences and Emotional Ties: The Childhood Journeys of Matilda, Leonor and Joanna…………………………………….... 30-37 Emotional History and the History of Emotions…….……...….…. 37-44 Eleanor of Aquitaine as Mother………………………….……….. 44-47 Medieval Childhood………………………………………………. 48-50 An Angevin Education…………………...……………………….. 51-61 Chapter 2: Satisfied as to her beauty: Marriage Negotiations and Political Motivations………………………………………………………. 58-101 The Political Motivations for Matilda’s Marriage………………...63-65 The Political Motivations for Leonor’s Marriage………………… 66-69 Continuation of Angevin Marriage Policy: Berengaria of Navarre. 70-73 Joanna’s Marriage to William II of Sicily…………….…….…..... 74-77 The Political Motivations for Joanna’s Marriage………………… 78-82 Re-Opening of Negotiations……………………………………… 83-87 The Journeys to Saxony, Castile and Sicily………………..……... 87-93 The Sicilian Ambassadors………………………………………… 93-97 Love and Marriage in the Twelfth Century……………………. 97-101 iii Chapter 3: Bodas muy grandes: Marriage, Dowry and Dower Settlements…………………………………………………….. 102-158 Matilda’s marriage to Henry the Lion and Role as Duchess of Saxony. ……………...…105-110 Leonor’s Marriage and Dower Settlement…...………………..111-114 Queen of Castile……..……………………………………….. 114-126 Leonor as Mother……………………………………………. 126-129 Leonor’s Dowry………………………………………...…… 129-134 The Dower of Berengaria of Navarre: Competing Queens and Conflicting Claims………………………………………… 134-139 The Dower of Margaret of France…...…..…………………… 139-145 Joanna’s Marriage and Coronation…………………………… 145-148 Joanna’s Dower Settlement…………………………….…….. 148-153 The Crisis of 1189 and the Problem of Joanna’s Dower……... 153-156 The Role of the Queen in Sicily……………………………… 156-158 Chapter 4: The Sins of the Father: Endowment, Benefaction, and the Cult of Thomas Becket……………………………………………….. 159-199 Henry’s Reaction: From Denial to Appropriation…………… 160-162 Royal Appropriation of Saints’ Cults…………………...…… 163-166 The Role of Henry’s Daughters……………………………… 166-168 Joanna and Sicily…………………………………………….. 168-176 Matilda and Saxony………………………………………….. 177-188 Leonor and Castile……………………………………...……. 188-190 A Different Persepective: Margaret and Hungary…………… 191-193 Royal Women and Saints’ Cults……………...……………… 193-199 Chapter 5: For the Health of Our Soul: Dynastic Connections, Nomenclature and Commemoration….…………………... 200-244 Dynastic Nomenclature………………………………………. 200-211 Fontevrault, Patronage and Family Ties……………………... 212-221 Burial Patterns and Dynastic Mausolea……………...………. 221-222 Eleanor and Leonor, Fontevrault and Las Huelgas……...…… 223-231 The Tombs at Fontevrault……………………………………. 232-237 iv The Tombs at Las Huelgas…………………………………… 237-242 The Joint Tomb of Alfonso and Leonor………………...……. 242-244 Conclusion………………….…………………………..………… 245-250 Bibliography………………………………………………….….. 251-282 Appendices……………………………………………………….. 283-287 1 Genealogical Table………………….…………………………… 283 2 Table of Matilda, Leonor and Joanna’s Childhood Journeys.... 284-5 3 Seals of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Leonor and Joanna………....… 286-7 v List of Maps, Tables and Illustrations Map of Leonor’s Dowerlands………………………………………… 115 Map of Joanna’s Dowerlands…………………………………………. 151 Joanna’s Tomb Effigy……………………………...…………………. 236 Joint Tomb of Leonor and Alfonso VIII of Castile…...………………. 239 Joint Tomb of Leonor and Alfonso with Arms of England and Castile 241 Geneaological Table………………………...………………………… 283 Table of Matilda, Leonor and Joanna’s Childhood Journeys………. 284-5 Seals of Eleanor of Aquitaine…………………………...……………. 286 Seal of Leonor, Queen of Castile…………………………………...….286 Seal of Joanna, Countess of Toulouse………………………..……….287 vi Acknowledgements This thesis could not have been written without the help and support of many people, to whom I owe my thanks. Firstly, my supervisor, Professor Matthew Strickland, whose support and advice has been invaluable. He has gone above and beyond the call of duty on several occasions, and I am honoured to call him both mentor and friend. The staff in the department of Medieval History at the University of Glasgow have also variously given me their time and support, and I am very grateful to them. Professor Anne Duggan and Professor Graham Loud were very kind in allowing me to see their pre-publication work; and I would also like to thank Jitske Jasperse for sharing with me some of her German source material on Matilda, and for providing me with a translation of her article on Matilda’s patronage. My friends and colleagues who have come through this with me, especially Daniel Gerrard, Laura Crombie, James Thomson and Katy Dutton – you have all helped me in numerous ways, both in terms of offering support and advice on academic matters, and in taking me away from them when it was needed. Finally, I could not have completed this thesis without the emotional and material support I have received from my family: many thanks, and much love. Most importantly, I want to thank my daughter Molly, whose love and patience whilst I’ve been living in the twelfth century are proof that we can teach the Angevins a thing or two about intergenerational relationships. vii Abbreviations AHR – American Historical Review Ambroise – L’Estoire de la Guerre Sainte, ed. Gaston Paris (Paris, 1897) ANS – Anglo-Norman Studies Coggeshall – Ralph of, Chronicon Anglicanum, ed. Josephus Stevenson (Rolls Series, 66, London, 1875) Crónica Latina – Crónica Latina de los Reyes de Castilla, ed. Luis Charlo Brea (Madrid, 1999) Devizes, Gestis Ricardi –De Rebus Gestis Ricardi Primi: The Chronicle of Richard of Devizes, in Chronicles of the Reigns of Stephen, Henry II, and Richard I, ed. Richard Howlett, 4 vols. (Rolls Series, 82.3, London, 1886) Diceto I - Ymagines Historiarum, in Radulfi Diceto Decani Lundoniensis Opera Historica: The Historical Works of Master Ralph de Diceto, Dean of London,
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