Published in 2023
298 pages
7 hours and 7 minutes
J.F. Andrews is the pseudonym of an academic historian who has written extensively on royalty, politics and society in the Middle Ages.
What is this book about?
The lives of the sons of Eleanor of Aquitaine are the stuff of legend. Her daughters, however, are less well known, and the fascinating personalities of her daughters-in-law have been almost entirely overlooked, as have those of the daughters she bore Louis VII of France.
The Families of Eleanor of Aquitaine redresses this balance and showcases the lives, travels, and careers of these ten very different women, who formed a great international network of political alliances that linked their parents, siblings, husbands, and children all across Europe and the Holy Land.
Some of these women found happiness; others endured lives of turmoil and conflict. Some of them were close; others never met. But two things linked them all: their connection to Eleanor and to the kingdoms over which she reigned—and their determination to exert authority on their own terms in a male-dominated world.
great review from historic_chronicles from goodreads:
“For a hundred years, these women were as much a pivotal part of the politics of the Angevin empire…as any of their husbands or brothers, and their contributions should not be underestimated.”
Eleanor of Aquitaine. Twice a queen – of France and then of England. Arguably one of the most influential female figures in history, her legacy as the indefatigable matriarch is still strong in modern times as it was when she lived, yet the many female relations she was surrounded with have often suffered to be hidden in her imposing shadow.
J.F. Andrews allows Eleanor to take a supporting role in this book as the lives of her daughters and daughters-in-law are explored. A vast powerful empire was created through the network of these women during a turbulent time of conflict, marriage, motherhood and power.
The author is comprehensive and exhaustive in their research, despite how limited it is and I valued how each woman was given time to take centre stage in her own right. An engaging storyteller, you feel the author’s passion for the subject and it is contagious across the pages as I too became swept up in the lives of these remarkable women.
A must-read for female history, this lesser known aspect of Eleanor of Aquitaine’s life and relations is a remarkable and fascinating read of how to become influential as a woman during the Middle Ages.
