Eleanor of Aquitaine

by Christopher Nicole Book 1 in the Eleanor of Aquitaine Saga series.

First published 1995

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3.5(140)

Eleanor of Aquitaine is still in her teens when the death of her father makes her duchess in her own right and one of the most valuable heiresses in western Europe. Her marriage to Louis, heir to the French throne, is arranged rapidly, and within months she moves from the court of Aquitaine to the far more restrictive world of Capetian monarchy.

As Queen of France, Eleanor discovers that wealth and rank do not give her control over the central decisions of her life. Her marriage, political education and experience of crusade expose the differences between Aquitanian court culture and the expectations placed upon a French queen. The novel follows the early formation of the woman who will later become Queen of England, concentrating on the years in which youthful expectations of romance give way to an understanding of dynasty, inheritance and political power.