Eleanor of Castile: Queen of Hearts?
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Eleanor of Castile: Queen of Hearts?
Louise Wilkinson introduces one of England’s most enigmatic and contentious medieval queens.
Starts on Wed, 5 Mar 2025 11:30 GMT-8
Eleanor was a devoted and loyal wife to Edward I. Theirs was a notoriously affectionate marriage, not only did she support him during the civil war and crusade, she played an active role as a cultural and religious patron, diplomat and arranger of marriages. Yet, there was another, more sinister side to her rule as queen. Widely perceived as a harsh and unscrupulous estate administrator, whose activities were criticised by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Eleanor controversially took over debts owed by English subjects to Jewish financiers, and then took over the lands pledged for the debts.
Despite these controversies, Eleanor’s death in November 1290 left Edward I devastated. Twelve, splendid monumental crosses marked the route of her funeral procession from Lincolnshire to Westminster; and three tombs were erected at Blackfriars Priory, Westminster Abbey and Lincoln Cathedral, for Eleanor’s heart, body and internal organs.
Historian Louise Wilkinson explores Eleanor’s life and her impact on 13th-century Britain and queenship.
Louise Wilkinson is Professor of Medieval Studies at the University of Lincoln and a leading expert on royal and aristocratic women in medieval England. Her books include The Household Roll of Eleanor de Montfort, countess of Leicester and Pembroke, 1265. She co-edits Routledge’s Lives of Royal Women and served on the advisory board of the British Library’s major ‘Medieval Women: In Their Own Words’ exhibition, running from 25 October 2024 to 2 March 2025.
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Image credit: Westminster Abbey
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