Editing Eleanor of Aquitaine (section)

== Legacy ==
[[File:EleanorAkvitanie1068.jpg|Seal of Eleanor displaying her style (in Latin) as "Eleanor by the Grace of God, Queen of the English, Duchess of the Normans"{{sfn|Jasperse|2020|pp=50-52}}{{sfn|Brown|2003|pp=20–27}}|thumb|upright|alt=Seal of Queen Eleanor with her portrait and style inscribed in Latin]]
Eleanor's descendants were rulers of England, France, Sicily, Castile, Jerusalem and the Holy Roman Empire. In England, the rule of her husband Henry's House of Plantagenet ended in 1485, with the death of [[Richard III]].{{sfn|Weir|2012|pp=344–345}}{{sfn|Anon|2004}}

Eleanor's life has inspired a large canon of literature, reflected in popular culture. This has varied considerably from scholarly research to romantic fictionalised history. Nicholas Vincent writes that this includes "the very worst historical writing devoted to the European Middle Ages" and concludes that "the Eleanor of history has been overshadowed by an Eleanor of wishful-thinking and make-believe".{{sfn|Vincent|2006|p=17}} Legends about her started during her lifetime and rapidly grew, and much of it appears in the [[chronicle]]s of the late twelfth century which constitute almost all that is known of her.{{sfn|Duby|1997|p=7}} Most of these paint her in an unfavourable light, yet none are actually first hand accounts.{{sfn|Duby|1997|p=8}} Many of the accounts of her life are composed "so distant in time and place" from the events as to have little credence,{{sfn|Houts|2016|p=20}} and chroniclers were more concerned with their messages than an accurate setting out of facts.{{sfn|Hahn|2012|p=7}} These messages were often laden with ideology{{sfn|Spiegel|1993|p=5}} that in Eleanor's case was largely negative.{{sfn|McCracken|2003}} The aspects of her life most valued by modern romanticisation were those her contemporary commentators found most unacceptable in her position. Most of these were clerics, like William of Tyre, John of Salisbury, [[Mathew Paris]], [[Helinand de Froidment]] and [[Aubri des Trois Fontaines]] and based their assessments on "the common talk of the day".{{sfn|Fawtier|2021|p=6}} In this way, gossip and rumour, often prefaced by ''ut dicibatur'' (as it was said){{sfn|Newman|2023}} became included in the records of the times and then into later histories and biographies.{{sfn|Barber|2005}} Among modern biographies, one of the first by [[Amy Kelly]] (1950),{{sfn|Kelly|1978}} while relying on literary sources but not historical records{{sfn|Richardson|1959}} is "legend focussed" and highly romanticised in a way that cannot be substantiated.{{sfn|Akeroyd|2017|p=18}}{{sfn|Ramsey|2012|p=48}}{{sfn|Parsons|Wheeler|2003a|p=xvi}} In the absence of much reliable information about Eleanor herself, biographers have largely focused on the people around her and the political and cultural events of her time.{{sfn|Dobson|1912}}

=== Art ===
{{Gallery |title=Eleanor of Aquitaine in art|width=250 | height=170 |align=center |footer=|Saint-Bernard prêchant la 2e croisade, à Vézelay, en 1146.jpg|''Saint Bernard preaching the Second Crusade''<br>[[Emile Signol]], 1839<br>[[Chateau de Versailles]]|

Queen Eleanor (Frederick Sandys, 1858).jpg|''[[Queen Eleanor (painting)|Queen Eleanor]]''<br> [[Frederick Sandys]], 1858<br> [[National Museum Cardiff]]{{Sfn|National Museum Cardiff|2023}}|Edward Burne-Jones - Fair Rosamund and Queen Eleanor - Google Art Project.jpg|''Fair Rosamund and Queen Eleanor''<br>[[Edward Burne-Jones]], 1861<br>[[Yale Centre for British Art]]{{sfn|Yale|2024}}|alt2=Nineteenth century depictions of Queen Eleanor, planning to murder Rosamund Clifford, by Frederick Sandys and Edward Burne-Jones}} 
[[File:EleonoraAkvitt vitraz.jpg|thumb|upright|Eleanor issuing charter to Poitiers in 1199, by Steinhal (Town hall, late 19th c.)|alt=Stained glass window from the late nineteenth-century showing Eleanor issuing a charter to the City of Poitiers in 1199]]
Images of Eleanor are common throughout history but since there are none from her lifetime, these are purely speculative. Some romanesque carvings, such as those at the Cloisters in New York and Chartres{{sfn|Kelly|1978|p=xi}} and Bordeaux cathedrals, have been attributed to her but these cannot be substantiated,{{sfn|Metropolitan Museum|2024}}{{sfn|Boyd|2011|pp=25-27}}{{sfn|Turner|2009|p=10}} while completely erroneous claims from medieval art have frequently been used to illustrate articles and books about her, such as a queen from the 14th-century [[Der von Kürenberg|Codex Manesse]].{{efn|The Codex Manese image was used as the cover of some editions of Alison Weir's biography}}{{sfn|Chadwick|2016}}{{sfn|Evans|2014|pp=151–152}} The stained glass window in Poitiers Cathedral with a donor portrait of Eleanor is not original but a nineteenth-century restoration by [[:fr:Adolph Steinheil|Adolphe Steinheil]].{{sfn|Evans|2014|pp=152–153}} Two of the commonest claims have been the fresco in the chapel of at [[St. Radegonde]] at Chinon{{sfn|Cockerill|2019|pp=308–309}}{{sfn|Evans|2014|pp=151–152}} and a donor portrait of a kneeling woman in a twelfth-century [[psalter]], which has led to it becoming known as the Eleanor Psalter.{{sfn|Cockerill|2019|p=340}}

In France, the [[Salles des Croisades]] at Versailles, opened in 1843, showed two 1839 paintings including Eleanor - ''St Bernard preaching the second crusade in the presence of King Louis VII and Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine''  by [[Emile Signol]], and ''King Louis VII takes the Oriflamme'' by [[Jean-Baptiste Mauzaisse]]. In both, Eleanor is depicted in prayer.{{efn|A third painting from the Salles des Croisades, by [[Franz Winterhalter]], entitled ''Eleanor de Guyenne prend la croix avex les dames de sa cour'', from 1839 was subsequently removed and has been lost{{sfn|Evans|2014|p=156}} }}{{sfn|Evans|2014|pp=155–156}} In contrast, British paintings including [[Frederick Sandys]]'s ''[[Queen Eleanor (painting)|Queen Eleanor]]'' (1858){{Sfn|National Museum Cardiff|2023}} and [[Edward Burne-Jones|Burne-Jones]]'s ''Fair Rosamund and Queen Eleanor'' (1861 and 1862), depict her as a melodramatic murderess, coincident with the popularity of the Fair Rosamond story, which in itself led to a series of art works. In the twentieth century, similar works appeared by Herbert Sidney (1905), [[Evelyn de Morgan]] (1905), [[John William Waterhouse]] (1916) and [[Frank Cadogan Cowper]] (1920).{{efn|A possible exception to the Rosamund theme is [[Edmund Blair Leighton]]'s painting ''The Accolade'' (1900) in which Eleanor is seen as an authority figure. However, there is doubt as to whether the queen actually is Eleanor.{{sfn|Baker Street|2024}} Despite the lack of evidence, it appears as a book cover (''Le Lit d'Alienor''), as do many other dubious portraits{{sfn|Evans|2014|p=158}}}}{{sfn|Evans|2014|pp=157–158}}
[[Judy Chicago]]'s installation ''[[The Dinner Party]]'' (1979) features a place setting for Eleanor.{{sfn| Brooklyn Museum|2024}} She was also commemorated on a French €0.50 postage stamp in 2004, the 800th anniversary of her death.{{sfn|French Philately|2004}}{{sfn|Evans|2014|pp=149–164}}

=== Fiction and poetry ===

Fictionalised accounts of Eleanor include [[Jean Plaidy]]'s 1987 autobiographical ''The Courts of Love''.{{sfn|Plaidy|1987}} [[Norah Lofts]] also wrote a fictionalized biography of her in 1955, including some romanticized episodes—starting off with the young Eleanor planning to elope with a young knight, who is killed out of hand by her guardian, in order to facilitate her marriage to the King's son.{{sfn|Lofts|2010}} [[Kristiana Gregory]] wrote a fictionalised diary, ''Eleanor: Crown Jewel of Aquitaine'' (''[[The Royal Diaries]]'' series, 2002).{{sfn|Gregory|2002}}

Eleanor also features in the works of many historical novelists. These include ''[[The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood]]'' (1883) by [[Howard Pyle]] as Queen Catherine{{sfn|Pyle|2013}} and [[Francis Marion Crawford|F. Marion Crawford]]'s novel of the second crusade ''Via Crucis'' (1899).{{sfn|Crawford|2010}}{{sfn|Siberry|2016}} She is the subject of ''A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver'', a 1973 children's novel by [[E. L. Konigsburg]].{{sfn|Konigsburg|1973}} and [[Margaret Ball (writer)|Margaret Ball]]'s ''Duchess of Aquitaine'' (2006).{{sfn|Ball|2006}}

In [[Sharon Kay Penman]]'s Plantagenet novels, she figures prominently in ''[[When Christ and His Saints Slept]]'' (1995), ''[[Time and Chance (Penman novel)|Time and Chance]]'' (2002), and ''[[Devil's Brood]]'' (2008). In Penman's historical Justin de Quincy mysteries, Eleanor, as Richard's regent, sends squire Justin de Quincy on various missions, often an investigation of a situation involving Prince John. The four published mysteries are the ''Queen's Man'' (1996), ''Cruel as the Grave'' (1998), ''Dragon's Lair'' (2003), and ''Prince of Darkness'' (2005).{{sfn|Penman|2011}} Other novels include [[Elizabeth Chadwick]]'s Eleanor trilogy ''The Summer Queen'' (2013), ''The Winter Crown'' (2014), and ''The Autumn Throne'' (2016).{{sfn|Chadwick|2021}} [[Ariana Franklin]] features Eleanor in her Adelia Aguilar twelfth-century mysteries.{{sfn|Penguin|2009}}{{sfn|Penrith|2022}}{{sfn|McDermott|2021}} She is also a character in ''[[Matrix (Groff novel)|Matrix]]'' by [[Lauren Groff]] (2021).{{sfn|Groff|2021}}

Eleanor is also an allegorical figure in [[Ezra Pound]]'s ''[[The Cantos|Cantos]]''.{{sfn|Terrell|1993}}

=== Drama, film, radio and television ===
[[File:Hep-lion.jpg|thumb|[[Katharine Hepburn]] as Queen Eleanor in ''[[The Lion in Winter (1968 film)|The Lion in Winter]]'' (1968)]]

Elinor is a character in [[William Shakespeare|Shakespeare]]'s ''[[The Life and Death of King John]]''.{{sfn|Shakespeare|2008}} Una Venning played the role in the ''[[BBC Sunday Night Theatre|Sunday Night Theatre]]'' television version of this in 1952{{sfn|Brooke|2014a}} and [[Mary Morris]] in the [[BBC Shakespeare]] version (1984).{{sfn|Brooke|2014b}}

Eleanor has featured in a number of screen versions of the ''[[Ivanhoe]]'' and ''[[Robin Hood]]'' stories. She has been played by [[Martita Hunt]] in ''[[The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men]]'' (1952), [[Jill Esmond]] in ''[[The Adventures of Robin Hood (TV series)|The Adventures of Robin Hood]]'' (1955–1960), [[Phyllis Neilson-Terry]] in ''[[Ivanhoe (1958 TV series)|Ivanhoe]]'' (1958), [[Yvonne Mitchell]] in ''[[The Legend of Robin Hood (TV series)|The Legend of Robin Hood]]'' (1975), [[Siân Phillips]] in ''[[Ivanhoe (1997 TV series)|Ivanhoe]]'' (1997), Tusse Silberg in ''[[The New Adventures of Robin Hood]]'' (1997), [[Lynda Bellingham]] in ''[[Robin Hood (2006 TV series)|Robin Hood]]'' (2006) and most recently by [[Eileen Atkins]] in ''[[Robin Hood (2010 film)|Robin Hood]]'' (2010).

Eleanor was played by [[Mary Clare]] in ''[[Becket (1923 film)|Becket]]'' (1923), and by [[Pamela Brown (actress)|Pamela Brown]] in the 1964 ''[[Becket (1964 film)|Becket]]''. Henry II and Eleanor are the main characters in [[James Goldman]]'s 1966 play ''[[The Lion in Winter]]''{{efn|The play deals with the difficult relationship between the monarchs and the struggle of their three sons Richard, Geoffrey, and John for their father's favour and the succession. The role was created on Broadway by [[Rosemary Harris]].{{sfn|Playbill|1966}}}} and [[Katharine Hepburn]] played Eleanor in the 1968 film ''[[The Lion in Winter (1968 film)|The Lion in Winter]]''.{{efn|Hepburn won the third of her four Academy Awards for [[Academy Award for Best Actress|best actress]] in 1969 for ''The Lion in Winter''.{{sfn|Oscars|1969}} She also won the [[BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role]] and was nominated for the [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama|Golden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Drama]].{{sfn|IMDb|1969}} [[Peter O'Toole]] played Henry II in both this and Becket}} [[Glenn Close]] and [[Patrick Stewart]] played Eleanor and Henry in the [[The Lion in Winter (2003 film)|2003 version]].{{sfn|TV Guide|2024}}

Eleanor was played by [[Prudence Hyman]] in ''[[Richard the Lionheart (TV series)|Richard the Lionheart]]'' (1962), twice by [[Jane Lapotaire]] in ''[[The Devil's Crown]]'' (1978) and again in [[Mike Walker (radio dramatist)|Mike Walker]]'s [[BBC Radio 4]] series ''[[Plantagenet (radio plays)|Plantagenet]]'' (2010). In the 2014 film ''Richard the Lionheart: Rebellion'', Eleanor is played by [[Debbie Rochon]]. In the [[BBC Radio 4]] ''Eleanor Rising'' Rose Basista plays Eleanor and Joel MacCormack King Louis (2020–2022).{{sfn|BBC|2024}} These and other dramatic accounts have helped to perpetuate the Golden Myth image of Eleanor.{{sfn|Tolhurst|2020}}

=== Music ===

Eleanor of Aquitaine is thought to be the ''chunegin von Engellant'' (Queen of England) mentioned in the 12th century poem "''Were diu werlt alle min''," in [[Carl Orff]]'s  ''[[Carmina Burana (Orff)|Carmina Burana]]''.{{sfn|Norman|1963}}{{sfn|Betts|2018}} [[Queen Eleanor's Confession]], a traditional 17th century [[Child Ballad]], is a fictional account.{{sfn|Carney|1984}} Eleanor (as Eleonora di Guienna) appeared in [[Gaetano Donizetti]]'s opera ''[[Rosmonda d'Inghilterra]]'' (1834). ''[[Flower and Hawk]]'' is a monodrama for soprano and orchestra, written by American composer [[Carlisle Floyd]] in 1972, in which Eleanor relives memories of her time as queen.