What the Duchess Wants

Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry of Anjou

What the Duchess Wants is the story of how Eleanor of Aquitaine, one of the wealthiest women in the medieval world, decided that Henry of Anjou, future king of England, was the man she wanted to marry. In that time period, women generally–and wealthy, land-owning women in particular– did not control their choice of spouses. But Alie-Anor, as she was called, was Duchess of Aquitaine and Queen of France and controlled more land than her then-king-of-France husband did!

Though divorce could have been a shameful thing, Eleanor used it to seize the kind of life and husband she wanted — a young, vigorous, enthusiastic and on-the-move warrior who also held huge amounts of property in France and who wanted more. Henry of Anjou knew the prize that Eleanor was and intended to win her.

Although I know that their later life was not all that happy, and, as happens in many royal marriages in history, the kingdom and power became a driving force between them, I believe Henry and Eleanor began their marriage in love with each other. Henry opened up worlds to Eleanor that she had never experienced before and he appreciated her worldliness and her experience as chatelaine of her vast lands and properties. He needed that experience while he was off pursuing his claim to England. They worked together to establish his claim and to create a family who would hold all the properties they owned–they worked for a future for their dynasty.

And, though their private lives would suggest otherwise, they were successful. The Plantagenet dynasty would rule England from 1154 until 1485, through various branches and descendants, so I would say they were successful!