5-6+Rebecca+H.

Eleanor and Louis were betrothed to each other later than was typical of betrothals during the twelfth century for different reasons. Eleanor’s father and grandfather felt that they were immortal, and did not see any need of an heir. Eleanor’s father and grandfather were clearly very pompous, since they seemed to believe they possessed some magic power which would enable them to liv‍‍‍‍e forever. However, it is possible that they were just so wrapped up in the present that they did not take time to think of the future. Either way Eleanor’s family showed a lack of thought about themselves and their future. The following quote, said by Abbot Suger to the young king Louis, explains why Eleanor was not betrothed as a little girl. “‘I think,’ I said, ‘that the fair Eleanor was saved because her father and grandfather thought that they would never die”’ (Konigsburg 20). The attitude of Eleanor’s father and grandfather is definitely very bad and almost as cocky as it could possibly be. Louis was the second son of Louis the Fat and, therefore, was not supposed to ever become king of France. It was not until his older brother died that it became apparent he would be king. This quote, which Louis says to Abbot Bernard, tells the reason for Louis’s late betrothal. “‘I was not meant to be rich. I am a second son. I was meant to be a priest, and I would have been one if my brother Philip’s horse had not tripped over that old sow and broken Philip’s neck in the process”’ (Konigsburg 19-20). Louis was not betrothed because his parents did not think he would be king, but thought he would be a priest instead, which further explains why he was not betrothed, since priests are not permitted to marry. The reasons why Eleanor and Louis were not betrothed at a younger age are very contrasting.

The decisions of Eleanor and Louis have greatly influenced hundreds, maybe even thousands, of people. Since Eleanor and Louis were the king and queen of France, almost every decision they made affected the lives of other people. When Louis let Eleanor convince him to attack Vitry, his decision affected the whole town and many more. Not only did his horrible choice end the lives of an entire town, it brought great sorrow and anger to the lives of those whose friends and family were killed. The following quote describes the terrible effect of what Louis did. “Thirteen hundred people died like burnt offerings-on the altar of what? The altar of Louis’s vanity? What was this sacrifice for?” (Konigsburg 36-37). The above quote shows just what an awful effect one decision m ‍‍‍‍ade by Louis had. When Eleanor decided, while on the crusade, that she would rather camp in the valley and not on the mountain where Louis had ordered everyone to camp, she ended or drastically changed many lives. If she had stayed on the mountain, or at least gotten word to Louis about what she was doing, it would have saved many lives. This is because if she and the men and women with her had not been missing, Louis and his men would not have gotten distracted looking for her and her company. If they had not gotten distracted searching, the Muslims would not have been able to ambush them so successfully, and many more of them might have survived the attack. The following quote describes the battle which might have gone better had it not been for Eleanor’s choice to camp in the valley. “It was a slaughter. Louis’s men were caught unarmed, unarmored, and exhausted from their climb” (Konigsburg 59). This quote shows what one quickly made choice of Eleanor’s caused, a terrible massacre. Her spur of the moment decision led to the deaths of many men, as well as bringing much grief to their families and friends. Louis’s choices, as well as Eleanor’s, had an enormous effect on many people living within France.



March 28, 2012

Divine Justice is the idea that God causes bad things to happen to really bad people. Abbot Bernard thinks that Geoffrey, Matilda-Empress’s husband, died of a fever because God caused him to get the fever and to die, since he was exceedingly bad (in Abbot Bernard’s opinion). If Divine Justice is real, then the decisions people make during their lives might bring their lives to an abru‍‍pt end or cause some sort of illness or injury to come upon them. Their decisions might also affect others; their loved ones’ lives would be dramatically changed by their deaths or by them getting a serious illness or injury. The following quote talks about Divine Justice. “A fever killed my husband as he and Henry were returning from court. Abbot Bernard said that it was Divine Justice, but I don’t think it was. If Geoffrey were the sinner that Abbot Bernard believed him to be, why would he die after he had been restored to the Church?” (Konigsburg 84). The above quote shows an example of what could be considered Divine Justice. The belief that God causes terrible events to happen to people who are outstandingly bad is called Divine Justice.

King Henry II of England decided to appoint Thomas Becket to be archbishop. Matilda and Eleanor were against it because they felt Becket would decide to serve God instead of Henry. They thought that Becket would no longer help the government and that appointing him archbishop would only cause harm to Henry. Henry thought that making Becket archbishop would give Henry more power over ‍‍ the Church. Henry also hoped that when Becket became archbishop he would help Henry get rid of the law stating that anyone who could recite six Bible verses from memory could not be tried in Henry’s court, but had to be tried in the Church court. The following quote, said by Eleanor to Henry, shows her opinion in the situation. “‘ I will stand here and stand opposed to your appointing Becket as Archbishop of Canterbury”’(Konigsburg 113). Eleanor definitely disapproves of Henry appointing Thomas Becket to be archbishop. The outcome of Henry appointing Becket to be archbishop ws as Matilda-Empress and Eleanor thought; Becket decided to serve God. He retired from his position as chancellor and refused to cooperate with Henry. When King Henry II of England chose Thomas Becket as archbishop, he only hurt himself.



April 3, 2012 King Henry and Queen Eleanor had very different methods of teaching. King Henry told Young Henry what to do but never actually let him help with anything, exempting running errands and doing other small tasks that did not teach him how to be a king. Queen Eleanor taught Richard through letting him experience being a king. She allowed him to help her make decisions and even let him take care of some areas of business by himself. She basically taught him through allowing him to co-rule with her. King Henry’s decision to teach Young Henry in the way he did caused restlessness and unhappiness in him. King Henry’s style of teaching sparked rebellion in Young Henry. The next quote explains the kind of teacher King Henry was for Young Henry. “Young Henry was supposed to learn government from his father, but King Henry was a different kind of teacher...the jobs he gave Young Henry were more those of an errand boy than those of a prince” (Konigsburg 139). Queen Eleanor’s chosen method of teaching was both pleasing to Richard and beneficial in that he learned far more of how to govern than his brother, Henry. The next quote shows Queen Eleanor’s teaching style. “Young Henry saw how his mother taught Richard the ways of the Aquitaine, how she allowed him to make decisions as well as do the routine, and his anger at his father grew” (Konigsburg 140). King Henry’s and Queen Eleanor’s contrasting fashions of teaching had a huge impact on their sons lives as well as their own.

The Courts of Love, thought up by Eleanor of Aquitaine and her daughter Marie, as well as the rules of courtly love, have had a huge impact on the way men treat women today. Before these rules were invented, men thought of women as nothing but property. The thoughts of Eleanor and Marie and the rules written because of them taught men how to be gentlemen. The rules are the primary reason why men hold doors, pull out chairs, and behave in a gentlemanly way when around women today. We see these rules in effect daily. Every time a man holds a door for a woman, it is in part a result of the rules. We might also see the rules in effect when young couples are dating or at fancy restaurants where men pull out chairs for ladies. We still see the original rules, as explained in the next quote, as a model for courteous conduct, even today. “The Courts of Love had laws: the male must be polite, he must be neat, he must regard his lady-love as someone above earthly temptation, as someone too frail to be exposed to the roughness of life, as someone to protect, as someone who must be helped to sit at table, as someone whose delicate ears must not hear naughty words, as someone to tip one’s hat to” ( Konigsburg 134). Today, many of these rules still influence us. The Courts of Love and the rules of courtly love forever changed the way men act towards women.