Eleanor of Aquitaine - Literature

Literature

Eleanor was as influential in cultural as in political life, and established a brilliant court in her city of Poitiers, where she acted as patron to the troubadours and to the authors of the Breton romance cycles (The Northeastern Dictionary of Women’s Biography). The granddaughter of one the earliest musicians, Duke William IX of Aquitaine, Eleanor was not a writer herself, but scholars credit her investment with much of the distribution of the concept of literature throughout all of France and England. Many believe that during her second marriage to Henry, Eleanor opened her literary self. Much like her father and grandfather before her, Eleanor is thought to have invited many noteworthy scholars to join her court in Normandy. Eleanor wanted to continue the family tradition of art, music and literature. The Anglo-Norman poet Wace, in which Brute is a descendant of Aeneas, Rome's founder, and mythical ancestor of the English, according to Layamon's later Middle-English adaptation, he dedicated to Eleanor in 1155(The Northeastern Dictionary of Women’s Biography). The Brute would serve as a milestone in spreading and cultivating Arthurian literature throughout Western Europe. Themes such as classical Greek and Roman epics were popular, not only for their literary beauty but also as key political legends of the time. However, Eleanor's husband Henry replaced old Wace with the more stylish work as his official story, to compose a history of the dukes of Normandy. Henry walked away from the world of literature and his chronicles were left unfinished. Despite all this, scholars have recently argued that Eleanor and Henry had much less to do with cultural affairs then most once believed. After reexamining the evidence, the conclusion was formed that Henry commissioned only two chronicles in his life and that Eleanor produced no texts at all. Cultural achievements flourished in England and France during the 1100’s despite Eleanor's stormy relationship with Henry II and their lack of personal publication. Eleanor gathered together the finest poets, musicians and scholars and founded educational and religious establishments in both France and England. (The Northeastern Dictionary of Women’s Biography).