Eleanor promoted the notion of courtly love. This was a revolutionary approach to putting 12th-century knights in touch with their feminine side. It was suppressing the left-brain's desire to ‘grab what you can’ and promoting the right brain’s capacity to think deeper and let curiosity lead the way.
The Breezer - the joyride for a curious mind: A weekly newsletter from Steve Winduss at the Batting the Breeze podcast. Spend a few minutes with me discovering historical snippets and fascinating facts related to the forthcoming week. Add to that updates relating to the podcast, a touch of humour and a dash of "lots more".17th August 2025.
Happy Sunday! I was asked recently by a reader why I sometimes choose a piece of history from a certain ‘number of days ago’ rather than sticking to anniversary dates. It’s a great question.
One of the joys of mining history is the moment when you dig up a connection, something that links two seemingly disparate nuggets of history. The Indian visionary leader Mahatma Gandhi died on the same day as Orville Wright, the pioneering aviator, 30 January 1948. Charles Darwin and Abraham Lincoln were born on the same day in 1809.
US Presidents John Adams (No. 2) and Thomas Jefferson (No. 3) died on the same day, 4 July 1826, and on the 50th anniversary of the day that the Declaration of Independence was adopted in 1776.
But connections aren't just restricted to birth and death dates. For instance, did you know that Ivan the Terrible proposed to Queen Elizabeth I twice, that Jane Austen lived and died within Beethoven’s lifetime or that the grandson of 10th US President John Tyler (1841-1845) only died three months ago?
Ivan IV of Russia, otherwise known as Ivan the Terrible, was a 16th-century tsar infamous for his brutal reign of terror, including the murder of his son while in a fit of rage. Painting by Viktor Vasnetsov (1848-1926).
Some people are captivated by the symmetry of assassinated US Presidents Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy; They were both inaugurated a century apart, succeeded by Johnsons and killed by men with three names.
For some it goes a lot further: both were elected to Congress in ’46; both last names have seven letters; both had four children, losing a child while in the White House; both were shot on a Friday in the presence of their wives and so on.
Historical connections are intoxicating; the more history you discover, the greater the intoxication. And so back to those dates... If in a few weeks' time, on 3 November 2025, I reflect that it is the third anniversary of my first podcast release on 3 November 2022, then it is a mildly engaging thought. But, if on 30 July 2025 I had told myself that my first podcast went out 1,000 days ago, it’s more compelling; it was the day before the day before the day before……. Even though there are 1,000 iterations of the day before, the connection is still stronger. If anniversaries are landmarks, then counting days represents the footsteps between them.
And so, every now and then, partly for novelty and partly to see what emerges, I get curious about history by counting backwards. Speaking of which……..
300,000 days ago
Aliénor, daughter of William X, Duke of Aquitaine, was born in Poitiers* in southern France in 1122.
This was the era of the Crusades, a series of religious wars fought between the 11th and 13th centuries, launched by Western European Christians to recapture the Holy Land (modern-day Israel/Palestine) from Muslim control.
Aliénor was born into the Duchy of Aquitaine, a powerhouse that occupied some 25% of the total area of today’s France. She was destined for the typical life of a privileged medieval woman; marriage, children, overseeing the household, entertaining other nobles and - above all - supporting her husband in any way he pleased.
This map shows how today’s France was carved up in 1154, the year Henry II acceded to the throne of England. You can see how the Plantagenets (shades of red) controlled half of France. The Duchy of Aquitaine is occupying the whole of the southwest and sections of central and eastern France.
The royal courts in Aquitaine celebrated culture, music and poetry in preference to military conquest and the art of war. They fostered an environment of refinement and sophistication that would later, through Aliénor, influence the royal courts of England and France.
However, for now, Eleanor of Aquitaine had grander ambitions.
She would not be content to stay in this peaceful corner of France. Her moment to break the mould came a little earlier than expected. Her father, William X, died unexpectedly in 1137. At the age of 15, Eleanor had inherited a land mass that was larger than even that held by King Louis VI of France.
She had become Europe’s most eligible bride overnight. Louis VI was quick to act. Within a little over 100 days, Eleanor found herself married to the French heir apparent, Prince Louis.
As if fate was conspiring with Eleanor, the King died within a few weeks of the wedding, Prince Louis became King Louis VII of France, and the Aquitaine heiress was elevated to Eleanor, Queen of France.
She was only sixteen.
As it turned out, Eleanor and Louis were oil and water. In Jungian terms, the king's ‘Introverted Feeling’ was a poor match for Eleanor’s robust ‘Extraverted Thinking’. In other words, while Louis kept to the rules, Eleanor was busy rewriting them.
She had insisted on joining her husband on the Second Crusade. Unfortunately, holy matrimony and holy war didn’t mix. The crusade was a disaster both for Christendom and Eleanor’s marriage. Her rumoured enthusiastic relationship with Uncle Raymond of Poitiers probably didn’t help. Three years later, in 1152, Louis and Eleanor’s marriage was annulled. They had two daughters, Marie and Alice.
Eleanor of Aquitaine. Painting by Frederick Sandys (1829-1904).
Eleanor’s single-mindedness then reached new heights. She proposed to Henry, Duke of Normandy, and they married within weeks of her annulment.
Two years later, in perfect symmetry, her husband became the first Plantagenet King of England, Henry II. The former Queen of France was now Queen of England.
Eleanor’s second marriage soon soured. This time it wasn’t lack of action on her husband’s part, but too much - usually in the wrong bedchamber.
So, Eleanor removed herself back to France, but not before bearing Henry eight children - including the future kings Richard I (the Lionheart) and John - over a fifteen-year period.
She was now 45 years old and enjoyed a few contrasting years in Poitiers, immersing herself once more in the vibrant cultural life of troubadours, artists and poets.
During these years in Poitiers, Eleanor promoted the notion of courtly love. This was a revolutionary approach to putting 12th-century knights in touch with their feminine side. It was suppressing the left-brain's desire to ‘grab what you can’ and promoting the right brain’s capacity to think deeper and let curiosity lead the way.
The Duchess’ performers were invited to promote ideas of romantic love, chivalry and devotion to marriage. They would sing about Eleanor herself as an object of chivalrous love, a model of female independence and an arbiter of culture and good taste.
Out of Curiosity
Such progressive thought encouraged a host of romanticised fiction by later chroniclers, who wrote of Eleanor’s 'Courts of Love', where she would preside over debates of the heart: Can true love exist in marriage? Should a married woman take a lover? While the myth has probably stretched the bounds of reality a little too far, they were propagated because Eleanor had provided an environment where these subjects could be discussed openly without fear of reprisal. The former Queen of England had turned medieval romance from a contact sport into an intellectual pursuit.
Despite the cultural recharge, when an opportunity to rejoin the political mainstream presented itself, Eleanor couldn’t resist. Three of her sons, Richard, Henry and Geoffrey, were rebelling against their father, Henry II. Eleanor returned to England to help orchestrate the revolt. Once again, she was confronted with failure; the revolt crumbled and she was locked up by Henry at Old Sarum, near Salisbury in Wiltshire. Eleanor remained there in comfortable captivity for 16 years, with a little time out for good behaviour along the way.
Before and after: A reconstruction of Old Sarum (top). Not much left of it today (below).
During this period, Eleanor may have reflected on her chequered history; how she had collected crowns, husbands, children and trouble in varying amounts. Eleanor of Aquitaine had perfected the art of failing upwards. By the time Henry II died in 1189 and her son, the new King Richard I, had released her from custody, she was about to enter an even more remarkable period of her life. Eleanor was now in her late sixties, but she served as Regent while Richard was on crusade (which turned out to be most of the time), negotiated his ransom when held captive by the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI, and led the campaign to ensure her youngest son, John, succeeded Richard in 1199. Eleanor of Aquitaine continued to wield significant influence until her death, 300,000 days ago this Friday, 1 April 1204 at the age of 82.
Eleanor was born in an age when women were expected to be silent and submissive. But she had commanded armies, ruled vast territories, survived 16 years' imprisonment and outlived eight of her ten children, not to mention both husbands. She was the first and last woman to wear the crowns of England and France and had helped to shape the destiny of both for decades. But perhaps Eleanor’s lasting legacy derives most from her patronage of the arts and cultural influence. Although it wasn’t until the late 15th century that ‘courting’ meant less 'social favour' and more 'romantic manoeuvring', Eleanor of Aquitaine’s promotion of the ideas of chivalry and love undoubtedly paved the way. *Eleanor was born either in Poitiers or Bordeaux
Out of Curiosity
If you visit Fontevraud Abbey today in the heart of the Loire Valley, you can see the carved effigies that once adorned the tomb of Eleanor, Henry II and Richard I displayed in the abbey. However, you won’t see the tomb itself. In 1793, during the French Revolution, the royal tombs were vandalised and the remains of the royal trio were unceremoniously disinterred and scattered.
Dates with History
Monday…
Princess Sophia Augusta Frederica von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg was the Prussian-born daughter of a minor German prince. In 1744 she was shipped off to St Petersburg, Russia, as a potential bride to her second cousin and heir to the Russian throne, the 16-year-old Grand Duke Peter. The 15-year-old Sophie changed her name to Catherine, converted to Russian Orthodoxy and learned Russian with all the zest of someone planning to dominate the world. The wedding took place 280 years ago tomorrow, 21 August 1745, at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Kazan in St Petersburg.
The Grand Duchess Catherine with Grand Duke Peter before they married, c1745. Painting by Georg Cristoph Grooth (1716-1749).
Unfortunately for Catherine, Peter turned out to be a flop in more ways than one. The marriage may never have been consummated. Apart from taking on the occasional discreet lover, Catherine devoted herself to becoming more Russian than the Russians. When Peter became Tsar Peter III in 1762, Catherine waited patiently for six months, then deposed her husband in a bloodless coup. Eight days later, Peter died from haemorrhoids (well, apparently). Catherine would become Russia’s greatest empress. During her reign, Catherine expanded Russian territory, encouraged arts and culture and established Russia as a major European power. The similarities with Eleanor of Aquitaine are striking: Both took control of their lives after a failed first marriage; Eleanor had spread ideals of chivalry and courtly romance while Catherine corresponded with Voltaire and ushered in a golden era of arts and culture in Russia. Born in an age when little was expected of women, both prioritised education as their path to power and transcended the constraints of their eras to become major international influences that endured long after their deaths. Catherine the Great died in 1796 at the age of 67.
Tuesday…
History hasn’t been particularly kind to Richard III’s brief two-year stint as King of England from 1483 to 1485. Many historians have branded him responsible for the murder of the Twins in the Tower;Edward V and Richard of York. Shakespeare portrayed him as an evil and tyrannical hunchback with a withered arm. What chance did he have? Without question, Richard’s death 540 years ago this Tuesday, 22 August 1485, at the Battle of Bosworth marked the symbolic end of the 30-year War of the Roses*. His demise also marked the end of 331 years of the mighty Plantagenet dynasty. Henry VII ascended to the throne, having successfully united the Houses of York and Lancaster. The Tudors had arrived.
Out of Curiosity
With a cold sense of irony, 22nd August, having closed out one English civil war, would open another exactly 157 years later. The War of the Roses had been a dispute over dynastic succession. The English Civil War was both a constitutional crisis, king versus Parliament, and a religious conflict, with a fear of the return of Catholicism still thick in the air. On 22 August 1642, Charles I stood on Derry Mount, outside Nottingham Castle, and raised his standard, marking the beginning of the English Civil War. The omens weren’t good for Charles; the turnout from supporters was poor, the weather was wet and windy and the royal standard had blown over before the night was out. And as we know, things didn’t turn out too well for Charles….
Richard III was the last English monarch to be killed in battle. The whereabouts of his remains were destined to be shrouded in perpetual mystery. But then, in August 2012, archaeologists from the University of Leicester started digging up the Leicester City Council Social Services car park on New Street. To passers-by, it might have looked like yet more disruptive roadworks cluttering up the town centre, but this dig was different. Soon after the familiar whir of a council road-cutter broke through the pavement, the scene changed: the archaeologists moved in with their trowels and brushes. Only six hours into the planned two-week dig, the team discovered remains that they immediately believed to be those of Richard III. Six months later, the University of Leicester confirmed that they had indeed found the remains of King Richard III, 527 years after his death. Richard’s remains are now laid to rest in Leicester Cathedral.
“The king in the car park.” The skeleton of King Richard III is discovered 527 years after his death beneath a car park in Leicester, the former site of Greyfriars Friary. You can see the scoliosis, the curvature in the spine, a recognisable hallmark of Richard.
*Some historians refer to the end of the War of the Roses as 1487, with the final battle at Stoke Field, after Henry VII was crowned.
Talk to me...
I receive some wonderful feedback from readers who add colour to the historical snippets that I publish. If you have any thoughts to add to some of today’s topics, or from previous weeks, I’d love to hear from you. Drop me an email at steve@battingthebreeze.com.
Question of the Week
The author Eric Arthur Blair was born in 1903 in British India to a colonial administrator and his wife. At the age of 14, Blair returned to England to attend Eton College. He then returned overseas, this time to Burma, to serve as an imperial police officer. It was a post that was to turn him against imperialism and influence much of his writing. At the other end of the spectrum, participation in the Spanish Civil War in 1936, fighting against Franco’s fascists, disillusioned Blair’s view of Stalinist totalitarianism, having witnessed the brutal left-wing purges against anti-Stalinists, even though they were supposedly fighting on the same side. As a result of this experience, Blair wrote Animal Farm, published 80 years ago today, 17 August 1945. The allegorical novella - compulsory reading for many English school kids in my younger days - tells the story of farm animals rebelling against their human owner, hoping to create a society where all animals are equal and free. Led by the pigs Napoleon and Snowball, they successfully drive out the farmer and take control of the farm. However, corruption sets in as Napoleon starts to adopt the oppressive behaviour of the humans they had ejected. The book continues as a thinly veiled critique of the Russian Revolution. Eric Blair wrote under a pseudonym. What was it?
And Finally…
Aptronym noun A person’s name that matches their job or one of their main characteristics. CAMBRIDGE DICTIONARY
Once again, giving in to my weakness for aptronyms: One of the BBC’s longest serving presenters stepped down earlier this year after 27 years of steadfast service. She began her broadcasting career with hospital radio in Coventry, spent time as a news reporter, but then joined the BBC as a weather presenter in 1999, where she remained until now. She was born 55 years ago today, 17 August 1970; so happy birthday to weather presenter... Sara Blizzard.
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Eric Blair wrote under the pseudonym George Orwell; ‘George’ after the patron saint of England, and ‘Orwell’ after the River Orwell in Suffolk, which he knew well. Blair died from tuberculosis in London in 1950 at the age of 46, having established himself as one of the most influential political writers of the 20th century.
Eric Blair, a.k.a. George Orwell, 1943.
All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others. No one believes more firmly than Comrade Napoleon that all animals are equal. He would be only too happy to let you make your decisions for yourselves. But sometimes you might make the wrong decisions, comrades, and then where should we be? GEORGE ORWELL Animal Farm, 1945
ATTRIBUTIONS
Map of the Duchy of Aquitaine. Reigen, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Ivan the Terrible: Viktor Vasnetsov, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Eleanor of Aquitaine: Frederick Sandys, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
Old Sarum: Model: John B. Thorp. Photo: Kurt Kastner., CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. MrsPlum at English Wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
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