England's Later Medieval Queens
English medieval queens had intrinsic political importance. When a king married, it was for strategic reasons: to end or avoid war, to acquire territory, to forge and strengthen alliances, and to secure heirs for his dynasty. But all this inspires curiosity as whether medieval queens had power of their own in an age that disfavored the overt exercise of authority by any woman. What sort of role were medieval queens expected to fulfill, and what ideals they were supposed to personify? To whom were they loyal, and what were their concerns and interests?
This course examines the questions such as these. We start by looking at the context in which queenship was exercised: the major political continuities and changes in England in the later medieval period; and the position of women in medieval society. We study contemporary writings that describe the role of the queen, such as the coronation service for queens and literature in which "model" queens are represented. We then go on to examine how the ideals and expectations were played out in reality by looking at the lives of some of England's later medieval queens. Each has been chosen for the special way in which they fulfilled their role in response to the personal and political circumstances in which they were placed.
We start by looking at Eleanor of Aquitaine (c. 1122-1204), whose marriage to Henry Plantagenet had a huge impact on English and French political history. We will seek to understand the extent of her power, her political aims (and the extent to which these were bound up with her relations with her husband and her sons), and her contribution to the culture of the day. Eleanor is perhaps the most well-known of medieval queens, and we shall seek to understand why she was criticized in her own day, and why she continues to fascinate.
Eleanor of Provence (c. 1223-1291), wife of Henry III, was also the object of criticism in her own day because she was able to exercise what was seen as undue influence over her husband's political and military affairs, and because she was perceived in England as a "foreigner." She played a key role in the civil war of the 1260s, and was an efficient, if oppressive, financial manager. We seek to understand how it became possible for Eleanor to exercise the influence that she did and in what ways her influence was expressed.
Eleanor of Castile (1241-1290) is best remembered as the devoted wife of Edward I. He built a magnificent series of elaborate stone crosses to mark the route of her funeral cortege following her death in 1290. There is no doubt of their mutual affection and of Eleanor's support of her warrior husband. There is also an element of sadness in their marriage; many of the children whom Eleanor bore died in childhood, and we will look at contemporary attitudes towards childrearing and infant mortality. But there was more to Eleanor than the wife and mother. Contemporary evidence about her greed for land and the bullying tactics and corruption of her officials suggest a darker side to her role as queen. What might have motivated her greed?
Edward II's queen, Isabella of France (1295-1358), can be seen both as victim and villain. She is best known for her betrayal of her husband. In 1326, weary of the royal favorites whose influence displaced and slighted her, she and her lover Roger Mortimer invaded England and put an end to her husband's rule. We look at the interplay between the public and the private in royal marriage that Isabella's queenship reveals and seek to understand why, after years of marriage to Edward, she came to betray him.
Philippa of Hainault (c. 1315-1369), wife of Edward III, was a strong contrast to her mother-in-law Isabella. She was the model of the devoted wife and of the queen as mediatrix. The chronicler Jean Froissart captured the moment when she pleaded with her husband Edward III for the lives of the six burghers of Calais, but this was not an isolated instance. We look at what it was that enabled her to be so successful, and what sort of people she sought to help.
Margaret of Anjou (1430-1482) is the queen whom Shakespeare later dubbed "the she-wolf of France." She was forced by the ineptitude of her husband, Henry VI, to play a leading role in government and in the civil war between Lancastrians and Yorkists, later known as the Wars of the Roses. She lived to see the death of her son whose claim to the throne she had so fiercely defended, and she died as an exile. We seek to examine the extent to which she was a victim of circumstance, and why contemporary and later views of her were harsh.
Edward IV's marriage to Elizabeth Woodville (c. 1437-1492), widow of a Lancastrian retainer and daughter of a member of the minor nobility, was a scandal. It brought no political advantage and was a wasted opportunity for the Yorkist cause. Moreover Edward IV's patronage of his wife's very large family caused considerable resentment. Yet, Elizabeth's good fortune was very fleeting, and she was to lose all—or nearly all—after the untimely death of her royal husband. We seek to understand the extent to which Elizabeth was in control of her fate and how far she was prepared to make compromises with her enemies in order to salvage what she could.
In studying each of these queens, we use primary sources from the period, both written and visual, as well as the work of historians. A booklet of extracts from primary sources will be circulated to members of the class at the introductory session.
Course requirements
Students are required to write one paper of 1,500 to 2,000 words and to deliver one oral presentation.
Tutor biography
Elizabeth Gemmill, Ph.D. , is a university lecturer in the Department for Continuing Education, University of Oxford, and a Fellow of Kellogg College.
Field trips
Field trips will include visits to Tewkesbury, Westminster Abbey, Godstow Abbey, and Woodstock.
Reading
Please prepare for the course by reading Christine de Pisan's The Treasure of the City of Ladies, a late medieval conduct book for women. You may find it helpful to bring this with you to Oxford. In addition it will be helpful to read Jennifer Ward's Women in England in the Middle Ages.
In addition to the required reading list, there is a supplementary reading list containing works on medieval women, queens in particular, and on the general political context of the period. You do not need to bring these works with you to Oxford although you may find it stimulating to read some of them prior to the course. If questions arise from your preparatory reading, do please raise these with the tutor, Elizabeth Gemmill, at the beginning of the course.
All the books on the reading list should be in print, and most are available in paperback.
Required reading list
Ward, Jennifer. Women in England in the Middle Ages. Hambledon and London, 2006.
Pisan, Christine de. The Treasure of the City of Ladies, translated by Sarah Lawson. Penguin, 1985.
Supplementary reading list
Baldwin, David and Elizabeth Woodville. Mother of the Princes in the Tower. Sutton, 2004.
Clanchy, M.T. England and Its Rulers, 1066–1307. Blackwell, 3rd edition, 2006.
Coss, Peter. The Lady in Medieval England 1000–1500. Sutton, 1998.
Froissart, Jean. Chronicles, translated by Geoffrey Brereton. Penguin, 1978.
Keen, Maurice. England in the Later Middle Ages. Methuen, 1977.
Kelly, Amy. Eleanor of Aquitaine and the Four Kings. Harvard, 1950, and reprinted.
Leyser, Henrietta. Medieval Women: A Social History of Women in England, 450–1500. Palgrave MacMillan, 1998.
Maurer, Helen E. Margaret of Anjou: Queenship and Power in Late Medieval England. Boydell, 2003.
Parsons, J.C. Eleanor of Castile: Queen and Society in Thirteenth-Century England. MacMillan, 1994.
Power, Eileen. Medieval Women. Cambridge University Press, new edition 1997.
Prestwich, Michael. Plantagenet England: 1225–1360. Oxford University Press, 2005.
Weir, Alison. Eleanor of Aquitaine, by the Wrath of God, Queen of England. Pimlico, 2000.
Weir, Alison. Isabella, She-Wolf of France, Queen of England. Pimlico, new edition, 2006.
Credit and Enrollment Information
X405 (3 semester units in History)
(EDP 284141)