![]() ![]() ![]() Eleanor was present throughout, always on the scene and sometimes playing a role in negotiations. ![]() Reading this book increased my knowledge of Henry II, his sons Richard and John, and the constant power-brokering of that age. She fails to explain why Eleanor would work so hard to preserve their power. Weir portrays Eleanor as strong and intelligent, and the men as violent, power-hungry philanderers. ![]() Weir pieced together evidence from contemporary sources in an attempt to illuminate the life of this "spirited woman," but this book was much more about Eleanor's actions as they related to her husbands and sons, and their quest for dominance of feudal society. The unfortunate reality is that most written history is focused on men and their achievements. Eleanor herself caused ripples in twelfth-century society because she was a spirited woman who was determined to do as she pleased. The fact remained that the social constraints upon women were so rigidly enforced by both Church and state that few women ever thought to question them. There were then, as now, women of strong character who ruled feudal states and kingdoms, as Eleanor did who made decisions, ran farms and businesses, fought lawsuits, and even, by sheer force of personality, dominated their husbands. Show More European countries for centuries to come. ![]()
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