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Date Posted: 18:29:01 02/27/01 Tue
Author: Alie
Subject: Family relations sometimes are generally a bit difficult to trace in medieval Europe
In reply to: Kris 's message, "And if she was a Holland...." on 12:48:19 02/27/01 Tue

if one isn't a dedicated genealogist, and the extended Plantagenet family with their criss-cross marrying and re-marrying strategy is definitely on top of it. I guess they were more successful than the legendary Hapsburg family who were said to marry for adding to their realm instead of invading other countries, and they make the "grandmother of Europe" Queen Victoria look like a common two-children-one-dog family.

Anyway, given the somewhat mischievous trait in so many Plantagenets, and their predilection for only a handful of first names, I almost suspect they did it on intent to confuse enemies and historians.

As on so many of my travels, I had the incredible luck to visit Fontevraud Abbey shortly after they just had recovered the burial sites of Alienor and her family. They had a little visitor brochure with the history of Fontevraud and some basic vita of Alienor, ever since I was hooked. BTW, Fontevraud was from its beginning and even more so by special endowments from Alienor, a refuge for battered wifes who sought shelter from their brutal husbands. Quite unique for that time and even for today when so many politicians still think there is no need for such places.

Isn't Antonia Fraser specializing in the Tudor/Stuart aera? I seem to remember having read something about that period from her. It's so long ago, I don't exactly remember what it was. Anyway, she was one of the first university ladies that wrote mystery novels for recreation.

There is another biography of Alienor by Regine Pernoud which is said to be very good. I think it's available in English, though I don't know how readable it is. The German translation was so awful that I never finished it, and my French is not good enough to read scientific writings beyond my own field.

There is an excellent English biography by Desmond Seward from Dorset Press, New York, which is very readable and has a lot of sources.

LOL, if anyone from the MB circuit drops in and reads this they must think we've gone completely nuts by now.

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