Henry II of England

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Course

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University

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THE LION IN WINTER

Eleanor of Aquitaine of the 2nd cascade of Damascus

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HYPERLINK "http /www .womeninworldhistory .com /heroine2 .html www .womeninworldhistory .com /heroine2 .html

Eleanor of Aquitaine is listed as one of the most fascinating and toughest Queen of the mediaeval England and France . She was the wife initially of Louis VII of England and later to wife of Henry II of England . She participated in the Second Crusade

which was part of a series of four medieval crusades that were military in nature and were waged and sanctioned by the Pope as a form of Christendom . The crusade 's main purpose was to wage military action and recapture Jerusalem from the Muslim rule . The Eastern Orthodox Byzantine Empire had called for support from the rest of the medieval Europe to contain the fierce expansion of the Muslim Seljuk Turks into part of Turkey which was known as Anatolia

The second crusade in which Eleanor participated , took place between 1145 and 1147 . It was launched from Europe and was announced by Pope Eugene III and was supported by such European kings like Louis VIII of France and Conrad III of Germany . The two kings were supported by various other important nobles from Europe

This crusade came about after the fall of the County of Edessa in 1144 and the Europeans kings felt threatened . This crusade was unique because it also attracted Eleanor of Aquitaine who was France queen and other nobilities . As the soldiers duchy 's feudal leader , Eleanor insisted in taking part in the crusade . She involved other royal ladies including other 300 non-noble vassals thereby emphasizing the role of women

Due to internal disagreements within the ranks of the crusaders , the second crusade came to naught leading to the loss of Jerusalem in 1187 Some blamed its failures on the Queen

2 . Thomas Beckett

HYPERLINK "http /www .eyewitnesstohistory .com /becket .htm http /www .eyewitnesstohistory .com /becket .htm

HYPERLINK "http /www .spartacus .schoolnet .co .uk /NORbeckett .htm http /www .spartacus .schoolnet .co .uk /NORbeckett .htm Thomas Beckett was born the son of a wealthy English merchant in 1118 Normandy . He was born of a wealthy family and had a rich education background gained in Paris and later England where he was under the tutelage of Theobold the Archbishop of Canterbury . Beckett was endowed with great intelligence and diplomatic and administrative skills Because of these qualifications he was sent to Paris by the archbishop to study and after his return to England he became the archdeacon of Canterbury 1154 he was introduced to King Henry II by Theobold and within no time was named the kings chancellor . After Theobold 's death in 1161 at the kings ' petition to the Pope Beckett was made the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1162 , June 2 . The kings ' intention was to increase his influence over the church . Unfortunately Beckett allegiance to the king shifted and was...