Eleanor of Provence

Eleanor of Provence (c. 1223 – 24/25 June 1291) was Queen Consort of King Henry III of England from 1236 until his death in 1272. Born in Aix-en-Provence, she was the second eldest daughter of Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Provence (1198-1245) and Beatrice of Savoy (1205–1267), the daughter of Thomas I of Savoy and his second wife Marguerite of Geneva. All four of their daughters became queens. Like her mother, grandmother, and sisters, Eleanor wa... more

Eleanor of Provence (c. 1223 – 24/25 June 1291) was Queen Consort of King Henry III of England from 1236 until his death in 1272. Born in Aix-en-Provence, she was the second eldest daughter of Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Provence (1198-1245) and Beatrice of Savoy (1205–1267), the daughter of Thomas I of Savoy and his second wife Marguerite of Geneva. All four of their daughters became queens. Like her mother, grandmother, and sisters, Eleanor was renowned for her beauty. She was a dark-haired brunette with fine eyes. Piers Langtoft speaks of her as "The erle's daughter, the fairest may of life". On 22 June 1235, Eleanor was bethrothed to King Henry III of England (1207-1272). Eleanor was probably born in 1223; Matthew Paris describes her as being "jamque duodennem" (already twelve) when she arrived in the Kingdom of England for her marriage. Eleanor was married to King Henry III of England on 14 January 1236. She had never seen him prior to the wedding at Canterbury Cathedral and had... less