Nonetheless, Guy was summoned to appear. He refused to do so, on the grounds that his life would not be safe while Edward was at Orvieto – a suspicion which was probably justified. His refusal left the Pope had no real choice but to act. Thus, before leaving in late May, Edward had secured the excommunication and outlawry of Guy. He was deprived of the right to hold property or make a will, and also of the law’s protections, making him a safe target for anyone. Moreover, the sanction was bolstered by a ruling that the lands of any men who aided him were also to be placed under interdict. The sanctions worked. Six months later, Guy submitted himself to the Pope and spent some years in prison. He was released, and taken back into service by Charles of Anjou in 1281, partly for his undoubted talents as a soldier and partly because of the family relationship between them. His story did not, however, end in prosperity: he was later captured by the Aragonese, and died in prison in 1291.3 Meanwhile Eleanor made her own intercession – gaining permission for one of her clerks to hold multiple benefices.
After leaving the papal court, the new king and queen’s journey north on the Via Emilia took on much of the appearance of a triumphal progress. Whatever the actual achievements of the Crusade, Edward was perceived as a great warrior and Crusader. There were acclamations and processions at every city. He was entertained at the episcopal palace at Reggio on 20 May. At Milan the citizens presented a number of selected chargers, richly caparisoned with scarlet trappings.
If a letter from Gregory X to Eleanor is to be believed, some of the slowness of the progress after Orvieto was, however, attributable to Edward’s having fallen ill again. Finally, however, they reached the pass at Mont Cenis, where they were met by a party of English nobles who had set out expecting to meet the new king and queen in Paris. Also here to meet the royal party was Philip, Count of Savoy, and at his castle of St George near Vienne in late June Edward took his homage for various lands in Savoy which had come to the English Crown in Henry II’s reign. He also took that of the impudent William de Tournon, who judged it best to make peace after having raided the party on their outward voyage. In all probability, Otho de Grandison parted from the company in Savoy, to assist his family in issues in his homeland. The stay at St George will have afforded Edward and Eleanor a chance to admire the work recently done there by the count – or, more accurately, his builders. Among these was Master James, later to be known as James of St George, who was to become Edward’s architect in chief.4
At some point in June, Edward and Eleanor took the rare step of parting company. Quite when and how is unclear. Some accounts suggest that while he headed on to a tournament in Châlons and then Paris, she journeyed with a party to see her brother Alfonso in Seville. However, the letter cited for this proposition makes no mention of a visit and can be safely dismissed, not least because Alfonso’s own timeline rebuts it.5
At this point it needs to be understood that Alfonso’s position in Castile had deteriorated considerably since Eleanor’s marriage. Despite his excellent inheritance, Alfonso had failed to live up to the standards of his father. His entry into the race to become the next Holy Roman Emperor had been an expensive fiasco. This election had hung fire for years, and had resulted in Alfonso taking up arms against the papal forces. This, and the large sums required to keep his case in the right minds over a period of years had carried a heavy financial cost. To obtain money, he debased the coinage and then endeavoured to prevent a rise in prices by an arbitrary tariff, which had a negative knock-on effect on external trade. This, in turn, affected his popularity with the middle and lower classes.
As for his relationship with his nobles, in the absence of continued focus against the Almohads, the traditional problems re-emerged, particularly with the de Lara and de Haro families. This was probably exacerbated by Alfonso’s very obvious focus on the arts and sciences, rather than on the traditional warlike skills of a Castilian noble. Thus, while creating the reputation as a writer, musician and patron of the arts which was to earn him the title of Alfonso the Learned, he was constantly creating friction with those who should have been his most powerful supporters.
Finally, his attempts at legal reform and in particular his attempts to introduce a cohesive legal code which drew heavily on Roman law and gave minimal weight to the traditional Peninsular law, produced in 1271 a revolt on the part of the nobility – supported by his own brother Felipe. This was still not resolved in 1273, as Eleanor returned from the Holy Land. In fact, at the Cortes of Burgos in 1272, the nobles (including both de Haro and de Lara representatives) and Felipe withdrew their allegiance from Alfonso and went into exile under the protection of the Muslim Emir of Granada. Although a tentative accord was reached in March 1273 via the intercession of Queen Violante and Fernando de la Cerda, Alfonso’s heir apparent, the accord was still in the process of being fleshed out, not assisted by serious illness on Alfonso’s part in spring 1273. Thus when Eleanor suggested a late spring or summer meeting to Alfonso, Queen Violante told him to refuse because if he missed key negotiations on this account he would lose such limited ground with the nobles as he had made up. In late August, he was instead seeking help from Jaime of Aragon at Requena near Valencia. Following this meeting Alfonso was for some time seriously ill again with a tertian fever. He only returned to Burgos by December.6
So Eleanor simply cannot have met Alfonso until very late in the year. It seems most likely that Edward and Eleanor remained together until Lyons and Eleanor, who was expecting yet another baby in the late autumn, moved via Clermont Ferrand and Limoges into Aquitaine at an easy pace, rather than face travel later in her pregnancy, and risk confinement on the road.7
Meanwhile, Edward went on to a major tournament in Châlons. Such was the violence of this event that it was known as ‘the little war of Châlons’. It featured what Guisborough recounts as a thoroughly dastardly attack by the Count of Châlons on Edward personally – perhaps hoping to gain renown by capturing the famed Crusader. But the attack was foiled by Edward’s great personal strength, dragging the count bodily from his horse. Edward is then glimpsed in Paris from 26 July to 6 August, where he did homage to King Philip III for his French lands. There he received messengers from England, reporting that all was going on well there in his absence – a fact for which he expressed very great pleasure. But he also received the less good news that Gaston de Béarn was continuing to cause trouble in Gascony – reinforcing his decision to head to Gascony before leaving for England.8
It appears that on 26 July 1273, Eleanor had reached Limoges, which had been ceded to England by the 1259 Treaty of Paris. There she was received royally by the townspeople, who prepared a feast in her honour. They also asked her to intercede with Edward to protect them against the oppression of their viscountess’s administration. Eleanor wrote to Edward for assistance, which was duly sent, and while he remained in Paris until early August, these troops – possibly under Eleanor’s direction – gained a victory over the viscountess. Edward arrived shortly after this, and required the men of Limoges to swear fealty to William of Valence, who was to be left as his deputy in Gascony.
After spending the latter part of August at Saintes, the reunited party then moved on into Gascony, arriving at Bordeaux on 8 September 1273 with a view to dealing with the usual problems of disorder among the Gascon barons – as usual in particular Gaston de Béarn.9
Edward’s immediate starting point in Gascony was to announce an inquest into tenures in Gascony. Though in part a forerunner of the quo warranto inquiries in England, it was specifically relevant to the Gascon issues, where the duke’s authority was different as regards different vassals. An inquiry would enable him to have a good knowledge of his property and the rights and difficulties inherent in it. In particular, it would enable him to know, now that his authority was finally his own, who was prepared to recognise him and who was not. He could then judge how to deal with those who were not prepared to acknowledge his authority. A proclamation was therefore sent summoning vassals to do
homage at various main locations and to declare the nature and extent of their obligations to the new ruler.
The party reached Louvigny on 18 September on their way to Saint-Sever, where the first of the grand courts had been convened. The chief absentee was, predictably, Gaston. Much of October was then spent trying to bring him to heel, resulting in a judicial assembly of the principal Gascon representatives, which granted Edward specific authority to proceed against him in arms. Edward immediately called his levies and marched in arms against Gaston.10
Thereafter, the focus moved temporarily to Eleanor and her imminent childbirth. The court moved to base itself at Bayonne, and on 24 November came the birth of Eleanor and Edward’s next child – another much-longed-for son, who was named Alphonso, after Eleanor’s brother, who stood godfather to him. The use of the name is highly unusual and signifies the close link between Eleanor and her brother – and also presumably Edward’s own affection for him. The decision on the name has, however, had unfortunate ramifications for young Alphonso over the years. He appears in the records variously as Alfurnus, Aunfurs, Amfulsus, Amphur, Amphunsus, Alfundus, Anfours, Alfontis and Aufons – even his own roll of arms has him as Aunfons. He even appears in numerous reports to have been transmuted into a mythical daughter, Alice.11
As for the older Alfonso, the choice by Edward and Eleanor, the current stars of Europe, of him as a godfather will have been a much-needed piece of good news. It may even be interpreted as a deliberate gesture of support from Eleanor for the embattled Alfonso – a sprinkling of fairy dust from the current European golden couple. But certainly the meeting between Edward, Eleanor and Alfonso was thus one with a very different balance of power to the one which had occurred at the time of the marriage. However, Alfonso still was perceived as having some ‘clout’. Eleanor, doubtless remembering his doughty work on her original settlement, asked him to speak to Edward about the need for a revised dower settlement now she was queen – a necessary starting point for her work of property development in the next few years.
Alfonso was not the only representative of the Spanish peninsula who was granted close audience with Edward and Eleanor. In October there had been a meeting with Pedro of Aragon, the heir to the Aragonese throne, at Sordes. The result of this meeting was a marriage agreement, matching the eldest daughter of Edward and Eleanor (Eleanora) with Pedro’s eldest son, Alphonso. Another match was made in December between young Henry and his distant cousin Jeanne of Navarre, the daughter of Henry, King of Navarre and Count of Champagne and Brie, and his wife, Blanche of Artois. Henry of Navarre was a relative of both Edward and Eleanor, via Eleanor of Aquitaine; he was also the brother of the King of Navarre whose hand had once been considered for Eleanor.
These two matches show clearly the importance which was still assigned to maintaining a peaceful border into Gascony; as would the later time, attention and expenditure which was given to the maintaining of the Aragonese marriage. The reason for this can easily be seen. The difficulties which had to be dealt with in Gascony both in 1254 and at this time proved that the Gascons were vulnerable to mischief making. Castile might be counted out of the equation, thanks to Eleanor and its own internal difficulties. However, Aragon was an expansionist country with highly dynamic leadership, whose active influence on the far side of the Pyrenees had recently been shut off as regards Toulouse, Narbonne and surrounding areas under the Treaty of Corbeil of 1258. Absent a good, solid agreement, there was every chance that the Aragonese would at least make trouble in Gascony and at worst try to take control of lands there directly.12
The need for such precautions can only have been emphasised, as Gaston de Béarn provided occupation for the early part of 1274. He had been conducting guerrilla warfare against Edward’s forces but with limited success. On 27 November 1273, his daughter Constance, the widow of Henry of Almain, had submitted on his behalf at Mont de Marsan and promised to yield his fortresses and castles on demand. However, no actual handover was forthcoming and early in 1274 Gaston appealed to the King of France, accusing Edward of doing damage to Gaston’s property – and even seeking trial by combat. Although attempts were made to keep the dispute local, in the end Edward was forced to retire and to await the decision of their mutual overlord. This was likely to take some time, since a request came from the Pope to delay the hearing of Gaston’s complaints, pending a General Council which he had summoned to Lyons on 1 May.13
The council, however, was of considerable interest to Edward and Eleanor for one very good reason: money. Although Edward now had access to royal revenues, the Crusade had been a crippling undertaking: even with the massive French loan, and all the monies which had been received before their departure, receipts had fallen a long way short of covering outgoings and massive debts needed paying. The Pope, who had witnessed much of this expenditure, was sympathetic – he had authorised a supplementary subsidy from the English clergy of 22,000 marks, to be split with Edmund of Lancaster, and he had still further plans for the Council of Lyons. There, he obtained a worldwide grant of a tenth from the clergy in aid of future crusading efforts. Edward, probably with his financial woes in mind, seems to have indicated that he would lead this Crusade; from this point on, he regarded the money thus raised as peculiarly his own.14
Edward and Eleanor thus began to move back north. At Limoges, the viscountess’s administration was continuing, like Gaston, to create troubles; and matters were put on hold pending a reference to King Philip or her marriage into the friendly Brittany family.15
Towards the end of their Continental peregrinations, Eleanor and Edward found themselves in Ponthieu, her mother’s county, with correspondence dating from Montreuil-sur-Mer in June and July of 1274. It may well have been the first time that Eleanor and her mother had met since the wedding, fourteen years before, though she may well have become acquainted with her new stepfather, Jean de Nesle, at Tunis, where he had fought under Louis’ banner. A stay of reasonable length was made, perhaps because, since the death of her brother Ferdinand around 1264, Eleanor was now heiress to the county of Ponthieu, a place of which she would have had practically no knowledge. The stay with her mother will have offered an opportunity for Eleanor and Edward to familiarise themselves with her future inheritance and begin to plan how it would in due course be administered.
It also seems that, though Jeanne would have preferred Ponthieu to follow Ferdinand’s line, relations at this time were altogether sunny. Otherwise, the decision to which Eleanor and Edward came – to leave their two-year-old daughter, Joan of Acre, to be raised by Eleanor’s mother – seems peculiar indeed. Certainly, this future territorial acquisition cannot explain the decision to leave Joan behind – Joan as a younger child was never in line to inherit Ponthieu, which under local law went to the eldest surviving heir. It seems likely that there was a simple affinity between grandmother and namesake grandchild, and given the limited contact which the youngest would inevitably have with their parents, a long stay was not regarded as problematic by Edward and Eleanor. Perhaps too, it was hoped that fondness for Joan would smooth over any resentment at Ponthieu’s destiny.16
By 28 July 1274 the king and queen are recorded for the last time at Montreuil, and on Thursday 2 August 1274 the couple arrived back at Dover. The arrival was not unexpected – indeed, it is apparent from the close space between the arrival and the coronation that considerable forward planning had been going on between England and France for some months. Nor were they in any sense alone – during their peregrinations they had been acquiring quite a mobile court, most of which will have crossed with them. Accompanying them also were John of Brittany and his wife, Edward’s sister, who had left their son in the company of his cousins and would themselves attend the coronation.
The party was received with great state by the Earl of Gloucester – who, despite the troubles of past years, had been the first to declare his fealty to Edward on Henry III’s decease – and John de Warenne, a prime candidate for being put in overall charge of
organising their reception and coronation. They then proceeded, via stops at each of Warenne’s and Gloucester’s castles of Tonbridge and Reigate, towards London and the coronation. A prior stop, however, was Canterbury, where they were received by Eleanor of Provence. Eleanor’s mother-in-law was now queen dowager, but it was perhaps symptomatic of her less than easy relationship with Eleanor that she tended to continue to call herself Queen of England (and Duchess of Aquitaine and Lady of Ireland) until her enclosure as a nun, some decade in the future. With the queen dowager were the surviving children: Henry, aged six; Eleanor, aged four; and the Brittanys’ own John and Henry. Young Alphonso may well have awaited them in this company, too.17
By the time of their arrival, all was nearly in place; in February 1274, orders had been sent to various counties to supply some of the massive amount of food required for the epic feast that was to round off the coronation and to individuals who could supply some of the luxury items – swans, peacocks, lampreys, pikes and the rest. Westminster Palace was refurbished, temporary accommodation and catering facilities were built, and covered walkways erected. The coronation was to be particularly show-stopping for a variety of reasons. In the first place, there had been no coronation at all for many years – Eleanor of Provence was crowned in 1236, and Henry III’s coronation even longer ago had been a hole-and-corner affair, which took place in a rush in Gloucester, amid the disorder of rebellious barons and invading Frenchmen. Secondly, it was to be a dual coronation – king and queen together. This had last occurred on the coronation of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine in 1154. Thirdly, it offered an opportunity to celebrate Edward’s new worldwide renown, and also to put the Barons’ War firmly behind the country. Fourthly, it was the first coronation to take place in the revamped Westminster Abbey. And last but not least, that great showman Henry III had planned the whole thing himself.18
Eleanor of Castile: The Shadow Queen Page 26