Eleanor Of Castile
Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Join Britannica's Publishing Partner Program and our community of experts to gain a global audience for your work!
Eleanor Of Castile, Spanish Leonor De Castilla, (born 1246—died Nov. 28, 1290, Harby, Nottinghamshire, Eng.), queen consort of King Edward I of England (ruled 1272–1307). Her devotion to Edward helped bring out his better qualities; after her death, his rule became somewhat arbitrary. Eleanor was the daughter of King Ferdinand III of Castile and his wife, Joan of Ponthieu.
In 1254 Eleanor was married to Lord Edward, son of England’s King Henry III. In honour of the event, her half brother, Alfonso X of Castile, transferred to Edward his claims to Gascony. When Henry III’s baronial opponents seized power in England in 1264, Eleanor was sent for safety to France; she returned in October 1265, after Edward had crushed the rebels.
Eleanor accompanied Edward on a crusade from 1270 to 1273. The story that she saved his life at Acre (now in Israel) by sucking poison from a dagger wound is evidently apocryphal. After Edward ascended the throne, Eleanor was criticized for allegedly mistreating the tenants on her lands. Upon her death, Edward erected the famous Eleanor Crosses—several of which still stand—at each place where her coffin rested on its way to London.
Learn More in these related Britannica articles:
- Edward I: Early lifeHenry negotiated Edward’s marriage with Eleanor, half sister of Alfonso X of Leon and Castile. Edward married Eleanor at Las Huelgas in Spain (October 1254) and then traveled to Bordeaux to organize his scattered appanage. He now had his own household and officials, chancery and seal, with an exchequer (treasury)…
- Edward IEdward I, son of Henry III and king of England in 1272–1307, during a period of rising national consciousness. He strengthened the crown and Parliament against the old feudal nobility. He subdued Wales, destroying its autonomy; and he sought (unsuccessfully) the conquest of Scotland. His reign is…
- Edward IIEdward II, king of England from 1307 to 1327. Although he was a man of limited capability, he waged a long, hopeless campaign to assert his authority over powerful barons. The fourth son of King Edward I, he ascended the throne upon his father’s death (July 7, 1307) and immediately gave the highest…