Skip to content
Oak National Academy
Oak National Academy
Teachers
Pupils
New
New
Year 2

Eleanor and the Second Crusade

I can describe Eleanor and Louis' relationship and how they went on a crusade.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils
New
New
Year 2

Eleanor and the Second Crusade

I can describe Eleanor and Louis' relationship and how they went on a crusade.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Shortly after her father's death, Eleanor married a French prince, Louis.
  2. Even though Louis became the Duke of Aquitaine, Eleanor got to keep her land for herself.
  3. Louis became King of France shortly after their marriage, and Eleanor helped him to rule.
  4. Eleanor went with Louis on a crusade, travelling to Constantinople and Jerusalem.
  5. Eleanor and Louis' marriage broke down and it was annulled, leaving her free to marry again.

Common misconception

Some may think that Eleanor and Louis were not married for very long.

Eleanor and Louis were married for 15 years before their marriage was annulled by the church.

Keywords

  • Crusade - a crusade was a war fought between different religious groups

  • Annulled - when a marriage is annulled, it means that the two people are officially no longer married

Compare the map of the Second Crusade to modern day maps of Europe. Discuss where Eleanor and Louis travelled on their journey and where the crusaders battled.
Teacher tip

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Video

Skip video

Loading...

Starter quiz

Download starter quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
Eleanor of Aquitaine’s father was the…
King of France
Correct answer: Duke of Aquitaine
King of England
Q2.
Select the answers to finish this sentence: Eleanor’s family was very…
Correct answer: important
Correct answer: rich
poor
Q3.
When Eleanor was 13, she became the…
Duchess of France
Queen of Aquitaine
Correct answer: Duchess of Aquitaine
Q4.
Aquitaine was a large area of modern day…
Correct Answer: France, france
Q5.
Put these events in Eleanor’s life into the correct order.
1 - Eleanor was born.
2 - Eleanor had a good education.
3 - Eleanor’s father died.
4 - Eleanor became the Duchess of Aquitaine.
Q6.
As Duchess of Aquitaine, Eleanor was one of the richest women in Europe.
Correct answer: True
False

Exit quiz

Download exit quiz

6 Questions

Q1.
Eleanor married the of France.
Correct Answer: prince, Prince
Q2.
Eleanor was the Duchess of Aquitaine and her husband became the…
Correct answer: Duke of Aquitaine
Duchess of Aquitaine
King of Aquitaine
Q3.
Eleanor became less powerful when she married Prince Louis.
True
Correct answer: False
Q4.
A war fought between different religious groups was a...
game
march
Correct answer: crusade
Q5.
Eleanor and Louis travelled from France through places like __________ to Jerusalem.
Cardiff
London
Correct answer: Constantinople
Q6.
Put these events into the correct order, starting with the earliest.
1 - Eleanor and Louis got married.
2 - Eleanor became Queen of France.
3 - Eleanor and Louis went on the crusade.
4 - Eleanor and Louis had their marriage annulled.

Additional material

Download additional material
We're sorry, but preview is not currently available. Download to see additional material.