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With Eleanor captured, the boys were no match for their father. By the autumn of 1174, they had no choice but to throw themselves on his mercy. Henry was generous in victory and offered his sons peace with honour. To Eleanor, he was not so magnanimous. Eleanor was taken as a prisoner from France to England and for the next 15 years she's almost lost in silence. We don't even know for certain where she was held, but for a woman who'd always believed in her own agency, captivity can only have been relentlessly difficult to endure. Eleanor was blamed for their family's descent into civil war. But during the 15 long years, she was kept under lock and key, they kept on fighting. |
