Another adventure for Alienor of Aquitaine! This book marks the closing installment in Elizabeth Chadwick's terrific trilogy about one of the most formidable females in British or indeed global history. The good news is that it more than lives up to its predecessors. With a life as long and full of action as that of Alienor, Chadwick was hardly lacking in material. She is however utterly masterful in how she draws together the known facts with the probable line of events. After so many years of wading through disappointing historical fiction, it is fantastic to find an author whose writing is not only consistently compelling but also makes these long departed figures from history feel genuinely alive once more.

In terms of drama, The Autumn Throne starts from a tricky point since Alienor is in prison, locked up at the pleasure of her husband Henry II. Marital relations have broken down beyond all repair. This is a tough sell from a plot perspective since Alienor did not regain her liberty until sixteen years later when Henry finally died. After two books of her being such a force of nature even in the darkest of times, it is startling to see her so broken. But when her friend Isabel de Warenne suggests kindly that Alienor might take up Henry's offer of a divorce and step aside to take office as an abbess, we see that she is not beaten. Naturally, she rips Isabel's head off for the suggestion. Just because the queen is not moving does not mean that she has no part to play on the chessboard.

As the years pass, Henry's chokehold relaxes to allow Alienor some limited contact with her children. The toll of the times is heavy to bear. The fates of Alienor's daughters are tied to those their husbands, frequently dragged down along with them. The sons however are an entirely different kind of chaos. Death seems to stalk them as one after another they meet untimely ends. These are generally facts that I was aware of but the objectivity of non-fiction has a tendency to strip the events bare of the emotion that must have gone along with them. Chadwick is incredibly gifted in how she sets that right.

I remember in The Winter Crown how Alienor tried to subdue her heartbreak as she waved goodbye to twelve year-old Matilda off on a ship to get married, aware that they would likely never meet again. There is rejoicing to be had that Alienor is able to meet again with all three of her daughters by Henry. Worse though is how she has to rely on secondhand information and dallying messengers for word of what has become of her various sons who have a grim mortality rate.

It is easy to remember Alienor as the unflappable queen but Chadwick is able to also demonstrate her vulnerability. This is the book of Alienor’s grief, from the deaths of her sons and daughters to even shedding a tear for her erstwhile husband Louis. Yet for all that, nevertheless she persisted.

This series has been among my all-time pieces of historical fiction and the quality has been consistently strong. Still, there were a few particular points in this particular novel which stood out to me. I sensed Chadwick’s History Geek excitement when she explained in the previous book that she had good reason to suppose that Isabel de Warrenne was a friend to Alienor as there was evidence of a very close connection which she would reveal in the third part. I can see why she saved the revelation. [spoiler]Eight hundred years later, the reveal that a teenaged Prince John got his equally teenaged cousin pregnant is still shocking. It is entirely credible that the girl’s father was less than happy to share a grandchild with his legitimate younger half-brother. It also rather cemented that vague odour of unpleasantness which has lingered around John's reputation for over eight hundred years.[/spoiler]

Still the most poignant section of the novel dealt with the fate of Joanna of Sicily, Alienor’s youngest daughter. [spoiler]I remember reading of her death in a biography when I was thirteen and the rather gruesome detail that she underwent a post-mortem caesarean so that her child could be baptised before his own death. Joanna’s marriage had broken down and despite being pregnant, she chose to take the veil before her death. The evidence suggests that she did not expect to survive her childbirth although it was her third delivery. Around this time, her brother John had returned the dower money her other brother Richard had stolen rather brazenly but with the note that it was for Joanna to bequeath.

I have listened to podcasts and read biographies that touched on Joanna's life which theorised that she was 'weakened' but this all sounds a bit like the death of Queen Amidala in the third Star Wars prequel movie where she vaguely died of sad. In real life, there must have been something actually going on. But since it related to women's issues, whatever it was went unrecorded. Elizabeth Chadwick puts forward the theory that Joanna was suffering from placenta previa. This was a fascinating idea that sadly fit the evidence. A friend and I were talking about how so much of the obstetric advice put forward by doctors was likely well-known among women for centuries, for example the idea of waiting for the cord to turn white before clamping. In The Autumn Throne, Alienor has several discreet conversations with some of the local wise women and comes to understand that her beloved daughter is doomed. Like a patient with a terminal illness, Joanna does what she can to make peace with her fate. I had to take a pause and reflect for a moment as I considered all the many thousands of women who must have had to face similar realisations down the centuries before the advent of safe caesareans.[/spoiler]

I was thinking of how much loss Alienor suffered in her final years but in truth, loss is a theme across the trilogy. From the departure and death of Alienor's father in the early pages of The Summer Queen to her sister Petronella's tumultuous life then the difficulties of her first marriage which led to her giving up her first two daughters and that is before she even married Henry. One does not need to read this trilogy to know that Eleanor of Aquitaine is one of the most incredible women to have ever walked this earth but Elizabeth Chadwick does a magnificent job in reminding the reader of Alienor, the woman behind the name in the history book. She was the woman who late in her seventh decade was still capable of withstanding a siege from her grandson until she could be rescued by her son. Wife to kings, mother to kings, grandmother to two separate monarchies, Alienor was also a strategist, a diplomat, a leader and so much more. Yet as Chadwick describes so vividly, Alienor was not a woman ahead of her time but rather a woman restricted by her times and forever fighting against them. One of my all time favourite historical figures, it was wonderful to read a trilogy that has truly done her justice.

I was initially interested in reading this book, however my tastes have shifted and I do not think I will be able to get to it now. Many thanks to the publisher for sending me a digital copy!

The Autumn Throne by Elizabeth Chadwick is a delightful book.

Charting the final thirty years of Eleanor of Aquitaine's life, it is not exactly a fast-paced novel, but I don't think it's ever meant to be. For all that Eleanor was imprisoned for nearly fifteen years of those thirty, there is still a great deal that befell her, and of course, with her unruly husband and difficult sons, Eleanor really doesn't have a moments peace to herself.

I very much enjoyed the arrival of many of Eleanor's grandchildren throughout the novel, as well as the reappearance on multiple occasions of William the Marshall - definitely Elizabeth Chadwick's greatest character to date.

I don't think that I've read the first two parts of the trilogy, but I've read about Eleanor before - both in fiction and non-fiction, and I didn't feel as though I missed out on anything, and for all that I knew the ending of the novel would be her death, that didn't diminish the enjoyment of reading about her sometimes chaotic and busy life.

While Henry II is not reviled throughout the novel, he never appears as a particularly pleasant man, neither do her sons, especially John. Yet, the author does a fine job of portraying all of Eleanor's sons, and her husband, as men that Eleanor can't help but love, both as their mother, and as their wife, even when they anger her. But it also shows how helpless she was. She might have been a great queen, but she was really just a pawn that her husband and sons used when it suited them.

A finely nuanced book.

The third book in the trilogy, focusing on the final years of the life of Eleanor of Aquitaine. The novel engages the reader throughout, with a wealth of historical detail and descriptions that carry the reader back to the bygone days of medieval knights, crusades, warring and power-hungry countries battling over land, and the people living amongst all this chaos. As with the other books in the series, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Duchess, Queen, Queen Mother and extraordinary woman, is presented to the reader as someone who seems able to endure the unendurable, a powerhouse of a woman, incredibly advanced and forward thinking for the time in which she lived. It is this that keeps the reader hooked throughout, keen to find out what happens to her right through to the very end of her life. Her experiences, her stamina and the manner in which she is able to cope with everything that life throws at her, particularly the death of nearly all of her children before her own life comes to an end, all serve to spark a note of inspiration and incredulity in the reader - nobody could fail to be amazed at all she achieved and lived through - her story truly is the stuff of fantasy, set amidst the backdrop of the harsh reality of the 12th and early years of the 13th centuries.
From beginning to end, no reader will be disappointed with this narrative, told by a master story teller, one with the power to bring the past to life in glorious technicolour and startlingly vivid detail.

So sad to see this series end.

What an absolutely amazing woman Eleanor was. When you think about the time period and all she managed to do....I mean seriously, whilst her son was off fighting in the Crusades, there she was, in her 70's running England and their other lands. How is that even possible? It wasn't just 100 years ago...we're talking the 1100's!

All the things I complain about getting old (ha! at 47!) and she's just dealing with it. No aspirin. No muscle relaxers. Best (or worst) of all, no glasses!

I can't even begin to imagine what this woman was made of. If she had lived today, well just imagine!

I still....dang...if she wasn't a noted historical person, well, I would maybe have just pssffftttt'ed this book away, believing that there was no way it could have actually occurred during that time period. I would have just dismissed it as being unrealistic.

I love Chadwick's writing. It was truly beautiful. I also marvelled at how *real* she managed Eleanor to become to me. I felt her pride. I felt her contempt. I love how she allowed Eleanor to age true to life. She allowed her to become sentimental in memories of her earlier years. She let her become down-heartened as everyone else around her died and yet, she continued to live. She allowed her to be tired and ready to go off, to find rest and peace. Chadwick managed to do with without making Eleanor feeble or weak of mind.

Sure, it's a work of fiction....but Chadwick has found in me, a new fan...one that is very grateful to have been inspired by learning about Eleanor of Aquitaine...a lady I know will never fade in my memory...

Review copy provided by Netgalley for an honest review

This is the third part of Elizabeth Chadwick’s trilogy telling the story of Eleanor of Aquitaine in fictional form. I love Chadwick’s portrayal of Eleanor (or Alienor, as her name is spelled throughout the trilogy) and having enjoyed both The Summer Queen and The Winter Crown, I was hoping that The Autumn Throne would be just as good. As the title suggests, she is entering the ‘autumn’ of her life in this final novel but remains close to the throne in one way or another.

As well as being Duchess of Aquitaine in her own right, Alienor was also Queen of France through her first marriage to Louis VII and then Queen of England as the wife of Henry II. Following Henry’s death, she would also be mother to two more kings of England: Richard I (the Lionheart) and John. The Autumn Throne, though, begins while Henry is still very much alive and has had Alienor imprisoned at Sarum in Wiltshire as punishment for supporting their sons in a rebellion against him. It’s 1176 and Alienor will remain in captivity for another thirteen years.

I was surprised to find that during the long years of her imprisonment, Alienor actually spends quite a lot of time visiting various castles and palaces, being brought out of confinement whenever it suits Henry to have her present at court celebrations and rituals. She also manages to have some contact with her sons and daughters and with her good friend, Isabel de Warenne, who is married to Henry’s half-brother Hamelin. This means that Alienor is not as cut off from the world as you might imagine and that, as the years go by, she (and through her, the reader) is kept informed of her children’s marriages, Henry’s plans for his kingdom, and important events taking place in Europe and beyond.

Alienor’s feelings towards Henry are portrayed in a way that feels plausible and realistic. There are times when she hates him for what he has done to her and the way he is treating their sons, but also times when she feels sorrow for the husband she once loved and regret that things have turned out this way. Still, it’s hard not to be relieved for Alienor’s sake when Henry finally dies and she is set free at last. After this, Alienor’s relationships with her two surviving sons, Richard and John, come to the forefront of the novel. I have to say, as far as kings of England go, Richard I has never been one of my favourites, partly due to the fact that he spent very little time actually in England. Alienor, though, makes no secret of the fact that he is the son she loves most. She is shown here to have at least some influence over his decision-making and to be trusted with playing a role in the running of the country while Richard is away taking part in the Third Crusade.

The most interesting character in the novel, apart from Alienor herself, is probably John. I have read several fictional portrayals of John, some which cast him as a villain and others which give a more balanced view – this one falls into the second category. He begins the book as an ambitious, calculating boy who does as he pleases without thinking of the consequences; he is much the same as he grows into a man, but his relationships with Alienor and his illegitimate son Richard show he is more complex than that and has enough good qualities to make people care about him.

I have had a lot of sympathy for Alienor throughout this series, but more than ever in this final book as she suffers the loss of one adult son or daughter after another. Of the eight children Alienor has with Henry, only two are still alive by the time of her death. Alienor herself lives into her eighties and it’s sad that she doesn’t have much time to relax in her old age. She is in her seventies when John sends her on the long journey to Castile to select one of his nieces as a bride for the King of France’s heir – and just two or three years before her death, she is being besieged in her castle of Mirebeau by one of her own grandsons!

With this novel covering the last thirty years of Alienor’s life, ending with her death at Fontevraud in April 1204, it does feel very long and drawn out at times. I kept wondering whether there were things that could have been left out to make it a bit shorter, though it’s hard to say which scenes could be omitted without disturbing the course of Alienor’s story. I did enjoy this book just as much as the first two in the trilogy, but I’m glad it’s been a while since I read the last one – I think if I’d read the three books one after the other it would have been too much for me!

Alienor is being kept in isolation at Sarum, far from the court and her estranged husband Henry. Whilst a fragile peace has been maintained between Henry and their sons, Alienor knows that unless Henry gives the boys more freedom he will alienate them further. Alienor is a survivor and as her two eldest boys die, followed by Henry, it is up to her to support her dynasty against both the French king and themselves.

As ever, a new book by Elizabeth Chadwick is a real treat. Yes it is guilty pleasure for me, Chadwick writes historical fiction that is more historical romance and she embroiders much onto the facts but those facts are the solid base. The tale of Eleanor of Aquitaine is well-known but the personality of the woman less so whilst Chadwick takes huge liberties she also creates a a compelling romantic narrative.

Alas it was archived before I got chance to read it.

I have read all of Elizabeth Chadwick's novels, and this one doesn't disappoint. Her level of research is outstanding. Her storytelling abilities raise the bar each time. This book as part of a series is wonderful, but it can also be read as a stand alone due to Elizabeth Chadwick's talent. Highly recommend.

The Autumn Throne creates a captivating account of Alienor/Eleanor of Aquitane, the Queen of Henry II. This book is weighty at nearly 500 pages long yet the author does not waste a word in weaving a colourful picture of the places and characters involved. Although my knowledge of this time in history is not sufficient to comment on the accuracy of the story, Elizabeth Chadwick's helpful epilogue explains many of the choices she made around names and events and leads me to believe this was a very plausible account of the time. I am now going to have to explore some of Chadwick's other work.