Eleanor's Influence

As Edward I's queen, Eleanor of Castile had a large effect on the country, and not just because of all the property she owned. Her patronage of the arts and her children's and relative's marriages stand out.

She established a scriptorium for producing and reproducing books. It is the only known instance of a royal scriptorium in Northern Europe at that time. Saints' lives and romances were the common reading material of the day, but Eleanor wanted more.

When her mother died in 1279 and Eleanor inherited the title Countess of Ponthieu, she had a romance written about a fictional 9th century count of Ponthieu. She had an Arthurian romance written with a Northumbrian theme. The Archbishop of Canterbury wrote a treatise on angels at her request. Pictured here is the Alfonso Psalter, which she had written for her son Alfonso (1273 - 1284); more about it here.

She had tiled bathrooms and piped water to some of the royal residences to match what she was accustomed to in Castile. She increased the use of tapestries and carpeting. These were initially criticized as Spanish extravagances, but became a popular fashion for those who could afford them. She also liked fancy tableware like knives and forks, but the forks may have been only for serving from a platter, not for individual use.

Another Castilian practice she brought to England was water features in gardens, along with fish ponds, aviaries, and gazebos. Household accounts show her ordering olive oil, French cheeses, and fresh fruit from the Mediterranean, as well as food and other items from Acre, because of her time there on Crusade with Edward.

She founded several priories, and gave financial support to Oxford and Cambridge universities.

One of the immediate impacts made by Eleanor and Edward—and partially for their benefit—was arranging advantageous marriages for their children. Eleanor bore at least 16 children to Edward. Only a few survived to adulthood, but they helped tie the throne to powerful relatives. I'll talk more about that tomorrow.

The Fork

17th century knife and fork

There is a point in the movie Becket (taken from the play of the same name by Jean Anouilh) that introduces the fork. King Henry II has never heard of it before, and doesn't see the point.* Forks did come to England rather late, but they were around much earlier elsewhere.

Ancient Greeks used two-tined forks as serving utensils, though not for transporting food directly to the mouth. Forks show up in the Middle East by the 7th century CE, used by aristocracy. In the 11th century, the Doge of Venice, Domenico Selvio, married a Byzantine princess, Theodora, who brought to Venice a case of forks, surprising the locals with her refusal to eat with her hands. Bishop Peter Damian of Ostia attributed her death to her "excessive delicacy."

"An Englishman named Thomas Coryate brought the first forks to England after seeing them in Italy during his travels in 1608." [link] This is not true of the "first forks," since documentary evidence of forks exists in England prior to that. This site shows examples of forks in wills and household accounts:

• The Will of John Baret of Bury St. Edmunds, 1463: "Itm J. yeve and beqwethe to Davn John Kertelynge my silvir forke for grene gyngor" [my translation: "Item: I give and bequeath to Davin John Kerteling my silver fork for green ginger."
• The Jewelhouse inventory of Henry VIII: "Item one spone wt suckett fork at the end of silver and gilt" [Note: a "suckett" fork was used to get preserves like ginger out of jars; John Baret's was probably also a suckett fork.]
• Inventory of property left by Henry VII: "Item, one Case wherein are xxi knives and a fork, the hafts being crystal and chalcedony, the ends garnished with gold"
• "Item, one Case of knives furnished with divers knives and one fork, whereof two be great hafts of silver parcel-gilt, the case covered with crimson velvet"

This is not to say that everyone in England had seen forks; only that forks were known at least to the upper classes. No doubt they were often made with expensive materials, and not accessible to everyone.

They started with two tines to prevent whatever was speared from twisting. The tines were straight, however, and some foods tended to slip off. More tines were eventually added for stability, and in the late 17th century in France we start to find curved tines meant for scooping and holding food more reliably.

Our word "fork" comes from Old English forca, meaning a pitchfork, from the Latin furca for pitchfork. The French called them forchette for "little pitchfork."

*You can see a clip here.