Read Online Plantagenet 1 - The Plantagenet Prelude by Jean Plaidy - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Jean Plaidy
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back. I will prove that his marriage to Petronelle was no marriage. She will be the one to suffer dishonour, not you, my sister.’
‘Raoul was eager to go to his new wife, I know.’
‘He will be begging to come back to you when I have the Pope’s word.’ Theobald was not a man to delay when action was necessary.
He asked the advice of Bernard of Clairvaux who suggested that he take his case immediately to Rome with an account of the wrong done to his sister.
Petronelle was content with her marriage. She glowed with satisfaction. Watching her Eleonore felt a little discontented with her own. True it had brought her the crown of France and she would not have missed that for anything, but she did wish it had brought her a man like Raoul instead of a monk like Louis.
She must get an heir. The country needed an heir and so did she. The purpose of marriage for such as herself was the procreation of children. She could not endure that she should fail in anything.
She was in a mood of discontent when the messenger arrived from Rome.
He brought letters for the King and the Count of Vermandois.
Eleonore made a point of being with Louis when he read his. They were very much to the point. The Pope found that there had been a miscarriage of justice. The Count of Vermandois had put away his true wife on the instigation of the Queen and the bishops and married the Queen’s sister. The Pope could find no just cause why the marriage of the Count of Vermandois and the sister of the Count of Champagne was not legal. The Count of Vermandois was excommunicated and ordered to put away the woman with whom he was now living and return to his wife.
Eleonore was furious.
‘This is an insult to my sister,’ she cried. ‘Does His Holiness realise that? The sister of the Queen of France … !’
Louis said mildly, ‘My dearest, we should never have allowed Raoul to put away his wife.’
‘His wife! That was no true marriage. They are too closely related.’
The King looked at her sadly.
‘You have allowed your love for your sister to blind you,’ he said. ‘Petronelle should have looked elsewhere for a husband.’
‘He is her husband. She has lived openly with him. Do you realise what this means? Who will want to marry her now?’
‘Many I think would wish for an alliance with the sister of the Queen of France.’
‘I’ll not endure this insolence.’
‘This is the edict of the Pope, my love.’
‘You know who has done this. It is Theobald. He was determined to flout us. I’ll not rest until I have driven him from Champagne.’
‘Champagne is his, my dear. It is independent of France.’
The Queen narrowed her eyes. ‘Louis, sometimes I think you do not love me.’
‘You cannot doubt that I do.’
‘Yet you allow me to be insulted.’
‘Theobald has done only what any brother would have done. He has tried to preserve his sister’s honour.’
‘And what of my sister’s honour?’
‘It was unwise to marry her to my cousin.’
‘Unwise! He had no wife, his marriage to Theobald’s sister being invalid. Why shouldn’t they, who had been lovers, sanctify their union!’
‘Because he already had a wife.’
‘He had not, I tell you. The marriage was illegal. He is married to Petronella and we are going to teach Theobald a lesson.’
‘How so?’
‘We shall invade his lands. We shall raze his castles to the ground. I tell you we will be revenged on Theobald.’
‘We should have no support.’
‘Then we will do it without support. I have my loyal subjects of Aquitaine. They would follow me wherever I wished to go.’
‘Nay, Eleonore, let us not go rashly into war.’
Her eyes blazed at him. He was a weakling, a monk, and they had married him to her! He had little to give her but her crown.
And he was going to obey her.
She was determined they were going to war. They were going to ravage the lands of Champagne and teach its disobedient Count a lesson. She was frustrated, married to a man
‘Raoul was eager to go to his new wife, I know.’
‘He will be begging to come back to you when I have the Pope’s word.’ Theobald was not a man to delay when action was necessary.
He asked the advice of Bernard of Clairvaux who suggested that he take his case immediately to Rome with an account of the wrong done to his sister.
Petronelle was content with her marriage. She glowed with satisfaction. Watching her Eleonore felt a little discontented with her own. True it had brought her the crown of France and she would not have missed that for anything, but she did wish it had brought her a man like Raoul instead of a monk like Louis.
She must get an heir. The country needed an heir and so did she. The purpose of marriage for such as herself was the procreation of children. She could not endure that she should fail in anything.
She was in a mood of discontent when the messenger arrived from Rome.
He brought letters for the King and the Count of Vermandois.
Eleonore made a point of being with Louis when he read his. They were very much to the point. The Pope found that there had been a miscarriage of justice. The Count of Vermandois had put away his true wife on the instigation of the Queen and the bishops and married the Queen’s sister. The Pope could find no just cause why the marriage of the Count of Vermandois and the sister of the Count of Champagne was not legal. The Count of Vermandois was excommunicated and ordered to put away the woman with whom he was now living and return to his wife.
Eleonore was furious.
‘This is an insult to my sister,’ she cried. ‘Does His Holiness realise that? The sister of the Queen of France … !’
Louis said mildly, ‘My dearest, we should never have allowed Raoul to put away his wife.’
‘His wife! That was no true marriage. They are too closely related.’
The King looked at her sadly.
‘You have allowed your love for your sister to blind you,’ he said. ‘Petronelle should have looked elsewhere for a husband.’
‘He is her husband. She has lived openly with him. Do you realise what this means? Who will want to marry her now?’
‘Many I think would wish for an alliance with the sister of the Queen of France.’
‘I’ll not endure this insolence.’
‘This is the edict of the Pope, my love.’
‘You know who has done this. It is Theobald. He was determined to flout us. I’ll not rest until I have driven him from Champagne.’
‘Champagne is his, my dear. It is independent of France.’
The Queen narrowed her eyes. ‘Louis, sometimes I think you do not love me.’
‘You cannot doubt that I do.’
‘Yet you allow me to be insulted.’
‘Theobald has done only what any brother would have done. He has tried to preserve his sister’s honour.’
‘And what of my sister’s honour?’
‘It was unwise to marry her to my cousin.’
‘Unwise! He had no wife, his marriage to Theobald’s sister being invalid. Why shouldn’t they, who had been lovers, sanctify their union!’
‘Because he already had a wife.’
‘He had not, I tell you. The marriage was illegal. He is married to Petronella and we are going to teach Theobald a lesson.’
‘How so?’
‘We shall invade his lands. We shall raze his castles to the ground. I tell you we will be revenged on Theobald.’
‘We should have no support.’
‘Then we will do it without support. I have my loyal subjects of Aquitaine. They would follow me wherever I wished to go.’
‘Nay, Eleonore, let us not go rashly into war.’
Her eyes blazed at him. He was a weakling, a monk, and they had married him to her! He had little to give her but her crown.
And he was going to obey her.
She was determined they were going to war. They were going to ravage the lands of Champagne and teach its disobedient Count a lesson. She was frustrated, married to a man
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