37.5 - Blanche of Castile

 More than just a stop-gap between Louis VIII and IX, Blanche of Castile proved definitively that a woman could not only rule France but lead its armies and redefine its culture. She was the granddaughter of Eleanor of Aquitaine, who hand-picked her as a daughter-in-law to Philip Augustus, whose legacy she would uphold in the face of numerous threats; from English invasions to fanatical peasants.
 
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Blanche's song, Amour ou trop tard me suis pris, is performed by the Ensemble de Musique ancienne. The full recording is available on YouTube and Spotify.   

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CATEGORIES

Ben and Eliza each give a score out of 10 for the first 4 categories. The 5th is determined by maths! The result is a total score out of 100.

1. Enchanté: The shallow, first-impressions round: How fabulous and iconic an image have they passed down to us?
2. En Garde: (A.K.A. “Selfish Wins”) How well did they gain and increase their personal power, either through scheming, statesmanship or good old fashion battles?
3. Voulez-Vous: (A.K.A. “Selfless Wins”) How much would we want to live under their regime? How well did they better the world around them through law reforms and cultural projects?
4. Ouh-Là-Là: How pearl-clutchingly scandalous were the events of their life, both in their time and down through the ages? How mad, bad and dangerous were they to know?
5. La Vie en Throne: How many years did they reign, and how many of their children survived them?

For more details on the scores, how they are calculated and how our kings are ranking, visit our website.