Eleanor of Austria
(1498-1558)
BIRTH
November 15, 1498
PLACE
Leuven, Belgium
DEATH
February 25, 1558
PLACE
Talavera la Real, Spain
FAMILY
HUSBAND
Francis I of France
(1494-1547)
HOMES
RELIGIOUS VIEWS
CHRISTIAN
CATHOLIC
MEMBERSHIPS
AWARDS
Habsburg princess Eleanor of Austria, eldest sister of Emperor Charles V, was queen of Portugal as the wife of Manuel I and later queen of France as the second wife of Francis I. In 1517 she traveled to Spain with Charles, and in 1518 she was married to the widowed Manuel I of Portugal, becoming his third wife. Eleanor had two children with Manuel, but only their daughter Maria survived. The marriage was childless, and Francis largely ignored her.
EARLY LIFE
Eleanor was born on November 15, 1498, in Leuven, in the Burgundian Netherlands, the eldest child of Philip the Handsome, archduke of Austria, and Joanna of Castile. Her siblings included the future Emperor Charles V and Emperor Ferdinand I. After her father's death in 1506 and her mother's confinement in Spain, Eleanor was raised at Mechelen by her aunt, Margaret of Austria, the regent of the Netherlands, together with her brother Charles. In 1517 she traveled to Spain with Charles, and in 1518 she was married to the widowed Manuel I of Portugal, becoming his third wife.
Eleanor had two children with Manuel, but only their daughter Maria survived. Manuel died in 1521, and Eleanor returned to Spain, leaving her daughter in Portugal.
After Francis I of France was captured at Pavia, the Treaty of Madrid of 1526 provided for his marriage to Eleanor, and the Peace of Cambrai confirmed it in 1529. They married in July 1530, and she was crowned at Saint-Denis in 1531. The marriage was childless, and Francis largely ignored her.
After Francis's death in 1547, Eleanor left France for the Netherlands and later went to Spain with Charles V. She died at Talavera la Real on February 25, 1558, after a long-awaited meeting with her daughter.
CAREER
DEATH
Eleanor had two children with Manuel, but only their daughter Maria survived. Manuel died in 1521, and Eleanor returned to Spain, leaving her daughter in Portugal. After Francis I of France was captured at Pavia, the Treaty of Madrid of 1526 provided for his marriage to Eleanor, and the Peace of Cambrai confirmed it in 1529. The marriage was childless, and Francis largely ignored her. After Francis's death in 1547, Eleanor left France for the Netherlands and later went to Spain with Charles V. She died at Talavera la Real on February 25, 1558, after a long-awaited meeting with her daughter. The available biographical account does not describe a continuous final medical course. It gives no dependable sequence of treatment and last symptoms from which to reconstruct a more detailed bedside narrative.
POPULAR BIOGRAPHIES
Eleanor of Austria (1498–1558), queen of Portugal and France, distinct from other Habsburg Eleanors. Editorial selections prioritize biographical coverage; five standalone biographies were not established. Collective biography, family reference, primary writings and related studies are labelled individually. Multi-volume works and series are counted as one selection.
1. Queens and Mistresses of Renaissance France — Kathleen Wellman. [Collective biography] Find on Amazon
2. Early Modern Habsburg Women: Transnational Contexts, Cultural Conflicts, Dynastic Continuities — Anne J. Cruz; Maria Galli Stampino (editors). [Collective royal and dynastic studies] Find on Amazon
3. Francis I: The Maker of Modern France — Leonie Frieda. [Related biography of her second husband] Find on Amazon
4. Emperor: A New Life of Charles V — Geoffrey Parker. [Related biography of her brother] Find on Amazon
5. The Habsburgs: To Rule the World — Martyn Rady. [Related dynastic biography] Find on Amazon
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