My Sister's Life Story

Petronilla of Aquitaine was my sister and second daughter of William X, Duke of Aquitaine and Aenor Chatellerault. She was older sister to my little brother William Aigret who died early.

She was a close playmate. And we were inseparable. Traveling with me and our father's court, she  was exposed to troubadour art and other culture in our native Aquitaine. She spoke the language Provencal and was given  a few lessons in latin alongside me. Our mother died when she was 5 or 6. She was a great comfort to me then, as always.

Petronilla came with me to France after I wed French King Louis VII. There she fell in love with a married man Raoul of Vermandois who was a first cousin of my's husband's father, therefore making Raoul a distant relation of the French royal family. Raoul was around 40 years older than her.

Since he was a married man and he repudiated his marriage to marry Petronilla, the pair were promptly exocommunicated by the Pope. In the words of wikipedia, 'Hostilities flared, and Louis VII infamously burned Vitry-le-François'. The exocommunication was lifted by the next pope. But this was not to be the last tragedy of Petronilla's life. Raoul divorced her eleven years after they were married and he married again.

Since her marriage to Raoul she was referred to as Alix or Aelith. Two of her children with Raoul led  lives riddled with tragedy. Her daughter Elizabeth married Philip, Count of Flanders. Elizabeth was later found guilty of adultery and her lover was beaten to death. Elizabeth died childless.

Her son Raoul died of leprosy and was also childless. She also had a second daughter named Eleanor. 

In the words of wikipedia, 'It is believed that she came down with a fever on her voyage from England back to France and died in early 1190 before her arrival at port'

Despite all the tragedies of her life. She was a friend to me always and the dearest sister anyone could ask for.