Through various medieval royal marriages, the chess cultures of different areas often intertwined and have grayed in their distinctions. I will be focusing on the cultural role of chess in the kingdom of Eleanor of Aquitaine and her family during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Focus lies mostly on England during the rule of Eleanor and France during the rule of her great grandson, Louis IX. During this time, English and French chess culture was influenced greatly by their respective rulers.
During the rule of Eleanor of Aquitaine, the game of chess was reserved mostly for the first row of chess figures – royalty, clergy, nobles, and their courts. It was assumed that any person of class should and would know how to play chess, especially in courts during and after the rule of Eleanor of Aquitaine, a strong advocate of arts, sciences, and games like chess. For this reason, court troubadours also had a hand at the game of chess, often serving as partners in the game for noble children. Knights learned the game as well. War was often seasonal, and the fall was deemed as the most appropriate due to harvests having been stored. During the winter when their swords were idle, knights passed the time playing chess amongst themselves or with lady friends. Chess was deemed as signifying someone of high class, and as such was regularly taught to royal and noble children. According to a story, “Philomena” by Marie de France, the ideal noblewoman “... knew all sorts/Of entertaining games and sports/...Both chess and backgammon she could play.” Boys learned chess as children as well. According to the epic poem Gui of Nanteuil, boys started learning how to play at the age of six.
The second row of chess figures, the pawns – the blacksmiths, bankers, farmers, messengers, and other lower classes – were largely omitted from the picture, though it was not inconceivable for pawns to have learned the art of chess. It's fair to assume that they did, seeing as how analogies in verse (such as those written by Marie de France) as well as sermons delivered by clergy were most certainly not unheard of. Lower classes, however, were often thought to have mostly played backgammon.
As for the gender of the player, there was no restriction. Both noble men and women, as mentioned before, were often expected to learn how to play at a very early age. It is worth noting, however, that chess was often given to women during pregnancy to pass time. Chess, among other things, was also brought by Eleanor of Aquitaine when she and her first husband, Louis VII, departed on a Second Crusade. As for choice of adversaries, chess was played both with same-gender opponents as well as with the opposite gender, however a more romantic tone was implied when played with the opposite gender.
It is also worth noting that, class and gender aside, prisoners, especially noble or royal prisoners, were often allowed to play chess as a way of passing time.
Like in many other parts of Europe, there were objections to the game of chess. Most notably were the objections of the church, Louis IX (or Saint Louis), and reknowned English author, Alexander Neckam. The church had had objections to games of chance, calling them a vice, and periodically prohibited the playing of chess by the clergy. However Louis IX's aversion to games was even stronger. Upon seeing a brother playing chess at sea during a Crusade, Louis IX promptly dumped the entire set into the ocean according to chronicler Jean de Joinville. In addition to religious objections, chess had a bad reputation for provoking violence amongst its players. Legal documents in London between 1251 and 1276 include two homicides directly related to quarrels originating from chess. During his reign, Louis IX issued royal ordinances that banned the playing of chess and dice. Alexander Neckam, like many clergymen, considered chess “a waste of time, and, worse, something that often led to heated brawls.” (Yalom 97)
Despite opposition, chess had an influence on aspects of English and French culture – such as in literature. Analogies made in verse had begun to pick up allusions to chess. For example, Chretien de Troyes, in his romance Cliges, writes of a marriage that the wife is “queen/upon the board where he is king.” Gautier d'Arras also makes an analogy in Eracle, describing a king who is “checkmated” by his own wife, who had committed adultery.
In the kingdom of Eleanor of Aquitaine, chess was played openly by all genders and at least known, if not played, by all classes. Opposition, such as from Louis IX or Neckam, may have attempted to hinder the spreading and playing of chess, but ultimately to no avail. Her court traditions, carried on by many of her offspring, encouraged the circulation of chess as well as the patronage of many poets and writers who wrote about it, allowing the roots of chess to sink in deep within the culture of France and England.
Bibliography
Yalom, Marilyn. Birth of the Chess Queen A History. New York: HarperCollins, 2004. Print.
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Jerry Fu
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