Heloise and Abelard

Heloise died on this day in 1164.

If you walk along the Seine on the Ile de la Cite not far from Notre Dame,

you'll come upon this plaque announcing that Heloise and Abelard lived here in 1118. 

We've all heard of their tragic love story. 

There are books, songs, poems and plays about them. 

Pierre Abelard, a canon, theologian, philosopher and teacher 

requested room and board in exchange for tutoring Heloise

in the home of her uncle where the young woman lived. 

It's not long before Heloise is pregnant. 

Once her pregnancy was discovered, 

Abelard sent her to Brittany to be looked after by his family

and it was there that their son, Astrolabe, was born. 

Her uncle insisted Abelard marry her and he agreed

 but only if it could be kept secret to protect his reputation and career. 

Heloise was not interested in a secret marriage,

or as it sounds from some of her letters, in any marriage.

Her written opinions about marriage 

are quite strong and unusual for women at the time. 

But she finally gave in. 

She was brought back to Paris where they were secretly married. 

However, to punish Abelard, the uncle lets it be known. 

To protect Heloise, Abelard sends her to a nunnery where she had spent her early years. 

The uncle, believing Abelard has discarded his niece after using her,

sent some of his friends to Abelard's room to castrate him. 

Following this, Abelard also took up the life of a monk

and made Heloise take the habit, again against her wishes. 

Their child is barely mentioned in any of the letters between them over the years

and little is known of his fate. 

Many years later, Heloise becomes the Prioress of her nunnery

and a respected physician thanks, in part, to Abelard's tutoring. 

In reading more about her,

I didn't realize (or remember) that originally she was a reputed scholar in her own right,

well-known for her brilliance in her studies. 

According to one source, this was the reason Abelard chose her. 

And to this day, she is considered an important part of 

French literary history and the Epistolary genre.

In Paris in the middle ages,

schools began with the School of Notre Dame

located on the Ile de la Cite and taught by the clerics.

By 1200, the Left Bank had become a hotbed of schools and monasteries

which gave rise to the University of Paris. 

Abelard was just one of many teachers

and this was just one story 

which became famous through their writings. 

Wonder how many other stories like this one were never told?!

(Photo copyright: Kirsten Steen)