From "Debrett's Kings and Queens of Britain" by David Williamson, ISBN 0-86350-101-X, p. 69-71:
2d daughter and co-heiress of Raymond Berenger V, Count of Provence and Beatrice of Savoy. Crowned Westminster Abbey 20 Jan 1236. Heart buried in Church of Friars Minors (Minories) London.
Eleanor, who became Henry III's queen in Jan 1236, was the 2d of 4 beautiful daughters of Raymond Berenger V, Count of Provence, himself one of the last great Provencal poets, whose court was renowned for its patronage of the troubadours. All the girls made brilliant marriages: Margaret to ST Louis IX, King of France, Eleanor to Henry III, Sanchia to Henry's brother, Richard of Cornwall, King of the Romans, and Beatrice to Charles of Anjou, King of Naples.
Henry had first negotiated for the hand of Joan, Countess of Ponthieu, whose daughter Eleanor was years later to become the wife of his son Edward. However, having heard from his brother Richard of the beauty and vivacity of the Provencal ladies, he cancelled his suit and made proposals for the hand of Eleanor which were finally accepted after some haggling about her dower. This was necessarily limited because Henry's mother was still alive and in full possession of her jointure, which could only be dowered to Eleanor in reversion.
Eleanor journeyed through France, visiting the court of her sister Queen Margaret en route, landed at Dover, and proceeded to Canterbury where she was married to the King by Edmund Rich. 16 days later she was crowned at Westminster Abbey. Henry had spared no expense in having the Palace of Westminster refurbished for his young queen, and installing refinements of plumbing, window-glazing and a standard of general comfort hitherto unknown. Instructions remain for chambers in the Palace to be painted a good green colour, like a curtain. The Queen's coronation was an occasion of great display and a large equestrian procession escorted the sovereigns from the Tower to Westminster in a splendid cavalcade.
Henry was a loving and faithful husband and the couple's married life remained a completely happy one. However, the Queen's popularity suffered when her Savoyard uncles visited England and were generously entertained, the King extracting money for that purpose from the Jews with threats of expulsion. The marriage of the Queen's sister Sanchia to the King's brother Richard was another occasion of great display, for which the Jews were again obliged to furnish bunds.
On the death of Edmund Rich in 1240, Eleanor procured the Archbishopric of Canterbury for her uncle, Boniface of Savoy, writing to the Pope herself to assure the nomination.
Boniface's attempts to institute a visitation of the province of Canterbury were strongly resented, and there was an unseemly brawl when he visited St Bartholomew's Priory in the diocese of London and was told by the monks that they would only accept a visitation from their own bishop. Boniface lost his temper, personally assaulted the sub-prior, and encouraged his attendants to beat the monks savagely. The King refused to listen to the monks' complaint and the people of London chased Boniface into Lambeth Palace where he was forced to lie low until they had calmed down.
The Queen's extravagances continued to excite the hostility of the Londoners for many years, and even after she received the reversion of the dower lands on the death of Isabella of Angouleme in 1240, she and Henry still found it necessary to raise funds by every possible means. In 1252, when Henry went to France to deal with a revolt in Gascony, Eleanor was constituted joint-regent with her brother-in-law Richard. She attempted to extract the payment of Aurum Reginae (queen-gold, a right to every 10th mark paid to the King for various purposes) from her old enemies the citizens of London, and had the sheriffs committed to prison on their refusal to pay.
Eleanor loved power well, but pleasure better and in 1254 she accompanied her son Edward to Spain to take part in the festivities to celebrate his marriage to the Infanta of Castile. On the way back, Henry, Eleanor and the young couple were invited to stay at the French court by Eleanor's sister and brother-in-law. After a long and pleasant journey, the King and Queen finally returned to England in Jan 1255 after an absence of nearly a year.
Throughout the civil war Eleanor was active in support of her husband, raising money on her jewellery to aid their cause. She was in France when the victory of Evesham was won and rejoined her husband and son as soon as a favorable wind would allow. On her husband's death, she exercised the regency until her son Edward returned. She had the sorrow of losing her daughters, the Queen of Scots and the Duchess of Brittany, who both died in 1275. In 1280 she retired to the Benedictine convent of Amesbury, where she intended to take the veil, not, however, until the Pope had given her permission to retain her dower. She was professed a nun and assumed the religious habit on 7 Jul 1284. Two of her granddaughters made their profession at the same time.
Eleanor continued to take an interest in the affairs of her widely dispersed family and lived on at Amesbury until 1291, dying after a short illness at the age of about 67, with her son the King at her bedside.