Eleanor of Castile and Edward were married when they were 10 and 15 years old, respectively. Child marriages were common in medieval times. Children were often married to strengthen political alliances. The child bride was sent to live with her husband's family.

Not many of these marriages were love matches, but this seems to be an exception. The couple were reportedly devoted to each other and almost inseparable; Eleanor even went on crusades with him. They had at least 15 children, although many of them died in childhood.

On 24th November 1290 in Lincoln, Eleanor died while giving birth to another child. Edward was devastated. He was fighting the Scots but left the fighting to escort his wife's body back to Westminster for burial. Soon after her death, Edward built crosses in her memory at places where her body lay en route from Lincoln to Westminster. 3 of the original 12 crosses still survive today, 2 of them in Northamptonshire at Geddington and Hardingstone.

Want to learn more? Why not see the crosses for yourself?
Click here to see them on the map