Duke of Aquitaine

High school (ages 12+)
History & Culture

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/duke-of-aquitaine

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the legal heritage?Successor state to the Visigothic Kingdom, inheriting Visigothic and Roman Law
2. What is the succession law?Male-preference primogeniture practiced for nobility
3. Why were women in Aquitaine treated differently than in other places?Aquitaine had special laws that let women own land, make wills, and speak in court. They could also choose their own marriages after age 20.
4. How did the Duke of Aquitaine decide who to follow?The Duke sometimes answered to the king of France or England, but he also tried to stay independent and could switch sides in wars.

Vassal: A person who has entered into a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch.
Sovereignty: Supreme power or authority, often referring to a state's independence.
Primogeniture: The system where inheritance is passed to the eldest child, typically a son.
Angevin Empire: A vast collection of territories in the 12th and 13th centuries ruled by the House of Anjou.