When she died in 1290, her husband built 12 monuments across England to mark where her body rested each night. But Eleanor of Castile wasn't just a beloved wife—she was ruthless. Eleanor of Castile married Edward, the future King of England, in 1254 when she was about thirteen years old. It was a political marriage, arranged to secure alliances between England and the Spanish kingdom of Castile. But over the thirty-six years they were married, Eleanor and Edward developed something unusual for medieval royalty: a genuine partnership. Edward clearly loved her. She traveled with him constantly, even accompanying him on crusade to the Holy Land in 1270—a dangerous journey that most queens would never have attempted. She bore him at least sixteen children (though only six survived to adulthood). She was his constant companion. But Eleanor of Castile was far more than a devoted wife. She was one of the most ambitious and economically aggressive queens in English history. Eleanor understood something fundamental about medieval power: land was everything. Land meant income, resources, political influence, and control over people. Whoever controlled land controlled power. And Eleanor wanted land. Throughout her time as queen, Eleanor systematically acquired estates across England. By the time of her death, she owned properties in at least twenty counties—an enormous portfolio that generated massive income. How did she acquire all this land? Through methods that ranged from shrewd business to outright exploitation. She would lend money to nobles and landowners at high interest rates, then foreclose when they couldn't repay. She used her position as queen to pressure people into selling land at below-market prices. She exploited legal loopholes to seize properties. She demanded "gifts" from people seeking royal favor.