Héloïse

(c. 1098 - 1164)

Around 1115, after receiving an education at the Benedictine convent of Sainte-Marie, Héloïse joined the household of her uncle Fulbert, a canon in Paris, who arranged for her to study with the theologian and philosopher Peter Abelard. The two soon began an affair that resulted in a secret marriage; the birth of their son, Astrolabe; and Abelard’s castration at the hands of Héloïse’s relatives.