omewhat under the
spell of her imperious personality. After he came of age (1236) her
influence upon him may still be traced. In 1248 she again became regent,
during Louis IX.'s absence on the crusade, a project which she had
strongly opposed. In the disasters which followed she maintained peace,
while draining the land of men and money to aid her son in the East. At
last her strength failed her. She fell ill at Melun in November 1252,
and was taken to Paris, but lived only a few days. She was buried at
Maubuisson.

Besides the works of Joinville and William of Nangis, see Elie Berger,
"Histoire de Blanche de Castille, reine de France," in _Bibliotheque
des ecoles francaises d'Athenes et de Rome_, vol. lxx. (Paris, 1895);
Le Nain de Tillemont, "Vie de Saint Louis," ed. by J. de Gaulle for
the _Societe de l'histoire de France_ (6 vols., 1847-1851); and Paulin
Paris, "Nouvelles recherches sur les moeurs de la reine Blanche et de
Thibaud," in _Cabinet historique_ (1858).

BLANCH FEE, or BLANCH HOLDING (from Fr. _blanc_, white), an ancient
tenure in Scottish land law, the duty payable being in silver or white
money in contradistinction to gold. The phrase was afterwards applied to
any holding of which the quit-rent was merely nominal, such as a penny,
a peppercorn, &c.

BLANDFORD, or BLANDFORD FORUM, a market town, and municipal borough in
the northern parliamentary division of Dorsetshire, England, on the
Stour, 19 m. N.W. of Bournemouth by the Somerset & Dorset railway. Pop.
(1901) 3649. The town is ancient, but was almost wholly destroyed by
fire in the 18th century. The church of St Peter and St Paul, a
classical building, was built in 1732. There are a grammar-school
(founded in 1521 at Milton Abbas, transferred to Blandford in 1775), a
Blue Coat school (1729), and other educational charities. Remnants of a
mansion of the 14th century, Damory Court, are seen in a farmhouse, and
an adjoining Perpendicular chapel is used as a barn. There are numerous
early earthworks on the chalk hills in the neighbourhood. The fine
modern mansion of Bryanston, in the park adjoining the town, is the seat
of Lord Portman. The municipal borough is under a mayor, 4 aldermen and
12 councillors. Area, 145 acres.

BLANDRATA, or BIANDRATA, GIORGIO (c. 1515-1588), Italian physician and
polemic, who came of the De Blandrate family, powerful from the early
part of the 13th century, was born at Saluzzo, the young