Queen of the Conqueror Read online

  During Cnut’s reign, Emma amassed a considerable fortune, making her the richest woman in England. William of Malmesbury depicts her as a profligate wife who encouraged her husband to build up his treasury and then wasted it on jewels and other precious things. “At Winchester especially he [Cnut] exhibited the munificence of his generosity, where his offerings were such that strangers are alarmed by the masses of precious metal and their eyes dazzled as they look at the flashing gems. This was prompted by Emma, who lavished her treasure on such things with holy prodigality.”30 In fact, the English queen had put her riches to far better use than this. Her wealth, which derived from her own inheritance as well as from her position as Cnut’s wife, enabled her to become one of the most influential ecclesiastical and literary patrons in western Europe.

  In 1035, however, following Cnut’s death, Emma was ousted from power by Harold Harefoot, Cnut’s son from his first marriage, who “had taken from her all the best treasures which King Cnut had.”31 She remained holed up in her house at Winchester for two years before being “driven out without mercy to face the raging winter.”32 Shortly afterward, she set sail for Flanders.

  Although William of Malmesbury claims that Baldwin, “a man of well-tried integrity,” offered the beleaguered English queen sanctuary out of kindness and generosity, the wily count was no doubt eager to cultivate this potentially valuable ally for more tactical reasons.33 He organized a lavish reception, and his daughter was probably among the welcoming committee. At most, Matilda would have been five or six years old when the exiled queen visited her father’s court, and she may have been a good deal younger. Given that Emma stayed for some considerable time, it is likely that Matilda became well acquainted with her.

  The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle notes that Baldwin “received her [Emma] well, and kept her there as long as she had need,” and Emma herself attested that she was “honourably received.”34 Baldwin and Adela arranged for a house to be made available for her use in the city. It is a mark of Emma’s pride and independence that although she received shelter from Count Baldwin, she lived off her own income and funded her own patronage throughout her stay at his court.

  Her visit was recorded in the Encomium Emmae Reginae, a very flattering account of her life written during her stay in Bruges, probably by a monk of St.-Omer. The Encomium was one of several illuminated manuscripts commissioned by the English queen, which she intended as a means of asserting her power during her enforced absence from England. The book refers to her as queen throughout, and her name is highlighted whenever it appears, leaving the reader in no doubt of her regal status. In the frontispiece, she is depicted crowned and seated on a throne while Edward and Harthacnut, her sons by Aethelred and Cnut respectively, bow deferentially at her side. Meanwhile, the author of the work kneels at her feet in silent supplication. It was extremely rare for anyone other than Christ or another deity to be enthroned in contemporary illustrations such as these, let alone a woman. Moreover, Emma and her sons had been thrown out by Harold Harefoot, and the prospect of their inheriting the English crown was far from certain, so this was an audacious piece of propaganda.

  Nevertheless, the illustration proved remarkably prophetic. Emma made good use of her time in Bruges, drawing upon her international contacts to champion the claim of her favorite son, Harthacnut, to the English throne. He joined her in 1039, arriving with an impressive fleet, and spent that winter as the honored guest of Count Baldwin. The following year, news came from England that Harold Harefoot was dead. Thanks in no small part to Emma’s campaigning, Harthacnut was now acknowledged as the rightful heir.

  Three years after her arrival in Bruges, Emma returned to England in triumph to see her younger son become king of England. Although her departure was under the most auspicious of circumstances, according to Emma’s own account it prompted much grieving among the people of Flanders, who had come to view her as one of their own. “They wept, in short, that she, whom during her whole exile they had regarded as a fellow citizen, was leaving them … Such was the lamentation on the whole shore, such was the wailing of all the people standing by.” Emma proceeded to kiss her hosts goodbye, “after a great abundance of tears had been shed on both sides.” It is likely that Matilda was among them, and this touching description (exaggerated though it may be) implies that she and her family had formed a close bond with the powerful exiled queen.35

  As queen mother, Emma regained the position of power that she had enjoyed during her husbands’ reigns. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records that, accompanied by an impressive retinue, she took up residence in her former home at Winchester, where it was decided that she would “hold all Wessex in hand” for her son.36 When troubles in Denmark forced Harthacnut to return there, she became regent in all but name, seizing the reins of government in Wessex, the most powerful province in the land. In order to appease Edward (later known as the Confessor), her son by Aethelred, and avoid any rebellion on his part, in 1041 he was awarded dual kingship with Harthacnut. When the latter died suddenly the following year,37 Emma was forced to adopt a more conciliatory attitude toward Edward, who resented the favor that she had always shown toward his younger half-brother. He was not fooled by her apparent change of heart, however, and “robbed her of all the treasures which she owned, which were untold, because earlier she was very hard on the king her son, in that she did less for him than he wanted before he became king.”38 She died in relative obscurity ten years later. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle dismisses the passing of “the Old Lady” in cursory prose, adding merely that she was buried next to King Cnut in Winchester Cathedral.39

  Matilda may have been aware of Emma’s vacillating fortunes across the Channel. Even though her power had waned during Edward’s ascendancy, she had wielded considerable influence in international politics for more than half a century. She had also proved just how much could be achieved by sheer force of personality, and she had had a keen sense of the importance of image to royal authority. As such, she provided a powerful example of what a shrewd and determined woman could achieve in the male-dominated world of international politics. It may have been at this formative period of Matilda’s young life that she was inspired with the ambition for power that would become the driving force of her later career.

  The number of English exiles at Baldwin’s court increased dramatically after the accession of Edward the Confessor. In 1051, the king banished his archenemy, Earl Godwine, and his entire family from the kingdom. Given that Godwine’s third son, Tostig, was married to Count Baldwin’s half-sister Judith, Flanders was a natural refuge, and most of the family made their way to the court at Bruges.40 Little wonder that the contemporary biographer of Edward the Confessor described Baldwin as “that old friend of the English people.”41

  It was not just English exiles who found their way to Baldwin’s court. He also provided sanctuary for some important Norman nobles. They included Richard and Baldwin, sons of Gilbert of Brionne, one of the guardians appointed to protect the young duke William of Normandy, who had succeeded his father, Robert, in 1035. The accession of a minor—and an illegitimate one at that—had led to treacherous times in Normandy, and Gilbert was assassinated, along with various other of William’s guardians. Richard and Baldwin fled to Flanders shortly afterward and were accommodated in the ducal residence at Bruges in around 1040. There they were introduced to Matilda, and it is tempting to speculate that they sparked her curiosity in the young Norman duke by telling stories of the dramatic adventures and narrow escapes from death that he encountered on an almost daily basis.42 But events would prove that Matilda’s interest lay elsewhere.

  According to contemporary chroniclers, as Matilda grew to maturity, she embodied all possible virtues, both in appearance and character. Orderic Vitalis, whose thirteen-volume Historia Ecclesiastica (Ecclesiastical History) is one of the richest sources for Matilda’s life, writes that she was “renowned equally for nobility of blood and character” and “endowed with fairness of face, noble birth,
learning, beauty of character, and—what is and ever will be more worthy of praise—strong faith and fervent love of Christ.”43 Malmesbury was just as complimentary, lauding Matilda as “a model of wisdom and exemplar of modesty without parallel in our time.”44 The twelfth-century Anglo-Norman poet and chronicler Canon Wace of Bayeux, whose lively account, Le Roman de Rou, was written for Henry II, described her as “very beautiful and noble.”45 Others acclaimed her grace and elegance.46 Of all the chroniclers, William of Jumièges was probably the only one who saw Matilda in person, and he attested that she was “very beautiful.”47 This theme was continued by Fulcoius, archdeacon of Beauvais, a contemporary of Matilda, who wrote two epigrams in her honor. As well as lauding her as “courageous, prudent, sober and just”—qualities that made her superior among her sex—he gave her the highest accolade possible by declaring: “She was made equal to blessed Mary in her virtue.”48 According to Fulcoius, it was Matilda’s “noble birth” that made her the “most beautiful” of her time.49 Nobility and attractiveness were inextricably linked in the eyes of medieval chroniclers, as were inner purity and outward beauty. The young Matilda apparently encompassed them all.

  This praise was typical of sycophantic chroniclers eager to ingratiate themselves with a woman of such influence as Matilda later enjoyed. Their accounts were repeated by later commentators—not all of whom had the same bias as Norman and English writers. In his Chronicle of the Kings of Norway, Snorro Sturleson claimed that Matilda was “one of the most beautiful women that could be seen.”50 Another thirteenth-century writer, Philippe Mouskes, bishop of Tours, acclaimed Matilda’s virtues in his extraordinary rhyming chronicle:

  A girl who knew much

  And was very beautiful and worthy

  Wise, courtly, eloquent …51

  In fact, there are few surviving clues to Matilda’s appearance in her youth. Any contemporary portraits or statues have long since been destroyed. The only reliable evidence we have derives from the discovery of her skeleton in 1961 during excavations at the abbey of La Trinité by the French archaeologist and historian Michel de Boüard. A detailed study of her remains suggested that she was an extremely small woman, for the skeleton measured just four feet two inches high.52 Doubt has been cast upon whether these bones were actually Matilda’s, because her tomb had been despoiled during religious riots in 1562. However, there is good reason to suppose that the remains were genuine, because it is recorded that Matilda’s bones were saved and placed in a small casket after the original coffin was destroyed in the riots. These were then reburied under the original stone slab, which can still be seen in the abbey today.

  If the evidence for Matilda’s appearance is fragmentary, her character is more clearly defined by the surviving sources. Although these are subject to the same sycophancy that marks the descriptions of her beauty, Matilda’s actions throughout her life bear witness to their truth. Her upbringing had served her well, for she was said to embody all of the virtues expected of a young woman of high birth: modesty, piety, and virtue. However, she also had less conventional traits, and these would come increasingly to the fore as she grew into adulthood. Principal among them were her mother’s pride and her father’s indomitable will.

  To the outside world, Matilda’s apparently faultless character, together with her beauty and pedigree, made her a highly desirable bride, and it is likely that her parents would have begun to consider her marriage prospects soon after her birth. The minimum age at which a girl could be betrothed was not set down in law, but according to the social customs of the day, most noble families tried to marry their daughters off as early as possible. It was not uncommon to see brides as young as twelve, although the general lack of eligible men meant that many women were considerably older than that when they married. But Matilda was apparently eager to settle her own fate at an early age.

  As one of the foremost rulers in western Europe, Count Baldwin was well used to receiving envoys and ambassadors from foreign potentates. Among them was a man named Brihtric Mau (or Meaw), who had been sent as an ambassador by King Edward the Confessor. The date of his arrival is not recorded by the sources, but it is likely to have been during the mid- to late 1040s, when Matilda was between fifteen and eighteen years old.

  Brihtric was one of the greatest thegns in England, perhaps the wealthiest below the rank of earl in the whole of the kingdom, and he could trace his descent to the royal line of Wessex.53 His vast lands spanned six western counties, from Cornwall to Worcestershire, and comprised between 338 and 372 hides.54 The lion’s share lay in Gloucestershire and were centered on the prosperous town of Tewkesbury, over which he had lordship. His lands made him immensely rich; some said he was second only to the king in wealth. The Tewkesbury estate alone brought him an annual income of £100, equivalent to around £70,000 today.

  With wealth came power. The evidence suggests that Brihtric played an active role in the political life of Edward’s kingdom and was among the king’s closest associates. He certainly regularly attested charters from the 1040s onward.

  As well as being a man of wealth and influence, Brihtric also had more personal charms to recommend him. He was handsome in the Saxon way, being tall and “stalwart,” with blond hair.55 The name “Mau” or “Meaw” may have been a derivative of snew (snow), on account of the fair coloring that ran in his family. The fact that he had inherited the manor of Tewkesbury in 1020 and was already politically active by the 1040s suggests that he would have been at least eleven or twelve years older than Matilda. Perhaps this added to his appeal in her eyes, for the Chronicle of Tewkesbury claims that she fell passionately in love with him. Even after he had left the Flemish court, her affection did not diminish, and without pausing to seek her father’s approval, she sent a messenger to England to offer herself in marriage.56

  This was an astonishingly audacious act in an age when daughters were expected to meekly accept the fate that was decided for them by their parents. Matilda had not only defied this convention, she had also put her reputation at risk by offering herself in marriage—apparently without encouragement, and with no recourse to the complex etiquette that governed betrothals within royal and aristocratic circles. Little matter that, as Matilda had correctly identified, Brihtric was a suitable match for her in terms of his wealth and pedigree. Her unconventional defiance would have sent shock waves throughout the comital court and noble society at large.

  When Brihtric rejected her offer out of hand, Matilda was outraged. She had risked her reputation—not to mention her relationship with her parents—in her pursuit of him. Her status and connections would have meant little if her chastity had been called into question: at a stroke, her prospects of making a good marriage would have been destroyed. What was more, even though he was an eligible suitor, Brihtric was still her inferior in rank and prestige. That he should apparently afford her proposal so little regard was insulting.

  Matilda’s first act of independence had backfired spectacularly, but there was little that she could do. Suppressing her fury, she seemed to put the humiliating incident behind her. Many years later, however, she would exact a dreadful revenge on the man who had so callously spurned her.

  By 1049, Matilda was still unmarried. She was now about eighteen, and her name had not been connected to any other suitors since the Brihtric scandal. Her father, Baldwin, was no doubt eager to erase the memory of that unfortunate episode by finding her a suitable husband. Ever one to spy an opportunity for strategic advantage, his choice fell upon the leader of the powerful province that bordered his own: the duchy of Normandy.

  Normandy had its origins in an early-tenth-century Viking settlement in and around the town of Rouen. The Viking leader, Rollo, had been granted the territory by Charles the Simple, King of the Franks, around 911, and he and his successors had gradually extended its borders through conquest and diplomacy. By the mid-eleventh century, it comprised the regions of Évreux and Alençon to the south, and parts of Brittany to the west, as well
as the Channel Islands. It was known by contemporaries as Normandy, or Terra Normannorum—the land of the men from the north.

  Although increasingly Frankish in culture and politics, the Normans were proud of their Scandinavian past, for the Nordic people were among the most feared warriors in Europe. They continued to use Scandinavian names and some elements of the language, their legal system was rooted in that of their homeland, and there was a strong tradition of Nordic folklore. On several occasions, Duke Richard II, a formidable warrior who ruled the province from 996 to 1026, showed himself willing to assist the marauding Scandinavians as they harried parts of England and France. In 1000, for example, he permitted a Viking fleet to spend the winter sheltering in Normandy before crossing the Channel to raid England the following spring. As a result of this identification with their Viking past, the Normans developed a much stronger sense of national identity than any other Frankish territory.

  Richard II was the first ruler to regularly use the title Duke of the Normans. Until then, the leader of the territory had variously styled himself count, marquis, prince, or duke. Under Richard’s authority, Rouen, which remained the principal town, became a major trading center, and the territory as a whole was quite prosperous by the standards of the day. By this time, Normandy had become an independent principality, owing only nominal allegiance to the French king. The same was true of other major territories, notably Anjou, Brittany, and parts of neighboring Flanders. In fact, what we know as France today was little more than a patchwork of territories over which the king exercised only theoretical control beyond his own immediate domain, a small region around Paris and Orléans. This, together with the fact that the frontiers of these principalities were ill-defined, created a highly volatile situation in which ruthless, power-hungry rulers waged incessant wars.