Book Review:
Queen of the Conqueror: The Life of Matilda, Wife of
William I
by Tracy Borman
I am
constantly fascinated by the lives of strong medieval women; and the biography
of Matilda of Flanders provided insight into the first crowned Queen of
England, a woman about whom I’d read little previously. While much has been written about William the
Conqueror, before the efforts of Ms. Borman, the accomplishments of his wife
were essentially ignored. But Tracy Borman searched through original source
material and has been able to tell this story of a headstrong, diminutive woman
born into wealth and privilege to Baldwin V, Count of Flanders and Adela, who
was a daughter of the French King Robert II, sometime around 1031.
Matilda
initially refused to marry William because he was illegitimate and brutish and
she was cultured, educated and destined for a marriage with one of much higher
status. For some reason, after he beat
her in a rage at her refusal, she agreed to marry him and astonishingly bore
him 9 healthy children.
While
the book is based upon original sources, some of the information is conjecture.
What is clear, however, is that Matilda was highly respected and trusted by
William who appointed his wife rather than his eldest son as regent of Normandy
while he was in England, first conquering and then taming the conquered by
burning and pillaging.
This
is not a dry biography that takes effort to read. With the exception of the
author’s overuse of the word “moreover” [I wanted to take my red editing pen
and cross out every third “moreover”], I found the book an engaging, easy
read.
Highly
recommended for anyone who loves medieval history.
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