Queen Ælfthryth of Devon

This is the story of the most powerful woman in all of medieval England. Whilst her daughter-in-law, Emma de Normandie, is probably the most well-known today of Anglo-Saxons Queens, Queen Ælfthryth was the most famous of her age. Or more accurately, infamous. But does she deserve the harsh reputation she has garnered over the years?

 

Daughter of Thegn Ordgar and his wife Wulfthryth, Ælfthryth was born around the year 945. Her mother was known to be of royal descent and is believed to be Wulfthryth of Wessex, but there is little evidence to confirm this. Ordgar was a Thegn in the West Country and he and his wife had several children, three of whom are known to have survived to adulthood. Ælfthryth, also known as Elfrida, was the only surviving daughter.

Ælfthryth was born in Lydford Castle, in Devon and nothing further is really known of her early life.

 

The first we see Ælfthryth in the records after her birth is in 956, when she married her first husband, Æthelwold, the Ealdorman of East Anglia. Ealdorman was the highest rank of nobility in Anglo-Saxon England as such, Ælfthryth had made an advantageous match with this marriage. In addition to the title her husband possessed, Æthelwold also happened to be the son of Æthelstan "Half-King," a powerful Ealdorman and foster father of Eadgar, the boy who would become King three years later, in 959.

 

At some point in the Summer of 956 Æthelwold succeeded his father as Ealdorman of East Anglia, when Æthelstan retired to a monastery. This passed all of his wealth, lands and titles down to his son, and by association, Ælfthryth.

During the course of her first marriage, Ælfthryth bore two sons, though their names are not recorded. Ælfthryth played no part in the upbringing of her sons, which could be either due to her lack of desire for childrearing, or due to frosty relations within her marriage.

 

If there were marital problems, it was not necessarily due to a lack of desire for the marriage initially. As the story goes, Æthelwold was sent by Eadgar to negotiate a match between Eadgar and Ælfthryth. However, so taken by her beauty when he laid his eyes upon her, Æthelwold told Eadgar that she would make an unsuitable bride as she was far too plan. He then married her himself. Later, after Eadgar had become King, he paid a visit to Æthelwold's home; terrified of his deception being discovered, Æthelwold commanded Ælfthryth to conceal her beauty and look unkempt for the King's visit, but she refused. When Eadgar entered their home and caught sight of her, he fell in love instantly.

While there are two contemporary sources which claim this story to be true, it is unlikely to be so; instead, it is most likely a pretty tale spun to romanticise the relationship between Eadgar and Ælfthryth. Sources which describe the end of Eadgar's previous marriage to Wulfthryth of Wilton seem to suggest that Eadgar was actually already having an affair with Ælfthryth at the time of the repudiation of their marriage, indicating that Ælfthryth had always harboured a liking towards the King. An affair on her part would also offer sufficient reason for why her marriage to Æthelwold was not necessarily a happy one.

 

Her marriage to Æthelwold ended in 962 when he died. The English Bishop, Saint Dunstan later seemed to suspect Ælfthryth was the murderess of her husband, so that she could seduce King Eadgar and become his Queen, but if the pair were already having an affair then this is unlikely to be the case. Another prevailing theory suggests that Eadgar himself killed Æthelwold whilst they were out hunting, whether as an act of revenge for the latter's betrayal or purely so that Ælfthryth would be free to marry him is unknown. Despite this being the more likely option over Ælfthryth herself murdering her husband, neither of these stories are entirely plausible.

Æthelwold's brother, Æthelwig, succeeded him as Ealdorman, which leads to the conclusion that neither of Ælfthryth's sons from her first marriage survived past childhood.

 

In 964, Ælfthryth married her second husband, King Eadgar; consequently Ælfthryth's father, Ordgar, was promoted to the rank of Ealdorman and became one of Eadgar's closest advisors for near-enough the rest of his life. He certainly appeared as a witness on almost all of King Eadgar's charters until around 970.

Ælfthryth was exceptional in her position as consort because, unlike the majority of Anglo-Saxon Queens, she played a prominent political role and was one of the six consorts of the period who was crowned as Queen; she was the only one of Eadgar's three wives to be crowned. Ælfthryth was also given, by her new husband, a considerable dower at the time of their marriage.

 

As with Eadgar's first marriage, the reasons behind the match with Ælfthryth was most likely political. In 958 Eadgar was elected as King of Mercia during a civil war with his elder brother, King Eadwig. At the time he had been married to the daughter of another Ealdorman of Devon, Æthelflæd, a match which brought the support of Mercia to his side. By the time of his marriage to Ælfthryth eight years later, Eadgar was the undisputed King of England and had sufficient ties in Mercia to hold support in the land. However, what Ælfthryth brought to her marriage was the well-needed support from Wessex, as her mother's royal roots were prominent in this area and brought Wessex support to Eadgar's side. She also brought additional Mercian support through her father's connections in Mercia, but the main prize for Eadgar was Wessex. As such, there were clear political advantages to the marriage for both husband and wife.

 

As Queen, Ælfthryth took an interest in religious reform, as others had before her. It is thanks to Ælfthryth that the reign of Eadgar "the Peaceful" is remembered for the reforms to religious practice in England. Ælfthryth saw corruption within religious houses and despised the hypocrisy and injustice that came from this. It was her intention to bring about a return of the order of St. Benedict to the monastic houses; Benedictine monasteries were much stricter in their rules regarding how monks and nuns should live and worship. One would assume, then, that Ælfthryth would have been quite content with Saint Dunstan being the Archbishop of Canterbury, appointed as such in 960; Dunstan was of the Benedictine order and had, before his appointment, re-built and established a Benedictine monastery in Glastonbury. Dunstan was Eadgar's chief councillor and as such would have worked closely not just with the King, but with the Queen on her reforms, a goal they both shared. However, the relationship between the Archbishop and the new Queen would prove to be a rocky one.

Ælfthryth had shown her influence with King Eadgar prior to her marriage as well, indicating that they had met, or at least spoken with each other in some form, before they were wed. It was largely due to Ælfthryth's influence that Æthelwold, Abbot of Abingdon, was appointed to the see Winchester as a Bishop. This goes to support the idea of Ælfthryth having been engaged in an affair with Eadgar whilst she was still married to her first husband. This also indicates, due to the Abbot's religious beliefs that Ælfthryth's interest in reform was something she had nursed for a while before she became Queen.

The Bishop of Winchester showed his gratitude to Ælfthryth after her accension to Queenship, by supporting her notion for reform. In 964, Bishop Æthelwold produced a document in-line with her beliefs, which promoted the strict rules by which both monks and nuns should live by. His Regularia Concordia, as it was named, made mention of Queen Ælfthryth as "the protectress and fearless guardian of the monasteries." This suggests that not only did Ælfthryth have considerable influence in her husband's court, but she also wielded power in a more direct sense, as she was in control of the religion in England. This control she had over religious reform was something that future Queens, long after Ælfthryth's death, would try and fail to do.

 

As with her first marriage, Ælfthryth had two further sons in her second. Her eldest son by Eadgar, was born on 966 and named Edmund. While her status as Eadgar's only consecrated Queen would naturally put Edmund in a high place among Eadgar's children, Ælfthryth had not by this point been coronated. In addition, the King had known of, and experienced for himself, the harsh realities of sibling rivalries for the crown. As such, Eadgar went to great lengths to ensure that Edmund was not only seen as his legitimate son, but also that he was seated above his eldest son, Eadweard, in the hierarchy for power.

Late in 966, when Edmund was merely months old, he was named as the third witness on a charter, after his father and Archbishop Dunstan, which granted royal privileges to New Minster in Winchester. The charter, witnessed by both of Eadgar's sons, described Edmund as "clito legitiumus,"(legitimate son of the King), whereas Edward, who was named directly after his baby brother, was only described as the son of the King. in a similar fashion Ælfthryth, who was named fifth on the charter, was described as the legitimate wife of the King.

While Christian marriage in the British Isles had still not been formalised by this point and thus repudiation was common, there were still tricky succession issues when Kings had several child-producing marriages. By describing not only Edmund but Ælfthryth as the legitimate relations of the King, Eadgar was openly promoting them above his previous wives and existing children and letting all of his court know that Edmund was his true heir.

 

In 968 Ælfthryth gave birth to her second son by Eadgar, Æthelred. Little is known of her relationship with Æthelred, however, when Edmund unfortunately died in 970, at the tender age of four, Ælfthryth swiftly drew her last surviving son close.

 

On 11th May 973 Eadgar had a second coronation in Bath and he was joined by his wife, Ælfthryth who was coronated with him and consecrated as his Queen. This second coronation was a way for Eadgar to not only enhance his own claim as King of England, but it also served to further legitimise his third marriage above his first two, as a way to ensure his youngest son, Æthelred's, easy succession as King after him. This event was significant also in that it was the first time in over 70 years that a consort had been officially consecrated as a Queen.

 

Outside of the domestic sphere, Ælfthryth's political concerns did not end with religious reforms. She also played a key role in ensuring that justice was served across her husband's domain on several occasions. For instance, it is recorded that Ælfthryth acted as a mediator, in at least seven legal cases, between the crown and the defendants, during her time as Queen. Ælfthryth truly is a standout figure in exhibiting the potential power an Anglo-Saxon Queen could wield, if her husband allowed. The fact that Eadgar did allow her to wield such power and influence, not just in his court but across his Kingdom, demonstrates a good relationship between the pair. As she was trusted with this power, it also presents the idea that Ælfthryth was known to be an intelligent and capable woman. She would regularly utilise the power she had to the benefit other women in her society as well, which promotes the notion that she was essentially a proto-feminist and a woman ahead of her time. The amount of success Ælfthryth had with her second marriage is something little seen in the consorts of medieval England and especially those of Anglo-Saxon England specifically, when the title of Queen was not even a common title afforded to the wife of a King.

 

Unfortunately, her time in power came to an abrupt end on the 8th July 975, when King Eadgar died at Winchester, just a month shy of his thirty-second birthday. His reign was a time of peace in England and he was a celebrated King. However, his sudden death left behind two sons who were about to find themselves in a replay of Eadgar's own childhood, as a fight for the throne began.

 

Ælfthryth's step-son, Eadweard, was a teenager of roughly 14 years of age when Eadgar died, whereas Ælfthryth's own son, Æthelred was only seven. Factions divided the court as players chose their sides over which child would be their next King. Naturally, Ælfthryth threw all of her support behind her own son, as did Bishop Æthelwold of Winchester and Ælfhere, the Ealdorman of Mercia. Archbishop Dunstan chose to support the elder brother, Eadweard, along with Archbishop Oswald of Worcester and Æthelwine, a brother of Ælfthryth's first husband. All of the provisions that Eadgar had put in place to ensure the smooth succession of his chosen heir, Æthelred, came to naught as the factions battled it out for the crown.

 

Dunstan's side won the dispute and Eadweard was crowned King in March 976. As Dunstan settled into his new position overseeing the governing of the country, on behalf of the teenaged King, Ælfthryth retreated to Corfe Castle with Æthelred, with her position as Queen Dowager intact.

 

As far as the records indicate, life was quiet for Ælfthryth for two years after the accession of her step-son, Eadweard. Then, early in 978, a tragic event changed everything.

A council was held in Calne, in Wiltshire, due to a dispute between monks and clergy, and this was presided over by Archbishop Dunstan. The meeting was cut short when the floor of the upper chamber, where the council was being held, suddenly gave way beneath their feet. Everyone in attendance fell to the ground, dying as a result, but Dunstan was saved this fate as his seat happened to be safely placed on a rafter, preventing it from falling. The event killed a vast number of King Eadweard's supporters.

 

Soon after this, on 18th March 978, when the King was roughly 16 years of age, he paid a visit to his step-mother at Corfe Castle, in Dorset, where Ælfthryth had been quietly living with her son. Due to the familial connection, and possibly indicative of a good relationship with Ælfthryth, Eadweard only had with him a small escort. This visit was to be the last time anyone would see King Eadweard alive. It was also a major turning point for Ælfthryth. However, accounts differ as to precisely what occurred that fateful day, but we do have some full contemporary accounts to give us a glimpse into the basic events that happened.

Ælfthryth waited outside, with her household, to greet the young King upon his arrival at her home. When Eadweard appeared, Ælfthryth offered him a drink, but as he took a sip from the goblet Ælfthryth presented, Eadweard was suddenly pulled by the arm and stabbed by an unknown assailant. Spooked, the boy's horse took flight, with Eadweard still attached by the stirrups. Eadweard was then dragged along the ground, as the horse galloped off, dying as a result.

Obviously, the murder of King Eadweard was a planned attack, but Ælfthryth's involvement in this is something that has been disputed since the time of the event. At first, though she herself was not named or accused as being behind the murder, the blame was still laid at the feet of her and her son, Æthelred's, supporters. With Eadweard out of the way, there was nothing to prevent Æthelred from taking the crown, so it is understandable that people would look to those who had the most to gain from this tragedy.

However, soon enough the sources started to point the finger directly at Ælfthryth. Dunstan himself at this time claimed that Ælfthryth had murdered her first husband in her plans to seduce and marry King Eadgar to become Queen, only to then murder Eadgar's first-born son, Eadweard, so that her own son could be King. This sentiment was unfortunately shared by many sources following this, cementing Ælfthryth in history as a murderess of a King. In Life of St. Dunstan, in the mid-11th century, Ælfthryth was starting to be depicted as the typical wicked stepmother character one might find in a fairy tale. The chronicle entirely blames Ælfthryth for the murder of Eadweard, stating that the boy was "killed by a stepmother's deceit." Another chronicle written a century later not only depicts Ælfthryth as a murderess, but also accused her of being a witch; in this version of the tale, Ælfthryth is said to have murdered Abbott Byrhtnoth of Ely as well as King Eadweard.

Within months of Eadweard's death he was being venerated as a Saint, though he was never formally canonised as such. He is remembered to history as Eadweard "the Martyr" due to his death being a sacrifice so that Æthelred could wear the crown.

 

Though the untimely death of King Eadweard would tarnish Ælfthryth's reputation in history, she was not immediately accused of any crime. When her son, Æthelred succeeded Eadweard as King, he was only 12 years of age and Ælfthryth was the head of his council, acting as Regent. This is not a position that any woman in Anglo-Saxon England would ever have dreamed possible and Ælfthryth was the first woman to wield such power in the country since her mother-in-law Eadgifu of Kent, though Ælfthryth's power at this time surpassed even that which Eadgifu was able to wield during the reigns of her sons. The authority that Ælfthryth had within the Kingdom can be seen clearly by her descriptions in the many charters she witnessed from the start of her son's reign, to around 984, when Æthelred took the reins himself. In the charters, Ælfthryth was named directly after her son and was initially described as Ælfthryth Regina. Later on, as Æthelred asserted more of his own authority, Ælfthryth was described as Ælfthryth, Mater Regis (Mother of the King), in a fashion similar to how her mother-in-law, Eadgifu, was described in earlier charters.

It is said that Ælfthryth ruled England efficiently, but ruthlessly between 978-984.

 

By the end of 984, Ælfthryth had lost her remaining supporters, those men who had stood on her side during the dispute over which of Eadgar's sons should be the next King way back in 975. Bishop Æthelwold, who would be venerated as a Saint in the 12th century, died on 1st August 984 and Ælfhere, the Ealdorman of Mercia, followed him to the grave by the end of that same year.

King Æthelred, who had already reached both of the ages considered to be majority for an Anglo-Saxon King (15 and 18 - he was most likely only 18 by this point) did not waste any time in removing his mother from control. Ælfthryth had remained in her post as Regent past both of Æthelred's majority birthdays and by 984 Æthelred was tired of being kept under his mother's control. In addition to this, Æthelred had married Ælfgifu of York by the mid-980's, so there was another Queen in the court. Though Ælfgifu was entirely overshadowed by Ælfthryth, as well as by her successor as Æthelred's wife, there was no further need for Ælfthryth to remain at court.

After the deaths of her supporters, Æthelred took charge in all matters and even banned his mother from attending any more council meetings, possibly to ensure that it was truly he was in full control of his country. By the end of 984, Ælfthryth is known to have retired to her own estates; it is probable that this was on the orders of her son and not her own wish.

Whilst this drastic change of circumstance may allude to the idea of a poor relationship between mother and son, the surviving records indicate that Ælfthryth actually maintained a good relationship with Æthelred; the King even sent his own children to be raised in her household. While Æthelred has never been accused of being a loving father, this is still not the action of someone who did not hold sufficient trust in his mother.

 

Ælfthryth goes quiet again in the records after her retirement, though she does reappear in a charter dated in 993, witnessing it as Mater Regis, implying that she still held some influence, however small, with her son. However, during her retirement, Ælfthryth spent the majority of her time, when she was not raising her grandchildren, engaged in matters of the church. She had already, by this time, founded at least two nunneries, Amesbury Abbey, in 979, and Wherwell Abbey, in 986. Wherwell, in Hampshire, was a Benedictine nunnery where she eventually retired to as she grew older.

 

On 17th November 1002, Ælfthryth died at Wherwell Abbey. She was remembered by contemporaries for her great piety and her patronage to the church. She seemed to have been remembered fondly by her family as well; her grandson, Æthelstan ætheling, Æthelred's first-born son, prayed for the soul of she "who brought [him] up," in his will in 1014.

Ælfthryth's name has been linked for far too long with the murder of her step-son, Eadweard, and it is time that this changed. Not only is there no contemporary evidence of her involvement in the plot, but Ælfthryth was a woman truly ahead-of-her-time and deserves to be remembered as such. She worked tirelessly, as Queen, and as Regent, to bring about reforms and ensure that justice was carried out. By all accounts, she loved and cared for her children and grandchildren and there is even evidence to suggest that she shared a good relationship with her step-son as well.

Queen Ælfthryth was a strong and independent woman in a world that saw women as lesser. In a man's world, she rose up to become Queen consort and eventually even became the Regent of the entire Kingdom, ruling England independently for six years. Ælfthryth is a true Queen in every sense of the word.