Lady of the English - By Elizabeth Chadwick Page 0,203
at Afflighem in modern-day Belgium, of which her family were patrons, and died there in 1151. I suggest in the novel that she had contracted some form of wasting illness, because she retired to a religious life (but did not take vows) when her youngest children would 503
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still have been little more than babies and her eldest son only nine years old. William D’Albini did not remarry, although he outlived his wife by twenty-five years.
Adeliza has two places of burial recorded: Afflighem and Reading Abbey. I suspect one house received her heart and the other her body, but I cannot say for sure. Descendants of William D’Albini and Adeliza of Louvain own Castle Rising in Norfolk to this day, and the innovative latrine arrangements mentioned in the novel can still be seen by the interested visitor!
William D’Albini was one of the barons foremost in brokering the peace agreement between the future Henry II and King Stephen whereby Henry was to receive the throne when Stephen died. This came about in 1154, outside the scope of this novel. D’Albini was favoured by the new young king; Adeliza’s determination in permitting her stepdaughter the empress to land in England in 1139 paid its dividend fifteen years later.
Readers will notice I have made frequent reference to crowns in the novel. Other than the obvious reason that the story involves the fight for a crown, I wanted to mention them because the empress set great store by hers and brought several from Germany. One was of solid gold set with gemstones and was worn by Henry II at his coronation. It was so heavy that it had to be supported by two silver rods and the front of it held a jewel of great size and worth with a gold cross superimposed on it. She also had another smaller crown of gold belonging to the emperor, and one that was decorated with gold flowers.
Crowns at this time were often made in hinged sections so they could be packed flat when not in use.
Matilda also set great store by nice tents. When the emperor of Germany asked for the return of the hand of Saint James, Matilda declined to oblige, but did send him a magnificent 504
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travelling tent instead, made of rich fabrics and so large that it had to be raised mechanically. That was part of the inspiration for including the windy tent scene near the beginning of the novel, the other part being research garnered from my strand of research involving the Akashic Records, a belief that the past can be accessed by someone with the skills to tune into its imprint.
Readers can find more information and links on my website.
Concerning other sundry details that interested me and might interest readers: the Latin on page 354, “Matilidis Imperatrice, Domina Angliea, Regina Anglia. Wallig,” translates to “Empress Matilda, Lady of the English, Queen of England. Wallingford,” and is based on actual (rare) coinage minted at Wallingford.
The name of Will’s warhorse Forcilez translates into English from the original Anglo-Norman as “Little Fortress.” I have my Akashic Consultant Alison King to thank for coming across his name at one of our sessions.
It has been a fascinating journey, following part of the lives of these two linked but very different women and observing their struggles to survive, and be heard in a world where the odds were stacked against them. Yet each in her own way, despite setbacks, succeeded in the end and they have my deepest respect.
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Bibliography
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The Chronicle of John of Worcester, vol. III, ed. and trans. by P. McGurk (Oxford Medieval Texts, Clarendon Press, 1998, ISBN 0 19 820702 6).
Crouch, David, The Reign of King Stephen 1135–1154 (Longman, 2000, ISBN 0 582 22657 0).
Davis, Michael R., Henry of Blois: Prince Bishop of the Twelfth Century Renaissance (PublishAmerica, 2009, ISBN 978 1
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Gesta Stephani, ed. and trans. by K. R. Potter (Oxford Medieval Texts, Clarendon Press, 1976, ISBN 0 19 822234 3).
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