A look at the royal women of King & Conqueror

The BBC historical drama King and Conqueror is set to premiere next week in the United Kingdom. Let’s take a closer look at the royal women we will meet. It will feature  James Norton as Harold Godwinson and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as William the Conqueror.

Lady Emma/Emma of Normandy

Emma of Normandy was the daughter of Richard I, Count of Normandy. At the age of 13, she was married to King Æthelred the Unready, and they had three children together: Alfred, Edward the Confessor, and Goda, Countess of Boulogne. In 1013, Aethelred and Emma were forced to flee to Normandy, following the invasion of the Danish King Sweyn Forkbeard and his son Cnut. Sweyn died the following year, and Æthelred was invited back as King. He died in 1016 and was succeeded by Edmund Ironside, his son from his first marriage. Edmund and Cnut battled over the throne, and eventually Cnut emerged as the winner. Emma married Cnut in 101,7 and her sons were exiled. They went on to have two children, Harthacnut (born 1017) and Gunhilda (born 1020). The sons from her first marriage lived at the court of William, Duke of Normandy. In 1035, Cnut died, leaving behind many who felt they had a claim to the throne. Harald Harefoot, Cnut’s son by his previous marriage, succeeded in becoming King while Emma promoted Harthacnut for the position. He died not long after, and Harthacnut became King. He died just two years later under mysterious circumstances. Edward the Confessor became the last man standing, and he became King in 1042. His mother, Emma, died in 1052.

Saint Margaret of Scotland

Saint Margaret of Scotland, also known as Margaret of Wessex, was the daughter of Prince Edward the Exile and his wife Agatha. Her father was a son of Edmund Ironside and Ealdgyth. Margaret was born in Hungary during her family’s exile and returned to England with her father when he was recalled in 1057 as a possible successor to Edward the Confessor, his uncle. Her father died upon arrival, and Margaret and her siblings remained at the English court. After the Battle of Hastings, they went to Scotland, where Margaret married King Malcolm III. They went on to have eight children together. Margaret died on 16 November 1093, three days after her husband and eldest son died in battle. She was canonised in 1250.

Gytha Thorkelsdóttir

Gytha was the daughter of Danish chieftain Thorgil Sprakling. She was the wife of Godwin, Earl of Wessex. Her brother had married Estrid Svendsdatter, the sister of King Cnut. Gytha and her husband had at least nine children together, including Harold Godwinson and Edith of Wessex, who married Edward the Confessor. Gytha probably left England after the Battle of Hastings and died a few years later.

Edith the Fair

Edith is believed to have been a daughter of Thorkell the Tall, a Danish warlord. She was probably Harold Godwinson’s first wife, and according to folklore, she identified his body after the Battle of Hastings. She died circa 1086.

Gunnhildr Sveinsdóttir

Gunhild is believed to have been queen consort of King Anund Jacob of Sweden and of King Sveinn II of Denmark, but some assert that there were two separate Queens at the time.

Matilda of Flanders

Matilda was the daughter of Baldwin V, Count of Flanders and Adela of France. She married William, then Duke of Normandy, around 1051, and they had at least eight children together. She governed Normandy in her husband’s absence during the Norman Conquest, and she became Queen of England following her husband’s victory at the Battle of Hastings. She died on  2 November 1083.

 Judith of Flanders