Matilda of England, Duchess of Saxony facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Matilda |
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Matilda depicted at her wedding in the Gospels of Henry the Lion
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| Duchess consort of Saxony and Bavaria | |
| Tenure | 1 February 1168 – 1180 |
| Born | June 1156 London |
| Died | June/July 1189 (aged 32-33) Brunswick, Lower Saxony |
| Burial | Brunswick Cathedral, Lower Saxony |
| Spouse | |
| Issue | Matilda, Countess of Perche Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor William, Lord of Lüneburg |
| House | House of Plantagenet |
| Father | Henry II of England |
| Mother | Eleanor of Aquitaine |
Matilda of England (born June 1156 – died June/July 1189) was an English princess. She belonged to the House of Plantagenet, a famous royal family. By marrying Henry the Lion, she became the Duchess of Saxony and Bavaria from 1168 until her husband lost his titles in 1180.
Life of Matilda
Matilda was born in June 1156, likely in London. She was the third child and first daughter of King Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine. She was named after her grandmother, Empress Matilda.
In 1165, her father, King Henry II, wanted to make stronger connections with the Holy Roman Empire. This was partly because he had disagreements with the church in England. The Emperor Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor sent a group of people to England to arrange marriages for King Henry's daughters.
They planned for Matilda to marry Henry the Lion, who was the Duke of Saxony. He was a very powerful German prince and a cousin of the Emperor. Matilda was in Normandy with her mother during these talks. She returned to England in late 1166 to prepare for her wedding.
In early 1167, Henry the Lion sent people to bring Matilda to Germany. Matilda, with her mother, traveled from Dover to Normandy, and then on to Germany. Henry the Lion met her in Minden. They were married in the Minden Cathedral on February 1, 1168.
Matilda's husband, Henry the Lion, was 27 years older than her. He had been married before, but he divorced his first wife in 1162. As the Duke of Bavaria, Saxony, and Brunswick, he controlled a huge amount of land. People said he ruled everything "from the Elbe to the Rhine rivers."
Their main home was in Brunswick. Matilda and Henry had their wedding celebration there. Their first child, a daughter named Richenza, was born in Brunswick in 1172. Matilda became the mother of at least four more children in the following years. Even though she was young, Matilda helped manage her husband's large lands when he was away.
Henry the Lion and Matilda had a grand court at Dankwarderode Castle. They started building the Brunswick Cathedral in 1173. They also supported the creation of important books, like the Lucidarius and the beautiful Gospels of Henry the Lion.
In 1180, Henry the Lion had a big disagreement with Emperor Frederick I. Henry refused to help the Emperor in a military campaign. Because of this, Henry the Lion was put on trial even though he wasn't there. He was found guilty and lost his lands and titles. He was declared an "outlaw," meaning he had no legal protection.
The Emperor then attacked Brunswick, where Matilda had just given birth to her second son, Lothair. Matilda bravely asked the Emperor to stop the attack, but he continued the siege. In late 1181, Henry the Lion finally agreed to the Emperor's decision and left Germany for three years.
The Emperor offered Matilda money and a place to live, but she chose to go with her husband into exile. They went to her father's court in England. All their children went with them, except Lothair, who stayed in Germany as a guarantee for his father's good behavior.
By the summer of 1182, Matilda and Henry reached Argentan in Normandy. While there, a poet named Bertran de Born wrote poems about Matilda. In 1184, Matilda went to England and gave birth to another son, William, in Winchester. She celebrated Christmas that year in Windsor Castle with the English royal family.
In 1185, Henry the Lion's three years of exile ended. King Henry II helped his daughter and her family get back their family lands in Brunswick. Matilda returned there with her husband and children.
In the spring of 1189, the Emperor told Henry the Lion he had to either join a Third Crusade or go into exile again. Henry chose exile and went to his father-in-law's court. Matilda and her children stayed in Brunswick to protect her husband's interests. Matilda died there in June or July 1189 and was buried in Brunswick Cathedral.
Henry the Lion returned to Brunswick after the Emperor died in 1191. He himself died in 1195. He wanted to be buried next to Matilda, saying he wished to "sleep next to her both in life and in death." People at Henry the Lion's court spoke highly of Matilda. They called her a very religious woman who was kind and gave a lot to charity.
Matilda's Children
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Historians have different ideas about how many children Matilda and Henry the Lion had. Some say ten, others say five or six. Most sources agree on at least five children.
Here are the five children who are definitely known:
- Richenza (born 1172 – died January 13, 1209/10): She was their first child and daughter. She went into exile with her parents. Later, she was known as Matilda. She was supposed to marry William the Lion, the King of Scotland, but the marriage was called off because they were too closely related. She married Geoffrey III, Count of Perche in 1189 and later Enguerrand III, Lord of Coucy in 1204.
- Henry (born 1173/1174 – died April 28, 1227): He was named after his father and possibly his grandfather, King Henry II of England. He became the Count Palatine of the Rhine through his marriage. He married Agnes of Hohenstaufen in 1193/1194. This marriage helped end a long-standing disagreement between their two powerful families, the Welf and Hohenstaufen houses.
- Lothair (born 1174/1175 – died October 15, 1190): He stayed in Saxony when his parents went into exile. He was kept as a "hostage" to make sure his father followed the agreements. He died when he was still a teenager.
- Otto (born 1175/1176 – died May 19, 1218): He became the Holy Roman Emperor and was known as Otto IV. He married Beatrice of Swabia in 1212 and later Maria of Brabant in 1214.
- William (born July 1184 – died December 12, 1213): He was the Lord of Lüneburg. He married Helena of Denmark. All the later Dukes of Brunswick and Luneburg, and even the current British royal family, are descended from William and Helena.
See also
In Spanish: Matilde Plantagenet para niños
