Belgian abdication means a new Queen Matilda

Belgium is about to get a new queen but one with one of the oldest queenly names in Europe.  When Albert II abdicates on July 21st in favour of his son, the current Crown Prince Philippe, the little Low Country will have a Queen Mathilde.  She'll be the first queen in the country's history with the name and the first on the continent for several hundred years.

Princess Mathilde, Duchess of Brabant, who becomes Queen of the Belgians on July 21st 2013.  She'll follow several English queens of that name - but they ruled almost 1000 years ago.

(Photo Rafael Herremans)

But for centuries Mathilde or Matilda was the name of choice for royal ladies.  It all began with Matilda of Flanders who married William the Conqueror when he was just plain old Duke of Normandy.  She became England's first Queen Consort of modern times in 1066 and her influence was such that two of the other three queens of the House of Norman were called Matilda, all because of her.  And it all ended with the woman who should have been the first Queen Regnant of England but who lost out because she was a girl.

The first English queen Matilda was of royal blood, a granddaughter of the king of France.  She used her influence and money to bolster her husband's wars and paid for ships used in the Conquest.  Legend has it that she and her ladies embroidered a memento of the invasion and victory of 1066 but it's now widely accepted that Bayeux Tapestry was the work of others.  She was feisty and her husband, unlike other medieval monarchs, was faithful to her.  They had ten children and she was the mother of two kings of England.

 

Matilda of Flanders, the first post Conquest Queen of England

The second queen of the house of Norman began life called Edith but as her godmother had been Matilda of Flanders when she married the old queen's youngest son in 1100 she took her name as well.  Legend has it that during her christening little Edith, later Matilda, had pulled at the headdress of the queen and this was seen as a sign that she too would have a crown one day.  She, too, was a popular queen but less lucky in love than the first.  Her husband, Henry I, had numerous lovers and fathered the most illegitimate children of any English king.  But they were devoted to one another as king and queen and he was genuinely distraught at her early death in 1118.  Matilda left a son, William, but he drowned in the White Ship disaster of 1120 leaving a vacuum in the succession which would lead to civil war.

Edith Dunkeld who married Matilda of Flanders' youngest son, Henry I, just after he became King of England.  She adopted the name Matilda when she became Queen.

 

And to the arrival of the third Queen Matilda.  She started life as Matilda of Boulogne and succeeded her father as Count of Boulogne on his death, ruling jointly with her husband, Stephen of Blois.  Stephen claimed the throne of England when Henry I died and in the war that followed Matilda played a vital role.  She was pitted, head to head, with another Matilda. 

 

Matilda of Boulogne inherited her father's title and took on another Matilda in the epic battle for the crown of England in the mid 12th century

This fourth Tilly was the daughter of Henry I and wanted the crown for herself.  She was also an Empress thanks to her first marriage.  But despite this, as a woman the Empress Matilda was seen an incapable of ruling by some and her high handed manner put off others.  The balance of power see sawed between Stephen and Empress Matilda until he was captured.  At that point, Countess Matilda stepped in and started commanding troops on her husband's behalf.  The Empress' support crumbled and the woman who had been called Lady of the English and had come tantalizingly close to being the first woman to be Queen of England was on the back foot.  Forced to negotiate with the other Matilda she gave her back her husband and went off to lick her wounds.

 

 

The Empress Matilda, daughter of Henry I and Lady of the English in 1141.  She was almost the first Queen Regnant of England but was thwarted in part because of Matilda of Boulogne

Portugal and Sweden had queen consorts called Matilda in the 12th and 13th century respectively and there were a couple of Duchess consorts of Bavaria with the name but it fell from royal use in the 14th century and has been rarely used since then.

It was an early outside favourite for William and Kate's baby as a girl would be the first princess guaranteed to rule and the first girl who lost the chance to be queen was a Matilda.  The arrival of a new Queen Mathilde around the time the royal baby is due could be another good reason to name a girl Matilda - in honour of Europe's newest queen.  Or the presence of a queen with the name already could mean the chances of another Queen Matilda in England are lessening all the time.

A Matilda for England - the argument for...

• It was the name of the woman who should have been the first Queen Regnant - and a princess will be the first to be guaranteed the throne bringing everything full circle
• It's not been used for centuries so could be due a revival
• This royal baby will be around in 2066 for the 1000the anniversary of the Conquest - a William and a Matilda would be very appropriate

And against....

• The Matilda who should have been queen lost out because of her high handedness and squandered huge popularity which could have secured her the throne
• It's not been used for centuries - so could be seen as old fashioned
• And quite possibly before the baby even arrives, there will be another Queen Mathilde in Europe

Prince Philippe of Belgium and Princess Mathilde at the wedding of Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden in 2010.  On July 21st 2013 they become King and Queen of the Belgians when Philippe's father, Albert II, abdicates.

(photo Holger Motzkau)