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Emma of Normandy

Emma of Normandy (referred to as Ælfgifu in royal documents;[3] c. 984 – 6 March 1052) was a Norman-born noblewoman who became the English, Danish, and Norwegian queen through her marriages to the Anglo-Saxon king Æthelred the Unready and the Danish king Cnut the Great. A daughter of the Norman ruler Richard the Fearless and Gunnor, she was Queen of the English during her marriage to King Æthelred from 1002 to 1016, except during a brief interruption in 1013–14 when the Danish king Sweyn Forkbeard occupied the English throne. Æthelred died in 1016, and Emma married Sweyn's son Cnut. As Cnut's wife, she was Queen of England[1] from their marriage in 1017, Queen of Denmark from 1018, and Queen of Norway from 1028 until Cnut died in 1035.

Emma of Normandy

  • 1002 – summer 1013
  • 3 February 1014 – 23 April 1016
  • July 1017 – 12 November 1035

1018 – 12 November 1035

1028 – 12 November 1035

c. 984[2]
Normandy, France

6 March 1052 (aged c. 68)
Winchester, Hampshire, England

(m. 1002; died 1016)
(m. 1017; died 1035)

After Cnut's death, Emma continued to participate in politics during the reigns of her sons by each husband, Harthacnut and Edward the Confessor. In 1035 when her second husband Cnut died and was succeeded by their son Harthacnut, who was in Denmark at the time, Emma was designated to act as his regent until his return,[4] which she did in rivalry with Harold Harefoot. Emma is the central figure within the Encomium Emmae Reginae, a critical source for the history of early-11th-century English politics. As Catherine Karkov notes, Emma is one of the most visually represented early medieval queens.[5]

Marriage to Æthelred II[edit]

In an attempt to pacify Normandy, King Æthelred of England married Emma in 1002.[6] Similarly Richard II, Duke of Normandy hoped to improve relations with the English in the wake of recent conflict and a failed kidnapping attempt against him by Æthelred.[7] Viking raids on England were often based in Normandy in the late 10th century, and for Æthelred this marriage was intended to unite against the Viking threat. [8] Upon their marriage, Emma was given the Anglo-Saxon name of Ælfgifu, which was used for formal and official matters, and became Queen of England. She received properties of her own in Winchester, Rutland, Devonshire, Suffolk and Oxfordshire, as well as the city of Exeter.[9]


Æthelred and Emma had two sons, Edward the Confessor and Alfred Ætheling, and a daughter, Goda of England (or Godgifu).


When King Sweyn Forkbeard of Denmark invaded and conquered England in 1013, Emma and her children were sent to Normandy, where Æthelred joined them soon after. They returned to England after Sweyn died in 1014.


Emma and Æthelred's marriage ended with Æthelred's death in London in 1016. Æthelred's oldest son from his first marriage, Æthelstan Ætheling, had been heir apparent until his death in June 1014. Emma's sons had been ranked after all of the sons from Æthelred's first wife, the eldest surviving of whom was Edmund Ironside.[10] Emma attempted to get her older son, Edward, recognized as heir. Although this movement was supported by Æthelred's chief advisor, Eadric Streona, it was opposed by Edmund Ironside, Æthelred's third-oldest son, and his allies, who eventually revolted against his father.


In 1015 Cnut the Great, the son of Sweyn Forkbeard, invaded England. He was held out of London until the deaths in 1016 of Æthelred (April) and Edmund (November). Queen Emma attempted to maintain Anglo-Saxon control of London until her marriage to Cnut was arranged.[11] Some scholars believe that the marriage saved her sons' lives, as Cnut tried to rid himself of rival claimants, but spared their lives.[9]

c. 1003 – 5 January 1066, died without issue

Edward the Confessor

c.1004 – c.1049

Goda of England

c. 1005–1036

Alfred the Noble

Harthacnut

Gunhilda of Denmark

During her two marriages Emma had 5 children:

Harthacnut's reign[edit]

Harthacnut, Emma and Cnut's son, assembled a fleet to invade England in 1039, and when Harold died in March 1040 he was invited to became king. He crossed to England with his fleet and Emma. He was criticised by the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle for his heavy taxation to pay for the fleet and for having Harold's body disinterred and thrown into a ditch. In 1041 he invited his half-brother Edward the Confessor to England. The Encomium says that Edward was sworn in as king, which probably means that he was recognised as heir as Harthacnut knew that he did not have long to live. He may have been persuaded to make the invitation by Emma, who would have been keen to preserve her position by ensuring that England was still ruled by a son of hers.[14]

Edward's reign[edit]

After Harthacnut's death in June 1042, Edward the Confessor succeeded to the throne and was crowned in April 1043. During the same year, Edward rode to Winchester along with Earls Leofric, Godwin, and Siward, accused Emma of treason, and deprived her of her lands and titles. However, Edward soon relented, and Emma's lands and titles were restored. [15]

Queenship[edit]

As Pauline Stafford noted,[17] Emma is the "first of the early medieval queens" to be depicted through contemporary portraiture. To that end, Emma is the central figure within the Encomium Emmae Reginae (incorrectly titled Gesta Cnutonis Regis during the later Middle Ages[17]) a critical source for the study of English succession in the 11th century. During the reign of Æthelred, Emma most likely served as little more than a figurehead[18] a physical embodiment of the treaty between the English and her Norman father. However, her influence increased considerably under Cnut. Until 1043, writes Stafford, Emma "was the richest woman in England ... and held extensive lands in the East Midlands and Wessex."[18] Emma's authority was not simply tied to landholdings[18]—which fluctuated greatly from 1036 to 1043—she also wielded significant sway over the ecclesiastical offices of England.