Matilda

Matilda (Maud), Empress (1102-67). Matilda was the daughter of Henry I. When she was just 8 years old she left England for Germany to marry the Emperor Henry V, and she only returned on his death in 1125. Matilda was designated as Henry I's successor in England and Normandy in 1127 since she was now his sole surviving legitimate offspring, Prince William having died in the wreck of the White Ship (1120). Her second husband, whom she married in June 1128, was Geoffrey of Anjou, only 14 years old. It was a very unhappy marriage, but the awaited heir, the future Henry II, was born in 1133. But when Henry I died in 1135, his nephew Stephen of Blois staged a coup and took the English throne. Matilda landed in England in 1139 in pursuit of her right. She came closest to success in 1141, when Stephen was captured, but the crown eluded her, partly because of her mismanagement of the situation. She occasionally acted as Henry II's viceregent and he relied on her counsels in a number of important matters.