Goda of England or Godgifu; (french: Godjifu; the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

name Godgifu or Godgyfu meant "gift of God", Godiva was the Latinised version; c.1004 – c.1049) was the daughter of King Ethelred the Unready and his second wife

Emma of Normandy Emma of Normandy (referred to as Ælfgifu in royal documents; 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 ...

, and sister of

King Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ; la, Eduardus Confessor , ; ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was one of the last Anglo-Saxon English kings. Usually considered the last king of the House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066. Edward was the son of Æthe ...

. She married firstly

Drogo of Mantes Drogo of Mantes (996–1035) (In French: Dreux de Vexin) was the count of Valois and the Vexin in the early eleventh century from 1027 to his death. He was the oldest son of Walter II, count of Valois, Vexin and Amiens, and his wife Adela. His fathe ...

, count of the Véxin, probably on 7 April 1024, and had sons by him: *

Ralph the Timid Ralph the Timid, also known as Ralf of Mantes (died 1057), was Earl of Hereford between 1051 and 1055 or 1057. His mother was Godgifu, the daughter of King Æthelred the Unready and his second wife Emma. His father was Drogo of Mantes, Count o ...

earl of Hereford The title of Earl of Hereford was created six times in the Peerage of England. Dates indicate the years the person held the title for. Earls of Hereford, First Creation (1043) * Swegen Godwinson (1043–1051) ''earldom forfeit 1051–1052'' Earl ...

. *Gautier (or Walter) III,

Count of the Vexin The county of the Vexin was a medieval French county that was later partitioned between the ''Vexin Français'' (French Vexin) and the ''Vexin Normand'' (Norman Vexin). Carolingian counts * 753-764 Romuald, survivor of the Battle of Poitiers (73 ...

(d.1063), married Biota of Maine (d.1063), daughter of

Herbert I of Maine Herbert I (died 13 April 1035), called Wakedog (from French ''Eveille-chien'', Latinized as ''Evigilans Canis''), was the count of Maine from 1017 until his death. He had a turbulent career with an early victory that may have contributed to his l ...

, they both died in suspicious circumstances in the captivity of William Duke of Normandy, the future

William I of England William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 108 ...

. *Foulques (Fulk) de Vexin (d.1068) She married secondly

Eustace II, Count of Boulogne Eustace II, (), also known as Eustace aux Grenons ("Eustace with long moustaches"),Heather J. Tanner, 'Eustace (II), count of Boulogne (d. c.1087)', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004. was Count of Boulogne fr ...

in 1035. This marriage was childless. Historians disagree about the date of her death. Heather Tanner dates it c.1047 and says that Eustace remarried c.1049, whereas

Elisabeth van Houts Elisabeth Maria Cornelia van Houts, Lady Baker (born 1952) is a Dutch-born British historian specializing in medieval European history. Van Houts was born in Zaandam in the Netherlands. She married historian Sir John Baker in 2010. She is an Hon ...

dates her death c. 1056. According to David Bates, the marriage between Godgifu and Eustace was criticised for unspecified reasons at the Council of Reims in 1049, which was presided over by the Pope. This seems to have resulted in an end to the marriage and her return to England, where she was treated generously by her brother. After the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...

of England by

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...

, the lands owned by Goda in

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

were given to the

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...

-Norman

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

Bertram de Verdun Bertram de Verdun was the name of several members of the Norman family of de Verdun, native to the Avranchin. According to the historian Mark Hagger, the de Verdun family lived originally in Normandy where they held land, and after the Norman c ...

, lord of

Farnham Royal Farnham Royal is a village and civil parish within Buckinghamshire, England. It is in the south of the county, immediately north of Slough (with which it is contiguous), and around 22 miles west of Charing Cross, Central London. Within the parish ...

, and the

Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally ** Breton people ** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Ga ...

knight Raoul,

count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

Fougères Fougères (; br, Felger; Gallo: ''Foujerr'') is a commune and a sub-prefecture of the Ille-et-Vilaine department in the region of Brittany in northwestern France. As of 2017, Fougères had 20,418 inhabitants. The Fougères area comprises appr ...

Notes

References

* Hynde, Thomas (ed). ''The

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...

: England's History Then and Now''. (1995)

External links

Fit for a King's Sister, British Library
1000s births 1040s deaths 11th-century English people 11th-century English women English princesses Anglo-Saxon royalty Anglo-Saxon women Daughters of kings {{Europe-royal-stub