Favourite Queen in History

[Episcopus]

This seemed the most appropriate forum to post this, but if it isn’t please move mods.

Who is your favourite Queen in history? Can be outright Queen (like Elizabeth II) or consort (wife of a king). Can be British or from another country’s monarchy.

I watched the following video on Emma of Normandy recently - twice Queen and twice Queen Mother - hard to beat that!

Who was Emma of Normandy?

Eleanor of Aquitaine…what a life!

Boudicca. I've often thought a good response to male violence is starting a bloody war.

Eleanor of Aquitaine hands down.

Have you been watching Vikings Valhalla by any chance OP?

I've always been a fan of Elizabeth I. No need for a man and just executed anyone she didn't want around.

I don't really know much about any consorts though.

I was also going to say about Vikings: Valhalla!

I don't know who my favourite queen is. I'm going to have to think about it!

Matilda. What a woman.
Margaret Tudor, Regent of Scotland.
Katherine of Aragon, Regent of England - more to her than the cast aside woman! What an interesting life.
Isabella of Castile.

Katharine of Aragon. Her life before she came to England was interesting and even more so after she arrived. She could have made her life so much easier but she stuck to her beliefs and principles under a lot of pressure.
I really admire her

Oh, and definitely Emma of Normandy.

Can I say Margaret Beaufort the Kings mother?

Eleanor of Aquitaine or Empress Matilda.

I second Margaret Beaufort, what a strong woman…had Henry VII at 13…ugh, the way women were treated then. ☹️ But she survived and became a powerful Queen Mother.

Also Elizabeth I, of course. I need to research sone of the earlier queens.

Emma of Normandy would have been a mumsnetter with a name everyone knew! An acerbic wit.

Along with her Catherine the Great and Cleopatra are up there.

I am also fascinated with the life of (Queen) Lady Jane Grey

Yes, and when Henry was fighting the French she was Regent. A bit unpleasant re James IV, but that's war.

Indeed. A formidable person.

Matilda for me, although Eleanor of Aquitaine a close second.

For anyone who hasn't found it, I can really recommend Anne Theriault's series of blog posts Queens of Infamy - hilarious and informative. In a similar vein, Agrippina is definitely worth reading. Another woman from the 'zero fucks given' school of ruling.

It’s a sad twist of fate, isn’t it. If Henry VIII and Katharine of Aragon had had one healthy son, she’d been viewed so differently in history, probably as a very strong and capable queen. Instead she’s pitied. ☹️

Very true, @Cameleongirl . Just the rejected woman. Yet she was intelligent and determined, in a strange land.
I barely knew about Margaret Tudor's interesting story.

What a great thread!

I was coming on to say Eleanor of Aquitaine as well.

Some of you might enjoy this - it’s a pretty easy listen and quite entertaining.

www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000p6ds

Anne Boleyn

Queen Christina of Sweden!

@Snoopsnoggysnog - I was going to recommend this too, very entertaining while walking the dog!

Empress Matilda/Maude. She'd have been a phenomenal queen if she hadn't been robbed of her throne.

Closely followed by Eleanor of Aquitaine.

I'd love to know if they had much interaction and what they thought of one another.

Not necessarily a great queen but someone who had an interesting albeit short life is Catherine de Valois, Henry V's wife. The mother of Henry VI but also the the grandmother of Henry VII in a very roundabout way!

There is a FB page called Royal Women which features lots of worldwide unknowns from the past. The articles are just deep enough to make you want to go and find out more.

I like Philippa of Hainault the wife of Edward III - a practical down to earth Queen who helped transform the British wool trade. On a similar theme I have a soft spot for Anne of Cleves the one who got away with a decent divorce settlement!