Constance of Normandy

Constance of Normandy
Duchess consort of Brittany
Tenure 1086–1090
Born c. 1057/1061
Normandy
Died 13 August 1090
Burial Église Saint-Melaine, Redon
Spouse Alan IV, Duke of Brittany
House Normandy
Father William I of England
Mother Matilda of Flanders
Religion Roman Catholicism

Constance of Normandy (between 1057 and 1061 - 13 August 1090) was a member of the House of Normandy who was, by marriage, Duchess of Brittany.

Constance was one of the nine children of William the Conqueror and Matilda of Flanders.[1] She was born in Normandy, where her father was duke. William of Jumièges, the monk who chronicled the 1066 Norman conquest of England, names Constance second among the daughters of King William and Queen Matilda. No source indicates the order of birth of the couple's daughters, however.[2]

In 1086, Constance's father invaded the Duchy of Brittany. Its duke, Alan Fergant, was forced into submission, and a marriage was arranged between him and Constance, who was already nearly 30. Like her mother, Constance was an able administrator. William of Malmesbury, an early 12th century historian, wrote that her "severe and conservative manner" made Constance an unpopular duchess. According to his contemporary, Orderic Vitalis, however, Constance was caring, considerate, and well-liked by her subjects. William of Malmesbury alleges that her husband, Alan, had their servants poison her. She died on 13 August 1090.[3]

Ancestors

References

  1. ↑ Douglas, David C. (1964), William the Conqueror: The Norman Impact Upon England, University of California Press, ISBN 0300185545
  2. ↑ Bates, David (2004), "William I (known as William the Conqueror)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, retrieved 20 June 2018
  3. ↑ Panton, James (2011), Historical Dictionary of the British Monarchy, Scarecrow Press, ISBN 0810874970
  4. ↑ Carpenter, David (2004). The Struggle for Mastery: The Penguin History of Britain 1066–1284. New York: Penguin. pp. 531–532. ISBN 0-14-014824-8.
  5. ↑ Green, Judith (2009). Henry I: King of England and Duke of Normandy. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 322. ISBN 978-0-521-74452-2.
Preceded by
Bertha of Blois		 Duchess consort of Brittany
1086–1090		 Succeeded by
Ermengarde of Anjou
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