Emma of Normandy (died 1052), the wife of King Aethelred the Unready from 1002 to 1016 and then the wife of King Cnut from 1017 to 1035, was a dominant player in English politics for nearly 50 years. Emma is the first English queen depicted in contemporary artwork, and she also commissioned her own work of history, the Encomium Emmae Reginae. Her lengthy career saw her outlive both of her husbands, but she also lived long enough to see two of her children, Harthacnut (r. 1040-1042) and Edward the Confessor (r. 1042-1066), become English kings.
Background & First Queenship
Emma's year of birth is unknown, but she was born in Normandy to Duke Richard I; her mother, Gunnora, was likely of Danish descent. Emma first enters the historical record in 1002, with her marriage to the English king Aethelred II, "the Unready" (r. 978-1013 and 1014-1016). Aethelred had been king of the English since 978 and already had several children from his first marriage to Aelfgifu of York, who vanished from the historical record around the turn of the millennium.
Emma was honored with the title of queen, which Aethelred's first wife had not received. Emma appointed Norman followers to important positions in England, such as a reeve named Hugh in Exeter as early as 1003. Emma, unlike Aethelred's first wife, also appears on many diplomas from Aethelred's reign. Her sons with the king, Edward and Alfred, appear alongside her as well.
But England was not entirely stable by the time Emma became queen. Viking raids in Britain were common; they had plagued the kingdom since the 980s, but by the 1000s, they had grown far more intense. The Danish king, Swein Forkbeard (r. 986-1014), led particularly large armies in England, raiding throughout the kingdom from 1003-1005 and 1006-1007. Another Danish lord, Thorkell the Tall, overran nearly the entire kingdom from 1009-1012.
