Ælfthryth, Countess of Flanders
| Ælfthryth of Wessex | |
|---|---|
| Countess consort of Flanders | |
| Born | 877 |
| Died | 7 June 929 (aged 51–52) |
| Spouse | Baldwin II, Count of Flanders |
| Issue | Arnulf I of Flanders Adalulf, Count of Boulogne Ealswid Ermentrud |
| House | House of Wessex (by birth) House of Flanders (by marriage) |
| Father | Alfred the Great |
| Mother | Ealhswith |
Ælfthryth of Wessex (877 – 7 June 929), also known as Elftrudis (Elftrude, Elfrida), was an English princess and a countess consort of Flanders.
Life
She was the youngest child of Alfred the Great, the Saxon King of England and his wife Ealhswith. She had four or five siblings, including King Edward the Elder and Ethelfleda.
Ælfthryth married Baldwin II (died 918), Count of Flanders.
They had the following issue:
- Arnulf I of Flanders (c. 890–964); married Adela of Vermandois
- Adalulf, Count of Boulogne (c. 890–933)
- Ealswid
- Ermentrud
Ælfthryth was an ancestor of Matilda of Flanders, who married William the Conqueror, first monarch from the House of Normandy, which means that following the Norman conquest of England and the death of William I all the monarchs of England were also descendants of the House of Wessex.
In fiction
Ælfthryth was the subject of the award-winning young adult novel Journey For a Princess by Margaret Leighton (1960: Farrar, Straus and Cudahy, New York, NY). In this book, she is called Elstrid.
References
- . Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.