Empress Matilda Quotes

She never wore the crown, but her son became the greatest king

In 1153, Matilda's son Henry forced Stephen to sign the Treaty of Winchester, making Henry the heir to the English throne. Stephen died the following year, and Henry became King Henry II, founding the Plantagenet dynasty that would rule England for over 300 years. Matilda spent her final years in Normandy, acting as a trusted advisor to her son and governing his continental lands when he was in England. She died on September 10, 1167. A contemporary chronicler described her as always superior to feminine softness, with a mind steeled and unbroken in adversity. She never became queen, but she made a king. Everything the Plantagenets built traces back to the woman who refused to accept that a crown denied meant a fight abandoned.