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Statue of Matilda of Flanders
Queen Matilda (r. 1066-1083) was the daughter of Baldwin V, Count of Flanders and the French princess Adela. She married the Norman duke, William, in 1051, bringing Flanders and Normandy into alliance. The couple had ten children, including two future kings, William Rufus and Henry I. After her husband’s conquest of England, Matilda initially remained in Normandy as William’s regent but sailed to England in 1068, where she was crowned queen at Westminster. She and William had a close relationship, and he remained faithful to her until her death in 1083.
The statue is located at Luxembourg Garden, Paris and is part of the “Queens of France and Illustrious Women” collection, commissioned by the last French king, Louis Philippe I, in 1848. It includes over 100 statues and monuments to French royal/noble women. The Matilda statue, designed by French artist Carle Elshoecht and completed in 1850, is made of marble. It depicts her crowned, holding a sceptre in her right hand and a lowered sword in her left.
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