Page:The Queens of England.djvu/45

MATILDA "THE EMPRESS." 33 Upon his arrival in England, King Henry assembled all his nobles and barons, both Norman and English, at Windsor Castle, and there, in the presence of David, King of Scotland, presented his daughter to them, calling upon them to take their oaths of allegiance to her as his successor to the throne. It was not, however, without some difficulty that he effected this, for the Normans were unaccustomed to the sovereignty of a woman; but the eloquence of Henry' prevailed, their homage was paid, and duly recorded in a deed signed and sealed, which King David afterwards bore away with him into Scotland ; and, with the true zeal of a northern relative, this monarch often during the subsequent wars, interposed in support of the claims he had seen so firmly ratified. A brief period of repose was at this time enjoyed by the empress, who dwelt as much as possible in retirement, and in the chamber of Queen Adelais, yet we find her name with that of the king and queen in a state document, which proves that she removed with the court from London to Woodstock, and thence to Winchester. Before the expiration of a year, King Henry offered the hand of his daughter to Geoffrey, the son of the Earl of Anjou, whose alliance he sought from political motives. But what were Matilda's sentiments? It ill consorted with her proud spirit to descend from the imperial dignity to the rank of a simple Countess of Anjou ; and she who had been accustomed to look up to a husband of graver years, could not stoop to a mere boy of fifteen, for such was Geoffrey of Anjou. Besides which, although in her first union love could have had no share, her heart was now capable of the tender sentiment, and it had been deeply impressed by the noble form and manly attractions of her cousin Stephen of Blois, although he was then married, and that to one of the most deserving of her sex. Matilda, how- ever, was allowed to have no choice ; her father had betrothed her at five years of age to a man of five-and-forty ; and now* at three-and-twenty, she must again take the husband of his choice. King Henry fixed that the nuptials of his daughter should take place at Mons, in Anjou, where Foulk, the father of the bridegroom, awaited the bridal train. The marriage was solemn- ized in the church of St. Julian, at Whitsuntide in the year 1128, in the presence of the king, and many prelates and barons ; yet the English monarch had conducted this affair with so much secrecy, that even his own council were unacquainted with it,