Medieval Women of History

An index to biographies on this site of notable women who lived about 500 through about 1600 -- including the Middle Ages, the European Renaissance and the Tudor period in British history.

A

• Adelaide (931 - 999): saint, Western empress, regent
• Aelfgifu (~ 985 - 1002?): first wife of King Aethelred II "the Unready"
• Aelfled: same as Aethelflaed below
• Aelfthryth (877 - 929): princess, countess, genealogical link of Anglo Saxon kings to Anglo Norman dynasty, daughter of Alfred the Great
• Aelfthryth  (945 - 1000): English Saxon queen, married to King Edgar "the Peaceable" and the mother of King 
• Aethelflaed (872-879? - 918): defeated the Danes at Leicester and Derby, invading Wales
• Amalasuntha (498 - 535): ruler of the Ostrogoths, first as regent for her son
• Amina, Queen of Zazzau (~ 1533 - ~ 1600): warrior queen, extended territory of her people
• Andal (10th century): Alvar saint, Tamil devotional poet, daughter of Periyalvar
• Margaret of Anjou (1429 - 1482): Queen Consort of Henry VI of England, figure in the Wars of the Roses and the Hundred Years' War, character in four plays by William Shakespeare
• Anna of Kiev (963 - 1011): married to Vladimir I "the Great" of Kiev; her marriage was the occasion of the conversion of Vladimir to Christianity and thus the Christianization of Russia
• Anna Comnena (1083 - 1148): Byzantine princess, political figure, historian, medical writer
• Anne Neville (1456 - 1485): wife of Edward, Prince of Wales, son of Henry VI; wife of Richard of Gloucester, and, when he became King Richard III, Anne became Queen of England
• Anne of Cleves (1515? - 1557): married to and divorced from Henry VIII of England

B

• Berengaria of Navarre (1163? 1165? - 1230): queen consort of Richard I of England 
• Berenguela of Castile (1180 - 1246): briefly, queen of Leon; regent of Castile for her brother Enrique I
• Brunhilde (~ 545 - 613): Queen of the Franks, Queen of Austrasia, regent

C

• Catherine of Siena (1347 - 1380): patron saint of Italy, credited with persuading the Pope to return the papacy from Avignon to Rome; one of two women who were named Doctors of the Church in 1970
• Catherine of Valois (1401 - 1437): wife of Henry V of England, mother of Henry VI, grandmother of Henry VII the first Tudor king, also the daughter of a king
• Cecily Neville, Duchess of York (1415 - 1495): figure in the Wars of the Roses in medieval England, mother of King Edward IV and King Richard III, grandmother of Elizabeth of York who married Henry VII
• Clare of Assisi (1193/4 - 1253) founded the Poor Clares, a Franciscan order for women
• Anna Comnena (1083 - 1148): Byzantine princess, political figure, historian, medical writer

D

• Isabella d'Este (1474 - 1539): Marchioness ( Marchessa) of Mantua, ruler, art collector and patron; actively involved in political intrigues
• Margaret Douglas (1515 - 1578): grandmother of James VI of Scotland who became James I of England, niece of Henry VIII, plotted on behalf of Roman Catholicism in England

E

• Edith of Wilton (961 - 984): nun at Wilton, illegitimate daughter of Edgar the Peaceable, reportedly offered the crown of England by nobles
• Eleanor of Aquitaine (1122 - 1204): ruler in her own right of Aquitaine, queen consort in France then queen consort in England and queen mother in England
• Eleanor of England (1215 - 1275): daughter of King John of England and wife of Simon de Montfort
• Eleanor of England, Queen of Castile (1162 - 1214): queen consort of Alfonso VIII of Castile, daughter of Henry II of England
• Elfreda or Elfrida or Elfgiva (~ 985 - 1002?): first wife of King Aethelred II "the Unready"
• Elfthryth (945 - 1000): English Saxon queen, married to King Edgar "the Peaceable" and the mother of King 
• Elizabeth I of England (1533 - 1603): queen of England 1558 - 1603
• Elizabeth Woodville (~ 1437 - 1492): queen consort of Edward IV, mother of Edward V, mother of Elizabeth of York
• Elizabeth of York (1466 - 1503): daughter of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville, queen consort of Henry VII, mother of Henry VIII, Mary Tudor and Margaret Tudor
• Isabella d'Este (1474 - 1539): Marchioness ( Marchessa) of Mantua, ruler, art collector and patron; actively involved in political intrigues
• Ethelfleda (872-879? - 918): defeated the Danes at Leicester and Derby, invading Wales

F

• Fredegund (~ 550 - 597): consort of King Chilperic I of Soissons

G

• Beatriz Galindo (~ 1464, 1474, or 1475 - 1534): tutor, physician, writer
• Lady Godiva (~ 1010 - 1066/86): noblewoman of legendary horseback ride
• Lady Jane Grey (1537 - 1554): 9 day reign as Queen of England, briefly supplanting Mary I and Elizabeth I

H

• Hrotsvitha (~ 930 - after 973): canoness, poet, dramatist, historian

I

• Isabella I of Castile and Aragon (Isabella of Spain): Queen of Castile and Aragon
• Isabella of France (1292 - 1358): Queen consort of Edward II of England, mother of Edward III, rebelled against husband's rule and deposed him
• Isabella d'Este (1474 - 1539): Marchioness ( Marchessa) of Mantua, ruler, art collector and patron; actively involved in political intrigues

J

• Joan of England (1165 - 1199): daughter of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II of England, Sicilian queen
• Judith of France - Judith of Flanders (about 843 - ?): married to two Saxon English kings, daughter of Charles the Bald, King of Franks and Holy Roman Emperor

K

• Katherine of Valois (1401 - 1437): wife of Henry V of England, mother of Henry VI, grandmother of Henry VII the first Tudor king, also the daughter of a king
• Margery Kempe (~ 1373 - ~ 1440): mystic, autobiographer

L

• Lady Li (before 923 - after 934): artist, painter in China
• Louise of Savoy (1476 - 1531): Duchess of Angoulême, mother of Francis I of France and Marguerite of Navarre
• Ludmilla (860 - 921): saint, instituted Christianity in Bohemia, supported and educated Duke Wenceslaus

M

• Margaret of Anjou (1429 - 1482): Queen Consort of Henry VI of England, figure in the Wars of the Roses and the Hundred Years' War, character in four plays by William Shakespeare
• Margaret of Scotland (Saint Margaret) (~ 1045 - 1093): married Malcolm III, King of Scotland
• Margaret Tudor (1489 - 1541): sister of Henry VIII of England, queen of James IV of Scotland, grandmother of Mary, Queen of Scots
• Margery Kempe (~ 1373 - ~ 1440): mystic, autobiographer
• Marguerite of Navarre (Marguerite of Angoulême) (1492 - 1549): mother of Jeanne d'Albret, sister of King Francis I of France, grandmother of Henry IV of France
• Mary I of England (1516 - 1558): first queen to rule England in her own right with full coronation
• Saint Matilda of Saxony (~ 895 - 986): Queen of Germany, Empress, ancestor of Capetian dynasty, founder of monasteries, built churches, 10th century German saint
• Empress Matilda, Lady of the English (1102 - 1167): named heir of her father Henry I, fought civil war with her cousin, Stephen, when he seized the throne
• Empress Maud: see Empress Matilda above
• Mirabai (~ 1498 - 1545): saint, poet, mystic, princess, rani

O

• Olga of Russia (or Kiev) (~ 890 - 969?): founded Russian Christianity with her grandson Vladimir, regent for her son

P

• Catherine Parr (1512? - 1548): sixth wife of Henry VIII

S

• Louise of Savoy (1476 - 1531): Duchess of Angoulême, mother of Francis I of France and Marguerite of Navarre
• Sigrid the Haughty (~ 968 - before 1013 if she existed): legendary rebellious princess
• Empress Suiko (554 - 628): first reigning empress of Japan in recorded history

T

• Saint Teresa of Avila (1515 - 1582): established Discalced order of Carmelite nuns during Counter-Reformation, named Doctor of the Church in 1970
• Theodora (~497/510 - 548): married to Justinian, Emperor of Byzantium
• Trota or Trotula (? - 1097?): physician, writer, possibly legendary
• Margaret Tudor (1489 - 1541): sister of Henry VIII of England, queen of James IV of Scotland, grandmother of Mary, Queen of Scots

V

• Catherine of Valois (1401 - 1437): wife of Henry V of England, mother of Henry VI, grandmother of Henry VII the first Tudor king, also the daughter of a king

W

• Elizabeth Woodville (~ 1437 - 1492): queen consort of Edward IV, mother of Edward V, mother of Elizabeth of York