Emma of Normandy was a member of the House of Normandy through birth and of House of Wessex and House of Denmark through marriage. She was the second wife of King Aethelred the Unready and the second wife of King Canute. She was the mother of King Harthacnut and King Edward the Confessor.
Emma of Normandy Family Tree Image showing:
parents, siblings, husbands and children
Emma of Normandy Family Tree in Table Form showing:
grandparents, parents, siblings, husbands, children and grandchildren
GRANDPARENTS
Paternal Grandfather – William Longsword, Count of Rouen – (c893 – 942)
Paternal Grandmother – Sprota – (details unkown)
Maternal Grandfather – Not known
Maternal Grandmother – Not known
PARENTS
Father – Richard I, Duke of Normandy – (932 – 996)
Mother – Gunnora – (c950 – 1031)
SIBLINGS
Richard II, Duke of Normandy – (963 – 1026)
Robert, Archbishop of Rouen – (before 989 – 1037)
Maud of Normandy – (d. 1006)
Hawise of Normandy – (d. 1034)
HALF SIBLINGS
Geoffrey Count of Eu – (d. 1010)
William Count of Eu – (972 – 1057)
by Aethelred the Unready
King Edward the Confessor – (1003 – 1066)
Godgifu of Boulogne – (1004 – 1047)
Alfred Aetheling – (1005 – 1037)
by Canute the Great
Harthacnut – (1018 – 1042)
Gunhilda of Germany – (1020 – 1038)
GRANDCHILDREN
by Godgifu of Boulogne
Ralph the Timid – (d. 1057)
Walter III of Vexin – (d. 1063)
Fulk – (d. 1068)
by Gunhilda of Germany
Beatrice, Abbess of Quedlindburg – (1037 – 1061)
Emma of Normandy Short Biography
Emma of Normandy was born in 985, the daughter of Richard I Duke of Normandy. She married King Aethelred the Unready in 1002 as part of a treaty of mutual agreement between England and Normandy. The couple had three children, Edward, Alfred and Godgifu.
In 1014, King Sweyn Forkbeard conquered England and became King. Emma, Aethelred and their children fled to Emma’s relatives in Normandy. Sweyn died in February 1014 and the Witan of England refused to accept Sweyn’s son, Canute, as King. Instead they asked Aethelred to return as King. When Aethelred died in 1016 his eldest son from his first marriage, Edmund Ironside, became King.
Canute was not happy being passed over and decided to fight for the country. He succeeded in conquering the north but Edmund held out in London and a truce was reached. However, when Edmund died unexpectedly in November 1016, Canute took control of the country.
Emma sent her children to Normandy when Canute became King, but she remained in England and married Canute. She and Canute had two children, Harthacnut and Gunhilda. Canute was also King of Denmark, Norway and Sweden earning him the epithet Great.
When Canute died in 1035 he nominated his son by Emma, Harthacnut, to become King. However, Harthacnut was unable to leave Denmark due to unrest in the country. At this point Emma’s children by her first marriage, Edward and Alfred, planned to visit England. Alfred landed on the south coast and was met by Earl Godwin who seized him, had him blinded and sent him to the Isle of Ely where he died of his injuries. Edward returned to Normandy and Emma exiled herself to Flanders. In 1040, Harold, Canute’s son by his first marriage, seized the throne. When he died in 1042, Harthacnut was able to return to England and he was crowned King.
Emma returned to England where she remained until her death on 6th March 1052. She was buried in Winchester Cathedral.
Published July 14, 2024 @ 2:45 pm – Updated –
Harvard Reference for Emma of Normandy Family Tree:
Heather Y Wheeler. (2024). Emma of Normandy Family Tree & Biography (985-1052). Available: https://www.treesofblue.com/emma-of-normandy-985-1052. Last accessed July 16th, 2024
