The true story of Lady Godiva

The English city of Coventry has always been famous for its beautiful legend. She talks about the wonderful story of Lady Godiva (or Godgifu, and there are still 50 to 100 different spellings of this name). Everything happened to be in the middle of the eleventh century. In those days, Edward the Confessor, who is known for his waggishness and inability to manage the economy, rules England. Since there was a shortage of money in the country, the king could not think of anything better than raising taxes. Residents of different regions of England began to resent, because they already paid a lot of money. The right to charge them was titled. In Coventry it was the Earl of Mercia Leofric, the lord of the city and the husband of Lady Godiva.

The legend also says that citizens have long begged their suzerain not to make them beggars, but he was as hard as flint. In the end, the good and pious wife of the count also began in every possible way to beg him to pity the subjects. After another request, Lady Godiva's husband told her in his heart that it was as impossible for him as her to ride a horse naked through the streets of the city, and that if the spouse decides to do so, then he will abolish brutal taxes. Unexpectedly for the husband the woman agreed. She, as the legend says, sat nude on her beloved horse and drove through the streets of the city, and its residents allegedly sat at home and did not show themselves outside. Only one of them, "peeping Tom", tried to look at the crack at this marvel, but then fell blind. After this, Count Leofric, bound by the feudal word of honor, had to lower taxes.

But how much is the truth in this beautiful story? Do the Lady Godiva's efforts confirm the reform of the tax system in her hometown? The very story is based on only one source - the monastic chronicle, which was written by a certain brother Roger Wendover in a hundred and fifty years. Other information about what happened was not found. As for the biography of the main character, Lady Godiva of Coventry really existed. Documents say that she first married at a very young age, and almost immediately became a widow. Around 1030, she fell seriously ill and bequeathed her entire fortune to a monastery in the small town of Ili. But the woman managed to recover, and soon she married the already known to us Count Leofric. Since he was the lord of Coventry, the aristocrat moved there.

Historians also assure that both spouses were very devout and in every way donated funds to monasteries and churches. Some medievalists write that this was done without disinterest. For example, in 1043, the Count and his wife laid a Benedictine monastery near Coventry. As a rule, in such monasteries there were relics, to which pilgrims rushed. And indeed, after a while the city became very prosperous and took the fourth place in the country for economic development. Perhaps, in connection with this, the count decided to raise taxes, also wanting to get his share of the total wealth? Moreover, the spouses did not spare the land and money for the monastery. They were buried in it after death.

Be that as it may, but already in the 14th century the English kings tried to find out whether there was some truth in the legend, the heroine of which is Lady Godiva. Its history became very popular, and therefore specialists were convened, who studied various chronicle sources. They found confirmation that from 1057 to the seventeenth century the city's residents were indeed exempt from some onerous taxes. But whether this was connected with a beautiful horseman, or whether something else was the cause of this phenomenon, remains a mystery. On the other hand, the period of 11-12 centuries is a time in European history, when many events are mentioned exclusively in monastic chronicles. Therefore, it is possible that the legend of Lady Godiva is plausible. In the end, why not?