Two Matildas, cousins, were involved in the struggle for the crown of England in the 12th century, featured in the novel and 2010 Starz series The Pillars of the Earth. One was the daughter of Henry I, named by him and confirmed by nobles during his lifetime as his heir. The other was the wife of Stephen, who moved quickly when Henry died to claim the crown by right of descent from William the Conqueror through his mother. That Matilda was also a countess in her own right. Their mothers were sisters and thus they shared a common grandmother: Saint Margaret of Scotland.
The name Matilda, an obviously popular one at the time among royals and nobility (there are a lot of other Matildas involved in this history beyond these two) might also be rendered as Maud or Maude or Mahaut or even Mold, depending on the source, and the series calls the widowed Empress Maude.
Read more about these two women who were at the center of this dynastic struggle:
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