Page:The Queens of England.djvu/12

 2 THE QUEENS OF ENGLAND. At present we see her only as the young Princess of Flanders, the fame of whose beauty and accomplishments brought many suitors to the court of her father. Among Matilda's numerous lovers came her cousin, Prince William of Normandy, son of the benevolent Duke Robert, no less esteemed by the Norman people for his important services, than were his great ancestors, Rollo and Richard "the Good." This prince seemed destined for greatness. He was young, handsome, and of a warlike character. His commanding figure and fine talents, which had been cultivated at the court of France, entitled him to hope for success with the fair object of his choice, of whom he appears to have been sincerely enamored. But unfortunately, his near consanguinity, and his illegitimate birth, presented objections on the part of her parents ; while Matilda herself, entirely engrossed by her attach- ment to Brihtric, a young Saxon nobleman, who had been sent as ambassador to the court of her father by Edward the Confessor, gave him a decided refusal. The difficulties, how- ever, which might have daunted a character of less determina- tion than that of William, seemed by no means to check his ardor. For seven years he steadfastly persevered in his suit, stimulated, not only by his passion for his fair cousin, but by the political advantages which would accrue to him from her alliance. Fortunately for William, Matilda, who had inspired him with so ardent and so faithful a love, met with no return of affection from the young Saxon, to whom she had given her heart ; therefore, after seven long years of tedious wait- ing, he determined at once to make an end of the courtship, and that by a means which, in an ordinary case, would have promised anything but success. He waylaid Matilda one day in the streets of Bruges, when she was returning from church, and seizing her, rolled her in the mud, spoiled all her gay attire, and then, after striking her several times, rode off at full speed. This conduct, and from a lover especially, appears most extraordinary ; but it was according to the fashion of the rude Norse wooing, which was familiar enough to William from the ballads and traditions of his Scandinavian ancestry, and the result in his case was the same as is chroni- cled of all such stout old heroes. The lady, convinced at once of the force of her lover's passion by the strength of his arm, and fearing, perhaps, further corporeal punishment, submitted,