Tony McAleavy read history at Oxford and has written widely on a range of historical topics. He is well known as a Malmesbury historian and has written the first ever full length history of Malmesbury Abbey.
Matilda was the wife of King Henry I and the queen of England 1100-1118. She was also the chief patron of Malmesbury Abbey. Matilda was a remarkable woman. She was descended from the Royal House of Wessex. She was highly educated and ruled England when her husband was overseas in Normandy.
Tony will tell the story of her complex relationship with the monks of Malmesbury. While she was intensely devoted to the veneration of Saint Aldhelm, she was also a domineering patron who controlled the resources of the Abbey and chose the abbot of Malmesbury without reference to the wishes of the monks. She commissioned William of Malmesbury to write his great history of the English kings but, curiously, William used his book to make highly critical remarks about her behaviour.
PLEASE NOTE
The entry fee of £8 includes tea and cake
Doors open at 2.15pm
Tea and cake is served at 2.30pm
Talk starts at 3.00pm