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Women as Warriors in the 13th Century

Maude de Valerie (1155-1210) also known as Maud de Saint Valery, Matilda, Moll Walby, The Lady of LaHaie or The Lady of La Hay defended Pain's Castle. Nicola de la Haye was in charge of Lincoln Castle when rebel barons and Louis, son of the French King Philip beseiged it in 1217. (info given by Dale) She was the daughter of Baron de la Haye, hereditary castellan of Lincoln. She successfully defended the town against several rebel raids and was made sheriff of Lincolnshire in 1216. The Order of the Glorious Saint Mary was founded in Italy in 1233, and approved by Pope Alexander IV in 1261. It was the first religious order of knighthood to grant the rank of "militissa" to women. The Order was suppressed by Sixtus V in 1558. (source Women Knights in the Middle Ages) The Countess of Pembroke was put her in charge of her husband's knights in 1267 while he was away from home. (source The City of Women). Jeanne of Navarre (1271-1304) was the ruler of Navarre, Brie and Champagne. She was married to King Philip the Fair of France. She led her army against that of the Count de Bar when he attempted to rebel against her. In 1297 the Countess of Ross led her own troops during William Wallace and Andrew de Moray's battles with the English. (see also Andrew De Moray)

German Manuscript Illustration

In the late 13th Century Heldris de Cornouaille (Heldris of Cornwall) wrote an Old French verse poem called "Roman de Silence" which tells the fictional story of a woman who was a minstrel and knight. (see Undermining Oppositionality: The Romance of Silence) (see also Women in the Knightly Orders)

Scottish Wars of Independence
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