Appetite for Power: The Anglo-SaxonRegina Gratia Dei
This article discusses the political functions of Anglo-Saxon queens by analysing several royal consorts within their socio-historical and political context. While early Anglo-Saxon queens were seen as instrumental during the Conversion, it was only with the increasing focus on a king's legitimacy, that the importance of the queen was acknowledged. Cynethryth of Mercia, wife of Offa, was the first queen who can be said to have directly participated in her husband's divine ministry by signing his charters with a gratia-Dei formula. The examples further show that while kings inherited their power from their predecessors, queens had to carve out their role anew.