"Spanning the years from the Norman conquest in 1066 to the dawn of a new era in 1154, when Henry II succeeded to the throne and Eleanor of Aquitaine, the first Plantagenet queen, was crowned, this ... book brings to ... life five women: Matilda of Flanders, wife of William the Conqueror, the first Norman king; Matilda of Scotland, revered as 'the common mother of all England'; Adeliza of Louvain, the young beauty whom the aging Henry I married to get an heir; Matilda of Boulogne, one of the most desirable brides in Europe, who fought a war on behalf of her husband, King Stephen, against the Empress Maud, England's first female ruler and this book's fifth queen, whose son King Henry II would go on to found the Plantagenet dynasty. More than those who came before or after them, these Norman consorts were recognized as equal sharers in sovereignty. Drawing from the most reliable contemporary sources, Weir skillfully strips away centuries of romantic lore to share a balanced and authentic take on the importance of these female monarchs."--From dust jacket.