Legend and real history. Lady Godiva. A beautiful legend that haunts me (photo report) Lady riding in a negligee
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The English legend about a beautiful lady who overcame her modesty for the well-being of ordinary townspeople is known throughout the world. Researchers are divided into skeptics who believe that the story of Lady Godiva is a myth, and those who firmly believe in its veracity. But perhaps both camps are partly right. Be that as it may, in England they still extol the feat of the naked horsewoman...
The Legend of the Noble Savior
According to legend, the kind-hearted Lady Godiva could not look indifferently at the suffering of the inhabitants of the medieval English town of Coventry, for whom her husband, Count Leofric, once again raised taxes. She repeatedly turned to her husband with a plea to take pity and cancel the exactions.
For a long time the count was adamant. Finally, tired of the requests, he angrily declared that he was ready to make concessions if she rode naked on a horse through the streets of the city for which she was so passionately asking.
The count believed that the condition set was too humiliating and impossible to fulfill. However, Lady Godiva, taking her husband at his word, decided to take a crazy step. She rode out into Coventry Square, covering her nakedness only with her luxurious hair. The townspeople remained at home at the appointed hour and closed the shutters on the windows. The legend mentions Tom the tailor, who looked at the horsewoman through the crack of the door.
John Collier's painting "Lady Godiva" (1898)
Heavenly punishment was instantaneous - he became blind.
The Count had no choice but to fulfill his promise. For the residents of Coventry, Lady Godiva became a heroine and savior from an unbearable tax burden.
Real woman and historical inconsistencies
Lady Godiva, wife of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, actually lived in the 11th century. Her husband was one of the most influential people in England, close to the Anglo-Saxon king Edward the Confessor. Authorized by the monarch, he collected taxes from his subjects.
There remains evidence of the count's cruelty towards defaulters, including the death penalty.
In addition to Coventry, to which the legend refers us, the rich aristocratic family owned lands in Warwickshire, Gloucestershire and Nottinghamshire. It is known that the couple were actively involved in the construction and repair of temples and chapels in their domains.
In Coventry they built a priory, a huge Benedictine monastery that occupied half of the medieval city, and gave it ownership of 24 villages. Monastic chronicles describe Lady Godiva as a devout parishioner and generous patron.
One gets the impression that contemporaries had not heard anything about Lady Godiva’s brave deed. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, compiled before 1066, passes over the extravagant departure of the count's wife in silence. There is not a word about him in William the Conqueror's Domesday Book, a detailed source of information about 11th-century England.
The first mention of a naked horsewoman appears in the records of Roger Wendrover, a monk of St. Alban's monastery, only in 1236, or almost 200 years after the death of Lady Godiva. He even indicated the exact date of the event - July 10, 1040.
The painting by artist Edmund Leighton depicts the moment when the lady makes her noble decision. 1892
At the end of the 13th century, King Edward I, being an inquisitive man, wanted to find out the truth about the history of Lady Godiva and ordered to study the documents of a bygone era. Indeed, in 1057 some taxes in Coventry were abolished, which was unprecedented for those times. However, the difference of 17 years between the departure of the brave horsewoman and the actual date of the abolition of taxation forced the inquisitive king to doubt the veracity of the story.
The legend of Lady Godiva is filled with contradictions. The lady is obedient to her husband, but boldly seeks the abolition of taxes. She drives naked through the streets of the city, but in the minds of the townspeople she remains modest and highly moral. She is a member of the ruling class and yet sympathizes with the plight of the common people.
English literature professor Daniel Donahue argues that the myth developed over centuries and was based on the life of a real woman who may have helped the common people. However, this myth lay on the fertile soil of ancient folklore legends and pagan rituals. The legend of Lady Godiva appealed to the people of Coventry because they had worshiped the naked pagan goddess on horseback since time immemorial.
Monument to Godiva in Coventry city centre.
Ancient goddess
Before the Norman invasion, a tribe of Angles, the Mercians, lived north of modern Coventry, and a tribe of Saxons, the Hwicke, lived in the south. It is with the latter that the appearance of the word “Wicca” is associated - a pagan witch. By the way, in the official title of the count
He was also mentioned by Leofric as “Lord of the Hwikks.”
The supreme fertility goddess of the Hwik was named Koda, or Goda. This ancient name appears in many place names in the area southwest of Coventry. During excavations in the village of Weginton on the southern outskirts of Coventry, archaeologists discovered a temple to the goddess Goda. In the north there is a settlement called Koda. It has been suggested that an entire region, the Cotswolds, bears the name of this goddess.
Coventry, isolated among forests, far from major cities and main roads, was an ideal place to preserve pagan culture for several centuries after the country's adoption of Christianity. It is now generally accepted that the place name "Coventry" comes from the name of the sacred Kofa tree, which the locals worshiped and near which pagan rituals were performed.
Every year, in the middle of summer, in honor of the goddess Goda, mysteries were held with a procession, in which a naked priestess, personifying the goddess, rode around the city on horseback and headed to the sacred tree, where she was honored and young men and horses were sacrificed.
Christianization of a pagan holiday
The Anglo-Saxon pagan cult lasted for a very long time. Even after the construction of St. Osburgh's monastery in the 10th century and the Benedictine abbey in 1043, annual pagan processions and sacrificial rites continued. Having failed to ban the pagan holiday, the monks very wisely replaced the pagan goddess with a real pious woman with a consonant name, and here the story of taxes came in very handy. In fact, the monks changed the meaning of the holiday - instead of a pagan cult, they began to worship a Christian believer, almost a holy woman.
A turning point in the consciousness of the inhabitants of Coventry occurred around the 12th century. The pagan Goda was forgotten, Lady Godiva was revered, the processions continued, but they no longer had anything to do with paganism.
The figure of the peeping Tom in this talented substitute is interesting. In paganism, Tom was associated with the young man who was sacrificed to the goddess. The monks managed to turn the curious tailor into an odious figure of a punished sinner.
Undoubtedly, the church authorities chose the surest path to combat paganism, which was too strong to be eliminated overnight. They managed to transform the worship of a pagan goddess into the veneration of a good Christian woman, while omitting all the unwanted details from the past.
Festivals and festive processions in Coventry continue to this day. They are dedicated to Lady Godiva, and her name has become a brand and part of the history of the city. Whether this story is made up or real is of no concern to modern Coventry residents. Every year, like their ancestors many centuries ago, they gladly go to the main square of the city to pay homage to their protector and patroness - a naked woman on a horse.
The detail about Peeping Tom, according to some sources, appeared in 1586, when the Coventry city council ordered Adam van Noort to depict the legend of Lady Godiva in the painting. Once the order was completed, the painting was exhibited in Coventry's main square. And the population mistakenly mistook Leofric, depicted in the picture, looking out the window, for a disobedient townsman.
Jules Joseph Lefebvre (1836-1911) Lady Godiva.
E. Landseer. Lady Godiva's Prayer. 1865
Most likely, this legend has little connection with real events. The lives of Leofric and Godiva are described in detail in chronicles preserved in England. It is known that Leofric built a Benedictine monastery in 1043, which overnight transformed Coventry from a small settlement into the fourth largest medieval English city.
Leofric endowed the monastery with land and gave the monastery twenty-four villages, and Lady Godiva donated such an amount of gold, silver and precious stones that no monastery in England could compare with it in wealth. Godiva was very pious and after the death of her husband, while on his deathbed, she transferred all his possessions to the church. Count Leofric and Lady Godiva were buried in this monastery.
However, the chronicles are silent about the events described in the legend.
The image of Lady Godiva is quite popular in art. Poems and novels are dedicated to her. The image was recreated, on tapestry, on the canvases of painters.
Edward Henry Corbould (1815 - 1904) Lady Godiva.
Equestrian statue of Lady Godiva, John Thomas Maidstone Museum, Kent, England. 19th century.
Marshall Claxton 1850 Lady Godiva.
Alfred Woolmer 1856 Lady Godiva.
Salvador Dali.Lady Godiva.
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Lady Godiva “with her flowing red mane” is mentioned by Osip Mandelstam in a poem I was only childishly connected with the world of power...
Lady Godiva is mentioned by Sasha Cherny in the poem “City Tale” (“... a figure like Lady Godiva’s”)
Lady Godiva is mentioned by Joseph Brodsky in “Lithuanian Nocturne” (“At midnight, all speech / acquires the grips of a blind man; so that even the “fatherland” feels like Lady Godiva”)
Lady Godiva is mentioned by Boris Grebenshchikov in the song “Steel” (“Well, what if someone is not yet but already / And the soul is like that lady riding in a negligee”
Freddie Mercury mentions Lady Godiva in the song Don't Stop Me Now: "I'm a racing car passing by like Lady Godiva."
The famous Belgian chocolate owes its name to the beautiful legend of Lady Godiva, which in Belgium is still told to children at Christmas.
Godiva chocolate is the official supplier of the Belgian royal court and is served at the official ceremonies of the Cannes Film Festival.
Archaeologists have found stained glass windows depicting Lady Godiva, which are now located in the surviving church of the first monastery founded by Leofric and Godiva.
In the first half of the 11th century, Count Leofric imposed excessive taxes on the residents of the city of Coventry (Great Britain). Those who could not pay went straight to the scaffold. The count's wife, Lady Godiva, was a very kind-hearted person and repeatedly tearfully begged her husband to reduce taxes, but he was adamant.
Sometimes his wife’s request bothered the count so much that he decided to come up with a serious test for her, and if she agreed, he promised to reduce the tax.
It must be said that Godiva was a rather pious woman and strictly observed decorum. Knowing this, the count came up with the following idea: his wife was supposed to ride through the square and streets of the city on horseback, naked. Naturally, Leofric hoped that Godiva would never agree to such humiliation. But to his disappointment, she agreed to fulfill all his conditions.
On the appointed day, a woman appeared on horseback on one of the streets of Coventry. It must be said that the subjects loved Godiva very much and decided to somehow help and save her from shame. The townspeople closed the windows and doors of their houses so as not to see the Lady without clothes.
It is not possible to say for sure whether this story is true or fiction. However, historians have discovered that Count and Countess Leofric actually lived in England.
According to historical documents, Count Leofric was indeed a cruel man. But despite all this, he was a believer and invested a large amount of money in the restoration and construction of churches. And his wife Lady Godiva donated most of her jewelry to the temples.
Today, near the city of Coventry there is a monument to the fearless Lady. It depicts Godiva naked, sitting on a horse with her head down. In addition, a holiday is held in her honor.
John Collier. Lady Godiva 1898 Lady Godiva, oddly enough, is a real person. This is an Anglo-Saxon countess, the wife of Leofric, Earl (Count) of Mercia, who, according to legend, rode naked through the streets of Coventry in Great Britain so that the Count, her husband, would reduce exorbitant taxes for his subjects. According to legend, Godiva was the beautiful wife of Count Leofric. The count's subjects suffered from exorbitant taxes, and Godiva begged her husband to reduce the tax burden. Once at another feast, being very drunk, Leofric promised to reduce taxes if his wife rode naked on a horse through the streets of Coventry. He was sure that this condition would be completely unacceptable to her. However, Godiva still took this step. The residents of the city, loving and respecting her very much for her kindness, closed the shutters and doors of their houses on the appointed day; no one went out into the street. So she drove through the entire city unnoticed. The count was amazed by the woman’s dedication and, keeping his word, lowered taxes. According to some versions of the legend, only one resident of the city, “Peeping Tom,” decided to look out of the window and at the same moment became blind. 
E. Landseer. Lady Godiva's Prayer 1865 Most likely, this legend has little connection with real events. The lives of Leofric and Godiva are described in detail in chronicles preserved in England. It is known that Leofric built a Benedictine monastery in 1043, which overnight transformed Coventry from a small settlement into the fourth largest medieval English city. Leofric endowed the monastery with land and gave the monastery twenty-four villages, and Lady Godiva donated such an amount of gold, silver and precious stones that no monastery in England could compare with it in wealth. Godiva was very pious and after the death of her husband, while on his deathbed, she transferred all his possessions to the church. Count Leofric and Lady Godiva were buried in this monastery. However, the chronicles are silent about the events described in the legend. The story of the naked horsewoman was first mentioned by the envious man of Coventry's fame and fortune, the monk of the monastery of St. Alban, Roger Wendrover, in 1188, and according to it the events took place on July 10, 1040. Subsequently, popular rumor only supplemented this legend. Later in the 13th century, King Edward I wanted to find out the truth about this legend. A study of the chronicles confirmed that in Coventry, since 1057, no tax was actually levied, but the period of 17 years clearly does not speak in favor of the reality of the events described in the legend. 
"Lady Godiva" Jules-Joseph Lefebvre. 1898 The detail about Peeping Tom, according to some sources, appeared in 1586, when the Coventry city council ordered Adam van Noort to depict the legend of Lady Godiva in the painting. Once the order was completed, the painting was exhibited in Coventry's main square. And the population mistakenly mistook Leofric, depicted in the picture, looking out the window, for a disobedient townsman. However, at the same time, Lady Godiva became one of the legendary women of the Middle Ages. Not far from the former Coventry Cathedral there is a monument - Lady Godiva with flowing hair riding a horse. An image of the monument is also featured on the seal of Coventry City Council. In 1678, the city's residents established an annual festival in honor of Lady Godiva, which continues to this day. This holiday is a carnival with a lot of music, songs, and fireworks in the evening. Participants in the carnival dress in 11th-century costumes, and female participants in Eve costumes. The procession starts from the ruins of the first cathedral and then follows the route laid by the once brave lady. The final part of the festival takes place in the city park near the Lady Godiva monument. Here the music of that time is played and the festival participants compete in various competitions, the most popular of which is the competition for the best Lady Godiva. This competition is attended by women dressed in the clothes of ladies of the eleventh century, and an indispensable condition for the competition is long golden hair. Miss "Lady Godiva" 1929
Miss "Lady Godiva" 2006 The image of Lady Godiva is quite popular in art. Poems and novels are dedicated to her. The image has been recreated in marble, on tapestry, on paintings by painters, in cinema, on TV and even on the wrapper of Godiva chocolate. Archaeologists have found stained glass windows depicting Lady Godiva, which are now located in the surviving church of the first monastery founded by Leofric and Godiva. Asteroid 3018 Godiva was named after Lady Godiva. As strange as it may sound, sometimes clothing stores get their names in honor of Lady Godiva. Lady Godiva “with a flowing red mane” is mentioned by Osip Mandelstam in the poem I was only childishly connected with the world of power... Lady Godiva is mentioned by Sasha Cherny in the poem “City Tale” (“... a figure like Lady Godiva’s”) Lady Godiva is mentioned by Joseph Brodsky in “Lithuanian Nocturne” (“At midnight, every speech / acquires the grips of a blind man; so that even the “fatherland” feels like Lady Godiva”) Lady Godiva is mentioned by Boris Grebenshchikov in the song “Why doesn’t the sky fall” (“Well, what if someone hasn’t already and already / And the soul is like that lady riding in a negligee." Freddie Mercury mentions Lady Godiva in the song Don't Stop Me Now: "I'm a racing car passing by like Lady Godiva." The British group Placebo mentions it in their song "Peeping Tom "Peeping Tom, who follows an unknown girl from a distance. The Velvet Underground mentions the name of Lady Godiva in their song "Lady Godiva's Operation." The group Boney M recorded the song "Lady Godiva" in 1993. It was first published in the same year on the album "More Gold". Mother Love Bone released the song "Lady Godiva Blues" on the 1992 Mother Love Bone album and the Apple reissue. Episode 2 (“Magic Nude”) of season 7 of the series Charmed about Lady Godiva. 
Lady Godiva: Edmund Blair Leighton Portrayed the Moment of Decision (1892)
According to legend, Lady Godiva was the beautiful wife of Count Leofric. The count's subjects suffered from exorbitant taxes, and Godiva begged her husband to reduce the tax burden. Once at another feast, while very drunk, Leofric promised to reduce taxes if his wife rode naked on a horse through the streets of Coventry in the UK.
John Collier's painting "Lady Godiva" (1898)
He was sure that this condition would be completely unacceptable to her. However, Godiva still took this step, although she cheated a little - she asked the city residents to close the shutters on the appointed day and not look outside. So she drove through the entire city unnoticed. The count was amazed at the woman’s dedication and, keeping his word, lowered taxes.
Adam van Noort Herbert (Adam van Hoort) 1586
According to some versions of the legend, only one resident of the city, “Peeping Tom,” decided to look out of the window and at the same moment became blind.
The detail about Peeping Tom, according to some sources, appeared in 1586, when the Coventry city council ordered Adam van Noort to depict the legend of Lady Godiva in the painting. Once the order was completed, the painting was exhibited in Coventry's main square. And the population mistakenly mistook Leofric, depicted in the picture, looking out the window, for a disobedient townsman.
Jules Joseph Lefebvre (1836-1911) Lady Godiva.
E. Landseer. Lady Godiva's Prayer. 1865
Most likely, this legend has little connection with real events. The lives of Leofric and Godiva are described in detail in chronicles preserved in England. It is known that Leofric built a Benedictine monastery in 1043, which overnight transformed Coventry from a small settlement into the fourth largest medieval English city.
Engraving of Lady Godiva.
Leofric endowed the monastery with land and gave the monastery twenty-four villages, and Lady Godiva donated such an amount of gold, silver and precious stones that no monastery in England could compare with it in wealth. Godiva was very pious and after the death of her husband, while on his deathbed, she transferred all his possessions to the church. Count Leofric and Lady Godiva were buried in this monastery.
However, the chronicles are silent about the events described in the legend.
Not far from the former Coventry Cathedral there is a monument - Lady Godiva with flowing hair riding a horse. An image of the monument is also featured on the seal of Coventry City Council.
Edward Henry Corbould (1815 - 1904) Lady Godiva.
Equestrian statue of Lady Godiva, John Thomas Maidstone Museum, Kent, England. 19th century.
Marshall Claxton 1850Lady Godiva.
Alfred Woolmer 1856 Lady Godiva.
Salvador Dali.Lady Godiva.
In 1678, the city's residents established an annual festival in honor of Lady Godiva, which continues to this day. This holiday is a carnival with a lot of music, songs, and fireworks in the evening. Participants in the carnival dress in 11th-century costumes, and female participants in Eve costumes.
The procession starts from the ruins of the first cathedral and then follows the route laid by the once brave lady. The final part of the festival takes place in the city park near the Lady Godiva monument. Here the music of that time is played and the festival participants compete in various competitions, the most popular of which is the competition for the best Lady Godiva. 
Chris Rawlins
This competition is attended by women dressed in the clothes of ladies of the eleventh century, and an indispensable condition for the competition is long golden hair.
Lady Godiva “with her flowing red mane” is mentioned by Osip Mandelstam in a poem I was only childishly connected with the world of power...
Lady Godiva is mentioned by Sasha Cherny in the poem “City Tale” (“... a figure like Lady Godiva’s”)
Lady Godiva is mentioned by Joseph Brodsky in “Lithuanian Nocturne” (“At midnight, all speech / takes on the grips of a blind man; so that even the “fatherland” feels like Lady Godiva”)
Lady Godiva is mentioned by Boris Grebenshchikov in the song “Steel” (“Well, what if someone is not yet but already / And the soul is like that lady riding in a negligee”
Freddie Mercury mentions Lady Godiva in the song Don't Stop Me Now: "I'm a racing car passing by like Lady Godiva."
The image of Lady Godiva is quite popular in art. Poems and novels are dedicated to her.
The image was recreated, on tapestry, on the canvases of painters.
By its name famous Belgian chocolate owes to the beautiful legend about the lady Godiva, which in Belgium are still told to children at Christmas
Chocolate"Godiva" official supplier of the Belgian royal court, it is served at official ceremonies of the Cannes Film Festival I.
Archaeologists have found stained glass windows depicting Lady Godiva, which are now located in the surviving church of the first monastery founded by Leofric and Godiva.
On the appointed day, Lady Godiva, completely naked, rode through the streets of the city on her snow-white horse. Lady Godiva - the sweetest woman - is a legend.
While traveling through ancient English towns, stop by picturesque Coventry. A horsewoman without fear or reproach.
Imagine Britain in the 11th century: hopeless feudalism, the disenfranchised state of the people and internecine wars between the heirs to the throne... In a word, the gloomy Middle Ages. And suddenly a bright and cheerful character appears in the history of England. As the chronicles say, the wealthy Count Leofric fell in love with a certain Lady Godiva, about whom nothing is known except that she was divinely beautiful and infinitely kind to people. This peaceful, slender girl with a golden-red head of curly hair fully justified her name, which translates as “gifted by God”!
Having become spouses, Leofric and Godiva settled in the count's castle in Coventry, where the young wife tried in every possible way to help her new subjects and make the town more prosperous. To begin with, Godiva asked Leofric to build a Benedictine monastery and give the monastery twenty-four nearby villages to take possession of, then the count agreed to decorate the walls of the temple with precious stones unprecedented in Foggy Albion, and then the moment came when the beauty asked for a favor impossible for that time - to reduce exorbitant taxes for people.
At first, the surprised Leofric categorically refused, but then at the feast, having already drunk more than one glass of wine, he decided to make an absurd bet with his beloved for a noble woman: he would reduce taxes if Godiva drove naked through the city center! The laughing count was ready to hear anything in response, but not “yes”... And the cunning girl agreed!
And indeed, on the appointed day, Lady Godiva, completely naked, rode through the streets of Coventry on her snow-white horse.
However, at the request of the count's wife, the townspeople closed the shutters in their houses and vowed not to go out into the streets, so as not to embarrass their mistress. In the end, the promise was fulfilled, but the heroine’s honor remained crystal clear!
As the folk tale says, there would have been no one more beautiful in the world than Godiva at that moment: the girl’s skin shone with an extraordinary light, a stream of sunlight flowed from her luxurious curls, and one curious townsman named Tom (Peeping Tom) still could not resist the temptation, He opened the window and looked at his mistress. But the unfortunate man immediately became blind for breaking his oath and is now often mentioned in English proverbs.
But Leofric, admiring the nobility of his wife, kept his promise and greatly reduced the tribute of the vassals.
The count couple with their son Elfgar lived happily ever after in the castle, and then the kind Leofric and the selfless Godiva were buried in the crypt of that same Benedictine monastery.
Believe it or not, this is exactly what ancient books and folk ballads tell...
Glory on a universal scale.
The name of Lady Godiva has become synonymous with generosity, feminine intelligence and charm, so for several centuries in a row the red-haired beauty has been sung by famous men: the 19th century English poet Alfred Tennyson often mentioned her in poems; British Pre-Raphaelite artist John Maler Collier depicted Godiva on the canvas of the same name; domestic authors Osip Mandelstam, Sasha Cherny and Joseph Brodsky addressed many fiery lines to the mysterious countess; Freddie Mercury sang about her in the hit ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’, and the groups ‘Aerosmith’ and ‘Boney M’ even dedicated the songs ‘My Girl’ and ‘Lady Godiva’ to this legend!
But the most unusual tribute to the beauty was presented by astronomer Edward Bowell, who named the asteroid ‘3018 Godiva’ in honor of the legendary heroine!
A pastry chef's dream.
80 years ago, an ambitious but then unknown Brussels confectioner, Joseph Draps, came up with the idea of creating a premium brand of new generation chocolates - with a smooth surface, original filling from selected cocoa varieties and certainly in exquisite handmade packaging. When the chocolatier came up with the name of his new creation, he involuntarily remembered the beautiful story about the magnificent Anglo-Saxon countess, and since then, the golden monogram ‘Godiva’ shines on every box of sweets adored by gourmets!
It was the image of Godiva, who combined both passion and purity, that became the symbol of Drops products and, of course, the guardian angel of the brand - only a very successful businessman can open 450 boutiques around the world!
Over the years, many Hollywood and European celebrities have become the face of the food brand, even the outrageous Playboy star Anna Nicole Smith. But none of them have yet been able to compete with the legendary image of Lady Godiva - sweet tooths are still looking for the stamp on sweets and gingerbread with the image of a slender naked rider, and if they don’t find it, then they regard what they bought as a fake!
However, the surest way to touch this romantic legend is not to savor sweets on the sofa, but to fly to Coventry on the eve of the carnival, dress up in medieval dress and dance around the famous monument to Lady Godiva in the company of local residents.
You won't be disappointed!
