DUKE RICHARD I OF NORMANDY

[adri...@talktalk.net]

The New Cambridge Medieval History volume 3 page 704 shows that Duke Richard I of Normandy had two wives namely Emma and Gunnor. It also shows that he had three children Richard, Hadwig and Emma.

I am not clear as to which of his wives produced which child.

I also note that Women in the Viking Age by Judith Jesch states that Gunnor was in fact his concubine as opposed to his wife.

Can anyone provide any guidance on this, please?

[taf]

Richard married Emma, while having most of his children by his long-
term mistress Gunnor. Later, he married Gunnor, making those children
legitimate in the eyes of the church. The Norman sources attribute no
children to Emma, most to Gunnor, and a couple, apparently, to other
unnamed mistresses. Post-Conquest Norman sources give Richard and
Emma no children. Gunnor had Richard, Robert, Mauger, another Robert,
another son, Emma, Maud, and Hawise. Children of Richard by other
mistresses include Geoffrey, William and Beatrice. Additional
children have been reconstructed, not being explicitly named in the
lists of children: a third Robert, Papia (name perhaps apocryphal),
Fressenda and Muriella, but the reliability of these is debated,
particularly the last two.

I should add that one prominent author has proposed that, given the
names of the daughters, the Norman sources should be set aside, and
they really should be considered daughters of Emma, but I find this
non-persuasive, to say the least.

taf

[lostcopper]

On Nov 18, 7:22 am, <adria...@talktalk.net> wrote:

Richard I of Normandy had more than three children & more than two
partners. He married Emma of France about 960 &, not long after Emma's
death, Gunnor. She may have been his mistress first, but married after
the birth of her children. In addition there were a number of
mistresses by whom he had several children. I would recommend that you
visit the Henry Project website: http://sbaldw.home.mindspring.com/hproject/prov/richa000.htm
where you will find detailed information & references, along with
commentary on the present state of research. Best, Bronwen

[M.Sjostrom]

about the "given the names of daughter, the Norman sources should be set aside, and they really should be considered daughter of Emma":

that one daughter born not of the wife Emma, was given the name of Emma, (if the daughter was born after the death of the wife Emma), follows perfectly a Viking tradition that the next daughter sired by a man, should be given the name of the man's deceased wife.
This tradition leads practically inevitably to situation where a wife's name is present among the daughters of a subsequent partner lady. Daughters who are not blood relations to the desceased namesake.

[taf]

There is a further dynamic at play as well. The recently converted
(some more so than others) Normans would have been in the process of
an onomastic shift to the use of 'Christian' (in this case Frankish)
names, independent of parentage. Thus it would not be surprising for
Richard to draw from his in-laws for names, even for those children
born to mistresses prior to his wife's death.

taf