English city of Coventry is famous since ancient times beautiful legend.She tells wonderful stories about Lady Godiva (or Godgifu and still have 50 to a hundred different spellings of the name).There was all supposedly in the middle of the eleventh century.In those days the rules of England, Edward the Confessor, known for his extravagance and inability to farm.Since there was a shortage of money, the king could not think of anything better to do than to raise taxes.Residents of different regions of England began to be indignant, because and so paid a lot of money.The right to charge them had a titled lady.In Coventry, it was Earl Leofric of Mercia, the ruler of the town, and Lady Godiva's husband.
Legend also says that citizens long begged his lord does not make them poor, but he was hard as flint.In the end, a good and pious wife of Earl, too, began to beg him strongly regret subjects.After another request of Lady Godiva's husband told her in their hearts, that for him it is just as impossible as it ride a horse naked through the streets of the city, and that if the wife decides to such a thing, then he will cancel the cruel taxes.Suddenly a woman for her husband agreed.It is, as legend has it, she sat naked on the favorite horse and rode through the streets of the city and its residents allegedly stayed at home and did not appear outside.Only one of them, "Peeping Tom" tried to look through the crack at this miracle, but then he went blind.Then Earl Leofric associated feudal word of honor, was to reduce taxes.
But how much truth in a story?Do confirm the efforts of Lady Godiva reform the tax system in his hometown?The very story based only on one source - a chronicle of the monastery, which was written by a brother, Roger Vendrover over fifty years.No other details about the incident were found.As for the biography of the protagonist, the Lady Godiva of Coventry actually existed.The documents say that the first time she got married at a very young age, and almost immediately became a widow.Around 1030, she became very ill and bequeathed his entire fortune to the monastery in the small town of Ely.But the woman was able to recover, and soon she married already familiar Earl Leofric.Because he was the lord of Coventry, the aristocrat moved there.
Historians also claim that both husband and wife were very devout and otherwise donated money to monasteries and churches.Some medievalists write that it became disinterested.For example, in 1043, Count and his wife laid a Benedictine monastery near Coventry.As a rule, these mansions were relics, to which the pilgrims rushed.And indeed, after some time, the city has become a very prosperous and ranked fourth in the country for economic development.Perhaps due to this graph, and I decided to raise taxes, also wanting to get their share of the total wealth?Especially that of land and money for the monastery wife spared.They were buried there after his death.
Whatever it was, but in the 14th century the English kings tried to find out whether there is some truth in the legend, the heroine of which is Lady Godiva.Its history has been very popular, and so were called experts who have studied various chronicles sources.They found evidence that from 1057 to the seventeenth century inhabitants of the city were really exempt from some of the burdensome taxes.But whether this is due to a great rider, or the cause of this phenomenon was the something else is a mystery.On the other hand, between the ages of 11-12 - this time in European history, when many of the events referred to exclusively in the monastery chronicles.It is therefore possible that the legend of Lady Godiva is plausible.After all, why not?
