Ælfthryth (Elfrida) (wife of Edgar)

Ælfthryth, also known as Alfrida, Elfrida, or Elfthryth, was Queen of the English from her marriage to King Edgar in 964 or 965 until his death in 975. She was the daughter of Ordgar, Ealdorman of Devon, and her mother was a member of the royal family of Wessex. Ælfthryth was first married to Æthelwald, son of Æthelstan Half-King, before marrying Edgar. She was the first wife of an English king known to have been crowned and anointed as queen since the mid-ninth century.

During her queenship, Ælfthryth gave birth to two sons with Edgar, Edmund ætheling, who died young, and Æthelred. After Edgar's death, she became a leading figure in the regency during the minority of her son King Æthelred the Unready between 978 and 984. Ælfthryth was accused by post-Conquest historians of orchestrating the murder of her stepson, King Edward the Martyr, to place her son Æthelred on the throne. She was often depicted as a stereotypical bad queen and evil stepmother in medieval histories.

Ælfthryth was actively involved in the legal and religious affairs of the kingdom. She played a role as forespeca, or advocate, in legal cases, particularly benefiting female litigants. Her interest in monastic reform was evident through her involvement with several abbeys, and she was reported to have founded Amesbury Abbey and Wherwell Abbey as Benedictine nunneries, although the foundation histories are poorly attested.

Ælfthryth died at Wherwell on 17 November 999, 1000, or 1001. Her son Æthelred succeeded as king, having been confirmed shortly after the death of his half-brother Edward.