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126 SCOTTISH ANNALS
WILLIAM OF MALMESBURY, GESTA REGTJM, VOL. II, PP. 470-471 .
And he had turned his mind long since to love for her ;
holding lightly riches of dower, if but he long-desired embraces.
might obtain the
For she, though of lofty rank, as being king Edward's
great-grandniece, by his brother Edmund, was yet mistress
of but moderate means, being then a ward without either
parent.
. . .
AlLRED OP RlEVAULX, EPISTOL A, IN TwYSDEN, COL.
Their sister Matilda wedded Henry, most glorious king
of the English.
And of her admirable glory and virtue of, mind,
arid of
how assiduous she was and devout in divine offices ancl holy
vigils, and moreover though in so great authority how humble,
he who would write will pronounce her for us another jbsther
in modern times. And this we have omitted to do, both
because of the magnitude of the subject, .and because, of our,
hitherto insufficient, knowledge of these things. But one
deed of hers I shall relate, which I have heard from the
mouth of the oft-to-be-mentioned and never-to-be-forgotten
king David ; in order that from it, as I think, may sufficiently
appear what manner of woman she was with regard to Christ's
poor. " While I served," said he, " as a youth in the king's
court, 2
doing on a certain night I know not what in my dwelling
with my friends, I was called by her and came t6 the-
queen's chamber. And behold the house was full of lepers ,
and the queen stood in the midst and after ;
laying aside her
cloak, and putting on a linen covering, she poured water into
a basin, and began to wash and to dry their feet and after
;
drying them to press them with both hands, and to kiss them.
"
And when I said to her, '
What dost thou, my lady ?
Truly if the king knew this, he would never deign to kiss
1 For Matilda cf. W. of M., G.R., ii, 494-495; Edm., H.N., 173, 187 ;
Bk. of H., 305, 311-313.
She died on the 1st May 1118 : Edm., H.N,, 248 ; A.S.C., MS. E, s.a. ;
J. of W., in Fl. of W., ii, 71 ; S. of D., H.R., ii, 252 ; H. of H., 240-241.
R. de T., in Chr. of Ste., etc., iv, 101-102. O.V., XII, 1, in Migne, 188, 850.
2 This anecdote is placed by the St. Albans .compiler in 1105; M.P.,
Chr. Maj., ii, 130 :
" At the same time David, brother of the English queen
Matilda, came to England to visit his sister. . . ." Cf. M.P., H.A., i, 201,
s.a. 1105.