Margaret's Margaret: An Analysis of Margaret of Anjou
Margaret Holford the Younger’s Margaret of Anjou tells a story based on the historical figure of the same name: The fifteenth century Queen of England and, by marriage to Henry VI, Queen of France as well. The poem reaches a length of 291 pages and is written in iambic octameter. Though cited at the end of this essay as “Margaret Hodson,” in regard to the authorship of this piece, I will be using “Holford” (her maiden name) in reference to the author for the sake of clarity. Through the character of Margaret of Anjou, Holford portrays a powerful and strong-willed woman with a warrior spirit to match any knight of the time. This analysis will consider how readers of the time may have regarded the story, as well as what may have been intended by Holford in regard to the introduction, the characterization of Margaret of Anjou, and the specific passage in which womanhood is related to being a warrior.
Holford’s canto the first begins with a flowery, romantic introduction that may mislead a reader in regard to the direction her story takes. It begins in a way not far dissimilar to a book of romantic (romantic in the sense of relating to feelings of love, in the typical definition) poetry, the likes of which Holford herself also wrote; from stanza one on through the second (lines 1-21) Holford, through an unspecified speaker, proclaims a great love and affection for a “Muse” that seems to have reappeared after a long absence. “Oh, I do feel thee now! oh, once again,” the speaker says in stanza one, “[w]arm gleams of rapture burst upon my brain! (…) Oh, Muse belov’d, I know thee now! / I feel thee glowing in my soul.” Holford’s beginning here is notable in at least two particular ways: for its connection to romantic (in the definition I have described) poetry and for its apparent lack of connection to the main plot of the story. Due to the speaker being unspecified here, it may be that Holford is beginning her book by speaking her own mind; that is, by essentially praising the “Muse” which prompted her to write the book in the first place (a common choice by writers of epic poetry). Her language here is elegant and affectionate, to a degree that might be comparable to a love poem for a spouse, and it may have lead readers at the time into assuming a similar tone would continue throughout the canto. Such an assumption would be inaccurate, however, and so it is worthwhile to consider what might have prompted Holford to begin her book this way. This introduction may have been intended to mislead readers whose only interest in her book was to criticize; that is, she may have assumed some would criticize her work due to her being a woman, and that a romantic introduction such as this might placate such critics enough that they decide not to read further. If such a theory is true, it could explain why the introduction seems to have so little to do with the rest of the canto. Alternatively, however, Holford may have begun her book in such a way purely because she was already confident in her skill with romantic poetry; as creative writers often do, she may have been unsure of where or how to begin the story, and so instead decided to write about a muse and continue from there. In stanza two, the speaker’s affection for the muse is perhaps most significant: “She, whose benign and generous glow / Pour’d warmth into my heart even in those realms / of snow.” The speaker here seems to emphasize the femininity of the muse somewhat, and the romantic language associated with it is notable in that it is unclear the sex of the speaker. Assuming the speaker is Holford herself, as a sort of storyteller throughout the canto, it should be noted the sameness of sex between the muse and the speaker.
Throughout, Margaret of Anjou’s ferocity and haughtiness is captured in her interactions with other characters. Most notable of these interactions, in my estimation, is her conversation with her son, Edward, shortly before he sets off for war, and with the knight Edmund after he returns to inform her of her son’s and his victory against the rebels. In the former case, Margaret suffers through a long-winded speech from her son, which I (and possibly readers at the time) thought to be somewhat drawn-out, only to chastise him on his sluggishness:
‘Get thee to horse!—if longer here
Thou waste in idle talk the day,
By heaven! Ourself will seize the spear,
And rush before thee to the fray!’ (stanza 27).
This passage, apart from its humorous quality, is one of the earliest highlights of Margaret’s haughty nature. She demands that her son climbs onto his horse, a de facto “shut up,” and threatens that, if he does not, she will take up a spear and go to battle in his stead. This prompts him to leave immediately, but not without reminding the reader of Margaret’s bravery as well. From stanzas 39 to 47, after the battle is supposedly won, the knight Edmund returns to Margaret to inform her of the news. Margaret at first implies that he is fleeing the battle in cowardice, due to how swiftly he arrives by horse, but he clarifies in stanza 39 that he has come at the behest of Edward to inform her of their victory. When she questions the accuracy of his news in stanza 42, he reconsiders; by stanza 44, Edmund realizes that he may have been too hasty in his certainty of victory (since he rushed off before he could truly be certain) and attempts to apologize. Here, in stanza 47, Margaret chastises him:
“Beshrew thee, rash presumptuous boy!
What! Must the royal ear be fill’d
With every empty, idle toy,
At pleasure of a heedless child!”
This passage is yet another example of Margaret’s personality, which, though strong-willed, may make her enemies in the future (as is implied in stanza 48, where Edmund attempts to keep his rage from showing). Most notable in this characterization, I think, is how it contrasts the more mild behaviour expected of an upper class woman at the time; Margaret being a queen reinforces this contrast. By characterizing Margaret of Anjou in this way, Holford may have been challenging the notion of what was expected behaviour of a woman in such a role (“lady-like” behaviour, one may say). Her personality may have been received in mixed fashion by readers at the time, and likely in a negative fashion by some, such that Margaret of Anjou may have been unlikeable to some and praise-worthy to others.
Canto the first takes its time establishing Margaret of Anjou as a fierce and strong-willed woman with a warrior’s spirit to her. She is often referred to throughout as a warrior queen, and that haughtiness contrasts her against many of the other characters. Margaret of Anjou is built up to be a powerful figure, perhaps larger than life, but by stanza 33 a break in Margaret’s proverbial armour becomes apparent:
“Ill didst thou, Nature, to combine
With woman’s form a soul like mine!
What heart in either grim array
Throbs to the charge with wilder beat!
What ear so loves the trumpet’s brat
That bids contending thousands meet!
Whose thirst like mine, when blood of foes
Warm from the gasping fountain flows!
Whose nerves more firmly brac’d to dare!
Who loves like me to crush! who hates like me
to spare!”
This passage stands out from the otherwise self-assured personality that characterizes Margaret up to that point. Here she laments that she was born into a woman’s body when her spirit aligns more strongly with a warrior, the implication being that the two are incompatible with one another; she feels her sex is not suited for her warrior spirit, despite her apparent competence. Notable in this passage is not so much its relevance to the story, but rather what might have prompted Holford to include it in the first place. This passage may have been included, just as the romantic introduction may have been, to appease certain groups or critics of her work. Alternatively, it may have been something Holford believed to be accurate; she may have believed in the potential talent of women as warriors or soldiers, but also the unsuitability of her sex for that role. Regardless of her intent behind it, however, this passage may have been received by readers in a similar way to the latter of the aforementioned theories; it may have been seen as a reminder that, although Margaret of Anjou was built-up to be a reputable warrior, she still was not in as advantageous a position as a man in the same role.
With the aforementioned details considered, one may conclude that Holford’s Margaret of Anjou contains subversive elements, relating to the culture within which it was written, that hide, in some cases, behind certain conventions of the time. A deeper analysis may find further connections throughout the remainder of Margaret of Anjou, as well as overarching themes not made obvious through a single canto.