2 May 2026 - Lady Godiva

Following my last blog on May Day, it got me thinking about the story of Lady Godiva and whether it related to May Day or Beltane. In short, it isn't, though later art and memory do blurr the imagery.

It's likely 11th century and according to legend, Lady Godiva, the wife of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, rode naked through the streets of coventry, in England, to protest her husband’s oppressive taxes on townsfolk. It was an act of compassion and courage, not ritual or fertility symbolism.

Why did the Lady Godiva story become so popular? It was the Victorians! Victorian artists painted her as a beautiful young woman with long flowing hair on a white horse. This visually echoed the May Queen and led many to associate her with springtime purity, which wasn't the case.