Bertrade, Queen of the Franks

Best known as Charlemagne's mother.  We don't know her birthdate but she died in 783.

She is quite different from the previous two ladies I've discussed.  Firstly, much less is actually known about her, and secondly, she's not a saintly sort of character.

Bertrade, or Bertha, was the daughter of a Frankish (northern French) count, and her nickname is rather mean: Broadfoot [like Bigfoot], or Goosefoot.  She met Pepin the Short, an influential Frankish noble when she was somewhere between 14 and 21.  He was married and had five children but she became his mistress, and a year or so later he repudiated his first wife and sent their children elsewhere.  He married Bertrade and they had a pack of kids, including Charlemagne and his brother, confusingly called Carloman. 

A few years later her husband Pepin successfully overthrew the Merovingian dynasty (see the entry on Clotilde, who helped found that dynasty) and seized the Frankish throne.  He proceeded to expand the Frankish kingdom, taking parts of the south of modern France into the empire and founding the Carolingian dynasty. 

Bertrade seems to have been rather passive during her husband's reign, but was much more politically active after he died.  Their two sons split the empire between them, and she mediated when they squabbled over territory and power.  She lived with her son Charlemagne - who is extremely important to European history as the first Holy Roman Emperor - and was one of his trusted advisers.  It would have been extremely unusual for someone as powerful as Charlemagne to take any woman's advice seriously, but he even made some political alliances based on her recommendations. 

Bertrade was obviously someone who was not afraid to voice her opinion, and was ambitious and willing to use her power.  It's impressive that a woman of her time was somewhat able to influence the politics of a kingdom and play a part in her own destiny.