The Gauntlet of Mercia – A Relic of Wednesbury
The relic of self reliance.
A thousand years ago much of the Midlands was the focus of great conflict as the Vikings sought to continue their expansion South-West. Æthelflæd was the daugheter of Alfred the Great and, like most King’s daughters, was married off to seal a political alliance. Her future actions were far less in line with the supposed capabilities of her gender.
For Æthelflæd was no meek princess, but a capable warrior queen. Working with her husband to defend against Viking attack, upon his death she did something unique – succeeded him, and ruled Mercia in her own stead. She created new fortifications, including building solid defences on Wednesbury’s Church Hill. She even struck her own coinage, with legend telling of a vast cache of such currency hidden somewhere in the town.
The Gauntlet of Mercia is made from a metal gauntlet over a velvet long cuffed glove, embellished with silk and gold embroideries and inset with a 60 carat lab created deep purple sapphire.
The Gauntlet of Mercia is the relic of self reliance and refusal to ‘know ones place’.
The Cantess 