 Empress Matilda (Maud), King Henrys mother, had been chosen by her  father King Henry I to rule after his death; but the ruling Council  of England decided it would be inappropriate for a woman to rule,  and named her cousin Stephen as king. This set off decades of war,  during which Matilda captured much of western England and was  proclaimed Lady of England. Though she never became queen, she  successfully established her son Henrys claim to the throne. She  died in 1167, three years before Beckets murder.