Lady Godiva

Godgifu was a late Anglo-Saxon noblewoman married to Leofric, Earl of Mercia, and spent much of her life endowing churches and monasteries. She died sometime between 1066 and 1086, documented enough in charters and records to confirm she was real. But by the 13th century a legend had grown around her: that she rode unclothed through Coventry's streets, veiled only by her hair, to win relief from the crushing taxes Leofric levied on his tenants. Later versions added a man named Thomas who dared to watch and was struck blind or dead for it. That addition gave the English language "Peeping Tom," but the original story was hers - a medieval act of defiance that outlasted the woman who may or may not have made it.