Gertrude (Hamlet)

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In William Shakespeare's play Hamlet, Gertrude is Hamlet's mother and Queen of Denmark. She and Hamlet have a complex and somewhat dysfunctional relationship, as there is a question as to whether or not she was involved in Hamlet's father's death. Her actions are often suspect, particularly the fact that she scarcely mourned her husband's death before marrying his brother. These selfish actions destroy Hamlet's faith in the fidelity of women.

Some scholars and directors (e.g. Kenneth Branagh) believe that there is evidence of a sexual relationship between Gertrude and Hamlet, a view popularised by Freud's famous notion of the Oedipus complex. This is highly disputed, but found in some film and theatre versions of Hamlet.

Gertrude also appears as a character in Howard Brenton's Gertrude—The Cry, which uses some of the characters from Hamlet.

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