Adeliza of Louvain

Illustration in the Shaftesbury Psalter c. 1150

Name: Lady Adeliza of Louvai

Birth name: Adélaïde de Reginarids

Born: c. 1103, Louvain, Landgraviate of Brabant, Holy Roman Empire

Father: Godfrey I, Count of Louvain 'The Great'

Mother: Lady Ida of Chiny

House: Reginar

Nationality: Brabantian

Religion: Catholicism 

Consort of: Henry I

Reign: 24 January 1121 - 01 December 1135 (14 years)

Coronation: 30 January 1121

Predecessor: Matilda of Scotland

Successor: Geoffrey of Anjou *disputed* or Matilda of Boulogne 

Died: April 1151 (aged 48), Affligem, Landgraviate of Brabant, Holy Roman Empire

Cause: *Unknown*

Burial: Affligem Abbey

Motto: N/A 

Spouse(s):

• King Henry I of England 'Beauclerc' (m. 1121 - 1135)
• William d'Aubigny, Earl of Arundel (m. 1138 - 1151) 

Children:

• With William d'Aubigny, Earl of Arundel
• Lady Alice d'Aubigny of Arundel (???? - ????)
• William d'Aubigny, Earl of Arundel (???? - 1193)
• Lady Olivia d'Aubigny of Arundel (???? - ????)
• Lord Raynor d'Aubigny of Arundel (???? - ????)
• Lord Geoffrey d'Aubigny of Arundel (???? - ????)
• Lord Henry d'Aubigny of Arundel (???? - ????)
• Lady Agatha d'Aubigny of Arundel (???? - ????)  

Appearance:
She was described as being of incredible beauty and was even described as the 'fair maiden of Brabant'.
 
Character:
Adeliza loved the arts, especially literature. She enjoyed French culture, and brought as much of it to the English court as she could. 

She also appears to have had little to no interest in politics. 

Adeliza also deeply cared for those less fortunate than herself, and devoted much of her time to charity, and even founded hospitals. 

It also appears that she tried to stay out of conflict as much as possible, especially during the civil war that occurred after her first husband's death.
 
Biography:
Adeliza was born some time around 1103, and was the eldest of five children born to Godfrey I, Count of Louvain, and his first wife, Lady Ida of Chiny. She also had a half-brother from her father's relationship with an unknown mistress. She was likely born in the County of Louvain, located in the Low Countries of the Holy Roman Empire. 

Not much is known about her childhood, but it is likely that she was considered as a possible marriage candidate for King Henry I of England soon after the death of his first wife, Matilda of Scotland. From a young age, Adeliza was renowned for her beauty.
 
The marriage between Adeliza and her first husband, King Henry I of England, was then quickly rushed into effect in 1121 after the death of Henry's only legitimate male heir. At the time of their marriage, Adeliza was 18, and Henry was 53. The two of them would travel almost everywhere together, likely to increase the chances of them conceiving a child and heir. However, despite their efforts during fifteen years of marriage, Adeliza and Henry never had any children together. 
 
Her husband would eventually die in 1135, leaving her a widow. Since both she and Henry were unable to have a son, Henry decided that his legitimate daughter, Empress Matilda, should inherit the throne of England, and Adeliza was likely a witness to this declaration. However, Henry's nephew, Stephen of Blois, would quickly seize the throne of England, and the kingdom would be plunged into civil war for the next few years. 
 
After Henry's death, Adeliza briefly retired to Wilton Abbey and threw herself more into her charity work, taking a special interest in those suffering from leprosy. 

In 1138, Adeliza appears to have fallen in love with and married one of her previous husband's advisors, William d'Aubigny, Earl of Arundel. Adeliza would remain with him in England, and the two of them would go on to have seven children together, despite her previous fears that she may have been infertile while married to Henry. 
 
Adeliza's new husband sided with the new King Stephen of England during the civil war, however, Adeliza herself appears to have remained sympathetic to her step-daughter, and even allowed Matilda to stay at her household. However, Stephen would lay siege to her castle, and Adeliza would betray Matilda and hand her over to Stephen's forces, likely in fear of receiving punishment for harbouring Stephen's contender. Adeliza claimed that she had not received Matilda as part of a plot, but rather as a simple family visit that had no political motive. Luckily, Stephen accepted this, and Adeliza was allowed to keep her lands and titles, and released Matilda so she would be free to visit the rest of her family. 
 
After this incident, Adeliza appears to have lived a more quiet life, and in 1150, she left her second husband to take up residency in a monastery in Flanders. 

What happened to her after this is not known, but she likely stayed in the abbey monastery for the rest of her life, until she died of unknown causes in 1151.
 
Rule:
During her time as queen consort, she did not play a large active role, usually acting only as a witness during the writing of charters. 

Her main achievements during her time as queen involved being a patron of the arts, especially poetry. She brought a lot more French culture to the English court, and travelled extensively with Henry on progress. 

Both she and Henry were unsuccessful at producing a male heir during their marriage, and this would lead to the civil war, or 'the Anarchy', that would plague England for the years to come after Henry's death. 

Adeliza devoted much of her time to charity, taking a special interest in the care of lepers.

 

Trivia:

• She was a direct descendent of Emperor Charlemagne.

 

Quotes:

 

N/A

 

 

Sources & Further Reading:

Queen Adeliza.jpg - Wikimedia Commons. (2014). Wikimedia.org. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Queen_Adeliza.jpg 

Strickland, A., & Strickland, E. (2010). ADELICIA OF LOUVAINE, SECOND QUEEN OF HENRY I. Lives of the Queens of England, 166–198. https://doi.org/10.1017/cbo9780511736414.005