A Cyclopaedia of Female Biography/Adelais
ADELAIS,
Of Louvain, second queen of Henry the First of England, was the eldest daughter of Godfrey, Duke of Brabant, and Ida, Countess of Neimur. Her designation among the troubadours was "The Fair Maid of Brabant," and her reputation for beauty and accomplishments, was spread widely throughout Europe; a standard wrought by her hand of silk and gold for her father's army, was captured by the Bishop of Leige and Count of Lunberg, and deposited in the cathedral of St. Lambert, at Leige, whence it was taken once a year to be carried in triumphal procession through the streets of the city. Her marriage with King Henry took place at Windsor, on the 24th. of January, 1121, she being then but eighteen years of age In the English court, she took no part in political affairs, but was the great patroness of literature, in its then representatives, the minstrels or troubadours. In 1135, King Henry died, and after three years of widowhood, during which she founded several religious endowments, she married the famous nobleman William de Albini, called "of the strong arm," by whom she had seven children. She died in 1151. From her is descended the noble family of Howard, still possessors of Arundel Castle, in Sussex, which was part of the portion which she received on her marriage with the English King.