Plenty to smile about - the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on the brink of parenthood
(photo Carfax2)
Adelaide is an English version of a name that's been around for centuries. It means noble so it's no surprise that early versions including Adela and Adeliza were popular with royal houses from the very beginning. And that brings us neatly to our first William and his noble ladies. William the Conqueror had a sister called Adela or Adeliza and he liked her and her name so much he gave it to two of his daughters.
William the Conqueror ruled England from 1066 - 1087. He and his queen consort, Matilda of Flanders, gave two of their daughters a version of the name Adela.
And it's no wonder that he was so fond of her. Never mind sibling affection, Adeliza married well and brought a lot of strategic advantages to her brother. And he rewarded her well. Not only were there two girls with her name, he gave her land in England when he had finished conquering his new country and she's listed in the Domesday Book as a tenant in chief with holdings in the strategically important areas of Suffolk and Essex.
John Constable's painting of boat building near Flatford Mill - his 18th century pictures of Essex and Suffolk countryside showcased the county's beauty but it was their strategic importance that may have led William the Conqueror to make his trusted sister Adela an important landowner in the area
As for the girls, it's difficult to pin down the exact birth dates of William and Matilda's children and the chroniclers pay more attention to the boys than the girls but several sources do show the royal couple naming their first daughter Adeliza while others say either Cecilia or Agatha was the first Norman little girl to arrive. But there's no doubt Adeliza did exist and that she was still living when Matilda had her last child, another girl, who was named Adela.
And that Adela was to have a massive impact on English history. Moving on to our next William we arrive at Rufus, or William II, who ruled England immediately after his father from 1087 to 1100. He's the only William without a wife but he, of course, had two sisters called Adela or Adeliza keeping up our links. And no wife meant no legitimate children and that meant a fight for the throne in years to come, putting his littlest sister Adela centre stage again.
Adela of Normandy, daughter of Queen Consort Matilda of Flanders, and sister to William II
Adela of Normandy may never have had the chance to be Queen of England herself but her son, Stephen, wore the crown after the succession was thrown wide open by the death of Henry I's only legitimate male heir, William, in 1120. Chroniclers hint that Adela had been close to her brother Henry as they grew up but within months of his death in 1135 she had seen her son claim his throne ahead of his daughter and her niece, Matilda of England. Adela died in 1137.
And then the name disappears from royal history for nearly seven hundred years. But in 1818 a succession crisis again brought it back into the royal fold. And it was another William who acquired a Queen called Adelaide. William IV, the sailor king, married a young German princess and suddenly this noble name was on everyone's lips again.
William IV, King of England from 1830 to 1837, brought the name Adelaide back into the royal family., Both he and his consort, Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, were very popular
William was the third son of George III and had spent much of his adult life living with the actress, Dorothea Jordan. They had ten children but all were illegitimate and barred from the throne. Which wasn't a problem until his eldest brother, the future George IV, lost his only child who died from complications delivering her baby. The little boy also died and suddenly there was a serious shortage of heirs to the throne. And so the unmarried sons of George III embarked on a marriage spree with William allowed first pick. And he chose Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen.
Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen, Queen Consort of William IV of England
Adelaide was 27 years younger than her husband and willing to accept the family of children he had had with his mistress. They met for the first time at Grillon's hotel in London and a week later married at Kew Palace. They spent the early part of their marriage in Hanover as life was much cheaper there and William was relatively poor after a life of high spending. Adelaide sorted out his finances and his drinking and William was described as much calmer under her influence. They had a baby girl called Charlotte but she died at just a few hours old and when Adelaide became pregnant again, William decided to move back to England so that any future heir would be born there.
But sadly none of William and Adelaide's children survived She lost the baby she was expecting that prompted the move and another daughter, Elizabeth, who was born in 1820 lived for just four months. She also lost twin boys. In the end, her husband was succeeded by their niece, Victoria.
Queen Adelaide in 1836, just a year before her husband died
She was known for her widespread charitable work and her devotion to her husband. She was also fond of young Victoria - but the mother of the future queen, also Victoria, enjoyed snubbing the queen until William IV exploded in rage in front of all three of them and declared he wanted to live long enough for his heiress to reach her 18th birthday so her mother would never be regent. He got his wish and in his last days Adelaide was constantly at his side, not going to bed herself for ten days to look after her dying husband.
Queen Consort Adelaide died in 1849 and requested a simple funeral with no lying in state - her humility, her charity and her sadness at not having children of her own won her great public affection. Adelaide in Australia is named after her and despite having one of the shortest reigns of any Queen Consort of England she is among the better known.
So there we are. Find a king William and you'll find an Adelaide. Could that be a clue as to what the Cambridges will call their child if she is a girl?
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