The Princess Adelaide was born in 931 A.D., into a noble family. She was the daughter of King Rudolf of Lorraine. Nothing is really known of her childhood.
She became the Queen of Burgundy, but her husband Lothar was poisoned by the Duke Berengar. He intended to claim Lothar's lands in northern Italy and crowned himself king. When his now-people turned to Adelaide instead of him, he had her thrown into prison until she would marry his son.
Adelaide refused to marry him, and escaped from prison with her two maidservants. However, she was found and recaptured; Berengar's wife viciously punished her for it. She was moved to a new prison, in Lake Garda where Berengar had a castle.
Yet Adelaide found a means of escape with the aid of Warinus, a priest. They both bored a hole into either side of a stone wall, hoping to reach the other side. When they were successful, they escaped along with her remaining maidservant by means of a boat. They hid in a wheat field when pursued and found their way to Canozza (also in Italy) and sought aid from Count Azzo.
Upon learning this, Berengar attacked the Count's castle, and so Warinus wrote to Otto I, Europe's most powerful ruler. He requested him to rescue Adelaide, and in return she would unite their lands by marrying him. So in 951 he came to Italy and Berengar did not dare challenge him.
21-year-old Adelaide and 42-year-old Otto got along amicably, and on February the 2nd of 962 they were crowned emperor and empress of the Holy Roman Empire. She had a fair amount of control over the previous and new lands under her possession.
After Otto I's death, Adelaide became her son's regent, and he honored her dutifully. As teenagers, Otto II married Byzantine Princess Theophano, who had a store of knowledge about political intrigue. She caused a rift between mother and son, and between Adelaide and herself.
Yet when Theophano was left with her 3-year-old son after Otto II's own death, they reconciled to protect Otto III. Adelaide's daughter-in-law rose to challenge and defend her son's title from other aspiring and power-hungry royals, as well as the still-pagans in Saxony. When she died in her early thirties, Adelaide filled the position of regent perfectly for her grandchild.
When the 14-year-old Otto became independent in rule, Adelaide lived in a nunnery to the end of her days. She was "a poor sinner and God's maidservant" now, and so died in 999 on the eve of the next millenium.
Why I Admire Her...
From princess to queen to empress, this woman's rise in power is nothing short of incredible--especially when you consider that she constantly had to escape the clutches of the evil Berengar. It's almost like a fairy tale with such a villain as that, finding her true prince in a moment of desperation and becoming one of the most powerful rulers in the world, and in history.