Anselm Adornes
[2] In 1443 Anselm married Margriet van der Banck (1427-1480) of Bruges, and they had sixteen children: Adornes' high status in Bruges was demonstrated by the people who agreed to be the godparents of his children, among whom were: Louis de Gruuthuse, Tommaso Portinari, Abbot Jan Crabbe, Bailiff Jan de Baenst, Colard Dault and members of the Genoese families Doria and Spinola.
He was an organiser of the Tournament of the Golden Tree,[3] held in July 1468 to celebrate the marriage of Margaret of York and Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, following their Joyous Entry into the city.
Mary of Burgundy charged Louis of Gruuthuse and his son John together with Anselm Adornes and several other senior Bruges dignitaries to provide a peaceful solution.
In the autumn of 1468, Anselm Adornes travelled to Scotland, at the head of a diplomatic mission to negotiate the return of the Scottish merchants to Bruges.
He reached Scotland through England and obtained from Edward IV a safe conduct (10 October 1468) for a pilgrimage to the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.
At the end of 1468, he was made a Knight of the Order of the Unicorn, and under a privy seal dated Edinburgh 15 January 1468/9 was named a royal councillor.
On 19 February 1470, with negotiations for the return of the Scottish merchants close to concluding, Adornes left Bruges for his pilgrimage to the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.
The journey was of interest not only to Edward IV but also James III, to whom the relation of his travels was later dedicated, and who, in a letter dated 10 June 1472 indicated he gave authority to Adorne to represent the Scottish Crown in Rome and among the Moslems of the East.
On 11 February 1470 a Scottish embassy led by Sir Alexander Napier arrived in Bruges and in early April, an agreement was reached.
On 25 July 1471, Adornes was issued a 6-month safe conduct to convey Mary Stewart, Countess of Arran, sister of James III, to Scotland.
The entourage embarked at Calais on 4 October 1471 and successfully returned to Scotland, where James immediately detained Mary in Dean Castle at Kilmarnock until her marriage was annulled in 1473.
In 1477, after the collapse of his fortunes in Bruges, Adornes returned to Scotland where he quickly re-established himself as one of James III's close companions and was appointed keeper of the king's palace at Linlithgow.
In 1473 he negotiated on behalf of the city of Bruges for the cost of Tommaso Portinari's galley, the St. Matthew, which had been hijacked in the North Sea by Paul Beneke.
Anselm Adornes' interest in the arts may be seen in: The family belonged to the patrician class in Bruges and held regular kinds of functions relating to city council and the Duke of Burgundy.
Anselm himself had good relations with Flanders, Italy and Scotland, and he remained in close contact with the Scottish King James III, from whom he received lucrative contracts.
