Anna of Greater Poland ( pl, Anna wielkopolska ; b. 1253 – d. aft. 26 June 1295), was a

Greater Poland Greater Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska (; german: Großpolen, sv, Storpolen, la, Polonia Maior), is a Polish historical regions, historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief and largest city is Poznań followed ...

princess member of the

House of Piast The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (c. 930–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir III the Great. Branch ...

and abbess at

Owińska Owińska is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Czerwonak, within Poznań County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, in west-central Poland. It lies approximately north of Czerwonak and north of the regional capital Poznań. The village ...

. She was the third daughter (twin with Euphemia) of Przemysł I, Duke of

and

Poznań Poznań () is a city on the River Warta in west-central Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business centre, and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John ...

, by his wife Elisabeth, daughter of

Henry II the Pious Henry II the Pious ( pl, Henryk II Pobożny; 1196 – 9 April 1241) was Duke of Silesia and High Duke of Poland as well as Duke of South-Greater Poland from 1238 until his death. Between 1238 and 1239 he also served as regent of Sandomierz and ...

, Duke of

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...

. She named after her maternal grandmother, Anna of Bohemia.

Life

Duke Przemysł I died in 1257, leaving four minor daughters and a five months pregnant wife. Anna and her siblings were raised by their mother, and after her death in 1265, their paternal uncle

Bolesław the Pious Bolesław the Pious (1224/27 – 14 April 1279) was a Duke of Greater Poland during 1239–1247 (according to some historians during 1239–1241 sole Duke of Ujście), Duke of Kalisz during 1247–1249, Duke of Gniezno during 1249–1250, Duke o ...

took their guardianship. She was raised in a religious environment, which certainly took a great impact in her life: her mother Elisabeth spent her childhood in the monastery of

Trzebnica Trzebnica (Polish pronunciation: ; german: Trebnitz, cs, Třebnice, szl, Trzebńica) is a town in Lower Silesian Voivodeship in west-central Poland. It is the seat of Trzebnica County, and of the smaller administrative district (gmina) called Gm ...

, where she was strongly influenced by her grandmother, the later St.

Hedwig of Andechs Hedwig of Silesia ( pl, Święta Jadwiga Śląska), also Hedwig of Andechs (german: Heilige Hedwig von Andechs, la, Hedvigis; 1174 – 15 October 1243), a member of the Bavarian comital House of Andechs, was Duchess of Silesia from 1201 and ...

; in addition, she grew up in the court of her uncle Duke Bolesław and his wife, Jolenta of Hungary, who are deeply devoted. Before 1280 entered in the

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...

monastery in

as a nun. During the 1290s (certainly before 1298),In 1298, certain Dobrochna is named as abbess of the monastery in Owińska. If Anna would be her successor, her rule was to be placed during the years 1298–1300, who is considered by modern historians as unlikely. K. Jasiński, ''Genealogia Piastów wielkopolskich. Potomstwo Władysława Odonica'', n:''Kronika Miasta Poznania'', vol. II, 1995, p. 51. she served as an abbess in her community. It's unknown the exact date of Anna's death. Certainly she died after the coronation of his brother

Przemysł II Przemysł II ( also given in English and Latin as ''Premyslas'' or ''Premislaus'' or in Polish as '; 14 October 1257 – 8 February 1296) was the Duke of Poznań from 1257–1279, of Greater Poland from 1279 to 1296, of Kraków from 1290 to 1291 ...

King of Poland Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electable position in Europe (16t ...

on 26 June 1295, because the ''Obituary of Lubiąż'' mentions Anna and her sister Eufrozynie as the sisters of the Polish King. Probably the day of her death was on 19 May, because on that day a mass was offered for the repose of her soul in the monastery of Lubiaz. She was buried in the monastery in Owińska.

References

Bibliography

* K. Jasiński, ''Genealogia Piastów wielkopolskich. Potomstwo Władysława Odonica'', n:''Kronika Miasta Poznania'', vol. II, 1995, pp. 51–52. * K. Ożóg, ''Anna'' n:''Piastowie. Leksykon biograficzny'', Wydawnictwo Literackie, Kraków 1999, p. 153. {{DEFAULTSORT:Anna Of Greater Poland 1253 births 1290s deaths Piast dynasty People from Greater Poland 13th-century Polish people 13th-century Polish women