Constance of Aragon (1179 – 23 June 1222) was an Aragonese
infanta
''Infante'' (, ; f. ''infanta''), also anglicised as Infant or translated as Prince, is the title and rank given in the Iberian kingdoms of Spain (including the predecessor kingdoms of Aragon, Castile, Navarre, and León) and Portugal to th ...
who was by marriage firstly Queen of Hungary, and secondly Queen of Germany and Sicily and Holy Roman Empress. She was regent of Sicily from 1212 to 1220.
She was the second child and eldest daughter of the nine children of
Alfonso II of Aragon
Alfonso II (1–25 March 1157Benito Vicente de Cuéllar (1995)«Los "condes-reyes" de Barcelona y la "adquisición" del reino de Aragón por la dinastía bellónida» p. 630-631; in ''Hidalguía''. XLIII (252) pp. 619–632."Alfonso II el Casto, hi ...
and
Sancha of Castile.
Queen of Hungary
Her father died in 1196 and Constance's fate was decided by the new King, her brother
Peter II. Peter arranged her marriage with King
Emeric of Hungary
Emeric, also known as Henry or Imre ( hu, Imre, hr, Emerik, sk, Imrich; 117430 November 1204), was King of Hungary and Croatia between 1196 and 1204. In 1184, his father, Béla III of Hungary, ordered that he be crowned king, and appointed him ...
, and the nineteen-year-old Constance left Aragon for Hungary. The wedding took place in 1198. Two years later, in 1200, the Queen gave birth to a son, called
Ladislaus
Ladislaus ( or according to the case) is a masculine given name of Slavic origin.
It may refer to:
* Ladislaus of Hungary (disambiguation)
* Ladislaus I (disambiguation)
* Ladislaus II (disambiguation)
* Ladislaus III (disambiguation)
* Ladi ...
.
When King Emeric was dying, he crowned his son Ladislaus co-ruler on 26 August 1204. The King wanted to secure his succession and had his brother
Andrew
Andrew is the English form of a given name common in many countries. In the 1990s, it was among the top ten most popular names given to boys in List of countries where English is an official language, English-speaking countries. "Andrew" is freq ...
promise to protect the child and help him govern the
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...
until reaching adulthood. Emeric died three months later, on 30 November.
Ladislaus succeeded him as King while Andrew became his Regent. Andrew soon took over all regal authority while Ladislaus and Constance were little more than his prisoners. Constance managed to escape to
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
with Ladislaus.
The two found refuge in the court of
Leopold VI, Duke of Austria
Leopold VI (15 October 1176 – 28 July 1230), known as Leopold the Glorious, was Duke of Styria from 1194 and Duke of Austria from 1198 to his death in 1230. He was a member of the House of Babenberg.
Biography
Leopold VI was the younger son of ...
, but Ladislaus would soon die (7 May 1205). The former Regent and now King Andrew II of Hungary took the body of his nephew and buried him in the Royal Crypt of
Székesfehérvár
Székesfehérvár (; german: Stuhlweißenburg ), known colloquially as Fehérvár ("white castle"), is a city in central Hungary, and the country's ninth-largest city. It is the regional capital of Central Transdanubia, and the centre of Fejér ...
. Duke Leopold sent Constance back to Aragon.
Holy Roman Empress
When Constance returned to Aragon, she took up residence with her mother, Queen Sancha, in the Abbey of Nuestra Senora, at
Sijena
Villanueva de Sigena or Villanueva de Sijena is a town in the county of Los Monegros, in the northern province of Huesca, in Aragon (Spain). Located near the Alcanadre river, the local economy is primarily agricultural-based.
The Royal Monastery ...
; Sancha had founded the abbey after her husband's death, and now lived there in retirement. Constance spent the next three years in the abbey with her mother, until her fate, again, was changed by her brother.
Peter II wanted to be on good terms with Pope Innocent III, since he wanted an annulment of his marriage with Maria of Montpellier, and needed the blessing of the Pope. The Pope solicited the hand of the Dowager Queen of Hungary for his pupil, the young King
Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick II (German language, German: ''Friedrich''; Italian language, Italian: ''Federico''; Latin: ''Federicus''; 26 December 1194 – 13 December 1250) was King of Sicily from 1198, King of Germany from 1212, King of Italy and Holy Roman Em ...
. The Aragonese King accepted the proposal; Constance left her mother and the abbey of Nuestra Senora and began her trip to Sicily (1208). She never returned to Aragon or saw her mother again. Sancha died shortly after the departure of her daughter.
Constance and Frederick were married in the Sicilian city of
Messina
Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in ...
on 15 August 1209. In the ceremony, she was crowned Queen of Sicily. By this time, Constance was thirty years old and her new husband only fourteen. Two years later, in 1211, Constance gave birth to a son, called
Henry
Henry may refer to:
People
*Henry (given name)
*Henry (surname)
* Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry
Royalty
* Portuguese royalty
** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal
** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
, who later had a tragic end.
On 9 December 1212, Frederick was crowned
King of Germany
This is a list of monarchs who ruled over East Francia, and the Kingdom of Germany (''Regnum Teutonicum''), from the division of the Frankish Empire in 843 and the collapse of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 until the collapse of the German Empir ...
in opposition to
Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto IV (1175 – 19 May 1218) was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1209 until his death in 1218.
Otto spent most of his early life in England and France. He was a follower of his uncle Richard the Lionheart, who made him Count of Poitou in 1196 ...
. During the absence of her husband, Constance stayed in Sicily as regent of the Kingdom until 1220.
At first Frederick controlled Southern Germany but Otto IV was effectively deposed on 5 July 1215. This time Constance was crowned German Queen with her husband.
Pope Honorius III
Pope Honorius III (c. 1150 – 18 March 1227), born Cencio Savelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 18 July 1216 to his death. A canon at the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, he came to hold a number of importa ...
crowned Frederick
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...
on 22 November 1220. Constance was crowned Holy Roman Empress while their son Henry became the new King of Germany. She died of
malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. S ...
less than two years later in
Catania
Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also by ...
and was buried in the
Cathedral of Palermo
Palermo Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Palermo, located in Palermo, Sicily, southern Italy. It is dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. As an architectural complex, it is characterized by the pre ...
, in a Roman sarcophagus with a beautiful crown, the Crown of Constance.
References
*
*Jacqueline Alio: ''Queens of Sicily 1061-1266'', Trinacria, New York 2018.
*Uwe A. Oster: ''Die Frauen Kaiser Friedrichs II'', Piper Verlag, Munich 2008.
*Ingo Runde: ''Konstanze von Aragón'', in: ''Die Kaiserinnen des Mittelalters'', hrsg. von Amalie Fößel, Pustet, Regensburg 2011, pp. 232–248.
*Austin Lane Poole: ''Filippo di Svevia e Ottone IV'', in: ''Storia del mondo medievale'', vol. V, 1999, pp. 54–93.
*E.F. Jacob: ''Innocenzo III'', in: ''Storia del mondo medievale'', vol. V, 1999, pp. 5–53.
*Michelangelo Schipa: ''L'Italia e la Sicilia sotto Federico II'', in: ''Storia del mondo medievale'', vol. V, 1999, pp. 153–197.
*Maria Amalia Mastelloni: ''Il sarcofago antico di Costanza d'Aragona, in Federico e la Sicilia, dalla terra alla corona. Arti figurative e arti suntuarie'', a cura di M. Andaloro, Palermo 1995, pp. 46–52.
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Constance Of Aragon
1179 births
1222 deaths
13th-century viceregal rulers
13th-century women rulers
Italian queens consort
Royal consorts of Sicily
German queens consort
12th-century Italian women
13th-century Italian women
Burials at Palermo Cathedral
House of Aragon
Duchesses of Swabia
Aragonese infantas
Wives of Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor
Remarried royal consorts
Hungarian queens consort
Female regents
Daughters of kings
Queen mothers