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. * , - , - {{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