Esterka (Estera) refers to a mythical

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

mistress Mistress is the feminine form of the English word "master" (''master'' + ''-ess'') and may refer to: Romance and relationships * Mistress (lover), a term for a woman who is in a sexual and romantic relationship with a man who is married to a d ...

Casimir the Great Casimir III the Great ( pl, Kazimierz III Wielki; 30 April 1310 – 5 November 1370) reigned as the King of Poland from 1333 to 1370. He also later became King of Ruthenia in 1340, and fought to retain the title in the Galicia-Volhynia Wars. He w ...

, the historical

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 ...

who reigned between 1333 and 1370. Medieval Polish and Jewish chroniclers considered the legend as historical fact and report a wonderful love story between the beautiful Jewess and the great monarch.

Legend

The first account of Esterka can be found in scripts of the 15th-century Polish chronicler

Jan Długosz Jan Długosz (; 1 December 1415 – 19 May 1480), also known in Latin as Johannes Longinus, was a Polish priest, chronicler, diplomat, soldier, and secretary to Bishop Zbigniew Oleśnicki of Kraków. He is considered Poland's first histor ...

and recorded again, a century later, by the famous Jewish chronicler

David Gans David Gans ( he, דָּוִד בֶּן שְׁלֹמֹה גנז; ‎1541–1613), also known as Rabbi Dovid Solomon Ganz, was a Jewish chronicler, mathematician, historian, astronomer and astrologer. He is the author of "Tzemach David" (1592) ...

, who even maintained that Esterka was married to the king. Gans wrote: "''Casimir, the king of Poland, took for himself a concubine - a young Jewess named Esther. Of all the maidens of the land, none compared to her beauty. She was his wife for many years. For her sake, the king extended many privileges to the Jews of his kingdom. She persuaded the king to issue documents of freedom and beneficence''." According to the legend, Esterka was the daughter of a poor

tailor A tailor is a person who makes or alters clothing, particularly in men's clothing. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the term to the thirteenth century. History Although clothing construction goes back to prehistory, there is evidence of ...

from

Opoczno Opoczno ) is a town in south-central Poland, in eastern part of Łódź Voivodeship (since 1999), previously in Piotrków Trybunalski Voivodeship (1975–1998). It has a long and rich history, and in the past it used to be one of the most importa ...

named Rafael. Her beauty and intelligence were legendary. She was later installed in the royal palace of Lobzovo near Krakow. Esterka was said to have played a significant role in Casimir's life. In the legend, she performed as a King's adviser in support of various initiatives: free trade, building stone cities, tolerance to representatives of different religious faiths and support of cultural development. Casimir was loyal to the Jews and encouraged them. For many years, Krakow was the home of one of the most important Jewish communities in Europe. He was called The Great King for his intelligence and bright vision, which helped him to increase the size and wealth of Poland. During the years of the

Black Death The Black Death (also known as the Pestilence, the Great Mortality or the Plague) was a bubonic plague pandemic occurring in Western Eurasia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353. It is the most fatal pandemic recorded in human history, causi ...

Esterka's influence helped to prevent the murder of many Polish Jews who were scapegoated for the disease. King Casmir had several wives, but Esterka was said to have been the only one who gave him male offspring despite the fact that they never were officially married. Their sons, Pelko and Nemir, were said in the legend to have been baptized on the request of their father. The two became the mythical ancestors of several Polish noble families. To develop legal and commercial relations between Jews, Poles, and Germans, Pelko was sent to Kraków. In 1363, Nemir was sent to Ruthenia to establish a new knightly order, which later became the patrimonial nest of the Rudanovsky dynasty She also had two daughters brought up as Jews. After Casimir's death, his nephew Louis of Hungary became the King of Poland. During his reign, riots broke out against the Jews, especially violent in Krakow. According to the legend, rioters broke into Esterka's palace in Lobzovo and murdered her and her two daughters. Rudanovsky from Rudawa River was considered Esterka's burial.

Places

Esterka House Seweryn Udziela Ethnographic Museum in

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

is located at Krakowska street 46. Wawel Castle Several places such as

villages A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to ...

, streets and monuments in Poland are named after Esterka including a street in Cracow and usually ones associated with her and the King. In some sources Esterka is presented as King's consort who actually lived with him at

Wawel Castle The Wawel Royal Castle (; ''Zamek Królewski na Wawelu'') and the Wawel Hill on which it sits constitute the most historically and culturally significant site in Poland. A fortified residency on the Vistula River in Kraków, it was established on ...

. Royal Palace in Łobzów King Cazimir built a fortalicium on the trade route leading to Silesia. It was a castle with a tower whose function was to defend the city from the north. But according to the legend, the King built it for his beloved Esterka. Esterka Mound Esterka Mound was situated on Rudawa river, more than 3 km to the northwest of Wawel Hill in the gardens of the royal palace at Łobzów. The mound was excavated at the end of 18th century on the initiative of King Stanisław August Poniatowski in the belief that it would contain Esterka's medieval grave. The mound was completely destroyed in the 1950s during the construction of a sports stadium. File:Royal Palace in Łobzów.jpg, Royal Palace in Łobzów File:Kopiec Esterki.jpg, Esterka Mound

In modern culture

A historical mural at Joseph Street was introduced in 2016. It portrays people associated with the district: King Kazimierz the Great and Esterka. File:Esterka Graffiti.jpg, Historical Mural at Joseph Street File:Kazimir and Esterka.jpg, Casimir the Great and Esterka mural

In literature

Marcin Bielski Marcin Bielski (or ''Wolski''; 1495 – 18 December 1575) was a Polish soldier, historian, chronicler, renaissance satirical poet, writer and translator. His son, , royal secretary to king Sigismund III Vasa, was also a historian and poet. He was ...

“''Kronika wszystkiego świata''” (Chronicle of everything in the World) (1551) *

''Chronicle'' (1595) *

Józef Ignacy Kraszewski Józef Ignacy Kraszewski (28 July 1812 – 19 March 1887) was a Polish writer, publisher, historian, journalist, scholar, painter, and author who produced more than 200 novels and 150 novellas, short stories, and art reviews, which makes him the ...

''"Król chłopów"'' (Peasant King), Book Six * Yitshak ben Moshe Rumsch ''"The Book of Esther the Second"'' (1883) *

Shmuel Yosef Agnon Shmuel Yosef Agnon ( he, שמואל יוסף עגנון; July 17, 1888 – February 17, 1970) was one of the central figures of modern Hebrew literature. In Hebrew, he is known by the acronym Shai Agnon (). In English, his works are published und ...

''"In Esterka's House"'' *

Karl Emil Franzos Karl Emil Franzos (25 October 184828 January 1904) was a popular Austrian novelist of the late 19th century. His works, both reportage and fiction, concentrate on the multi-ethnic corner of Galicia, Podolia and Bukovina, now largely in western U ...

''"Esterka Regina"'' (The Queen Esterka) in ''"The Jews of Barnow"'' (1872) *

Aaron Zeitlin Aaron Zeitlin (3 June 1898 – 28 September 1973) was a Jewish American educator and writer. He authored several books on Yiddish literature, poetry and parapsychology. Biography Zeitlin was born in Uvarovichi, Russia (now Belarus) to Hillel Zeit ...

''"Esterke"'' (1932)The Jew's Daughter: A Cultural History of a Conversion Narrative (Efraim Sicher)
/ref> *

Thaddeus Bulgarin Thaddeus Venediktovich Bulgarin (russian: Фаддей Венедиктович Булгарин; Polish Jan Tadeusz Krzysztof Bułharyn, – ), was a Russian writer, journalist and publisher of Polish ancestry. In addition to his newspaper ...

“''Esterka''” (1828)

In art

Franciszek Żmurko Franciszek Żmurko (18 July 1859, Lviv – 9 October 1910, Warsaw) was a Polish realist painter. Żmurko began drawing lessons as a young boy in his hometown with the painter Franciszek Tepa. As an adolescent he relocated to Kraków to study at ...

– ''"Casimir the Great and Esterka"'' (1891) * Wandalin Strzałecki – ''"Casimir the Great and Esterka"'' (1879, lost) *

Władysław Łuszczkiewicz Władysław Łuszczkiewicz (September 3, 1828 – May 23, 1900) was a Polish historian and painter of the late Romantic era from Kraków, active in the period of the foreign partitions of Poland. He was a professor at the Academy of Fine Arts and ...

– ''"Casimir the Great visiting Esterka"'' *

Maurycy Gottlieb Maurycy Gottlieb ; 21/28 February 1856 – 17 July 1879) was a Polish realist painter of the Romantic period. Considered one of the most talented students of Jan Matejko, Gottllieb died at the age of 23. Career Gottlieb was born in Drohobycz ...

– ''"Esterka and King Casimir"'' (1879)

In historical works

Simon Dubnow Simon Dubnow (alternatively spelled Dubnov, rus, Семён Ма́ркович Ду́бнов, Semyon Markovich Dubnov, sʲɪˈmʲɵn ˈmarkəvʲɪtɕ ˈdubnəf; yi, שמעון דובנאָװ, ''Shimen Dubnov''; 10 September 1860 – 8 Dece ...

– ''"History of the Jews in Russia and Poland"'' (1916)
Chone Shmeruk
– "''The Esterke Story in Yiddish and Polish Literature''"

References

External links

Esterka – Jewish wife of Casimir III the Great

Hamlet in Kazimierz?
{{authority control Medieval Jewish women Legendary Polish people Mistresses of Polish royalty Medieval Polish Jews Casimir III the Great 14th-century Polish people 14th-century Polish women 14th-century Jews Jewish concubines Legendary Jews Murdered Jews