János Wass (), or "Prince" John, (16th century) was an illegitimate son of King Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia, the ill-fated king, who died young and in mysterious circumstances at the

Battle of Mohács The Battle of Mohács (; hu, mohácsi csata, tr, Mohaç Muharebesi or Mohaç Savaşı) was fought on 29 August 1526 near Mohács, Kingdom of Hungary, between the forces of the Kingdom of Hungary and its allies, led by Louis II, and those ...

, by a liaison with his mother Anne of Foix-Candale's former lady's maid, Angelitha Wass.

Life

His and his mother's names appear in the sources of the Chamber in Pozsony (now

Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approxim ...

) as either János Wass or János Lanthos which can refer to the fact that he used his mother's name first, then that of his 'job', 'lantos' that means 'lutenist, bard'. He often titled himself as

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

. He received regular subsidy from the court of King

Ferdinand I of Germany Ferdinand I ( es, Fernando I; 10 March 1503 – 25 July 1564) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1556, King of Bohemia, Hungary, and Croatia from 1526, and Archduke of Austria from 1521 until his death in 1564.Milan Kruhek: Cetin, grad izbornog sabor ...

, who was his uncle by his wife, Queen

Anna Jagiellon Anna Jagiellon ( pl, Anna Jagiellonka, lt, Ona Jogailaitė; 18 October 1523 – 9 September 1596) was Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania from 1575 to 1587. Daughter of Polish King Sigismund I the Old and Italian duchess Bon ...

, the sister of King Louis II and then of King Maximilian II, who was his cousin. From these financial backings he bought a house in Pozsony (now

), where he lived with family. He died there. He was never recognized officially as the son of the king.

Family

He had a large family; there was a rumour that a daughter of his gave birth to 20 children and he demanded extra financial backings for his daughter's wedding.

References

*Kubinyi, András: Törvénytelen gyermekek a magyar középkorban. Utódok, örökösök, fattyúk (Illegitimate Children in Medieval Hungary. Offsprings, Successors, Bastards), ''História'' ''21'', 20–22, 1999. URL: See External Links *Takáts, Sándor: II. Lajos király fia (A Son of King Louis II Jagiellon), ''Századok (Periodical Centuries)'', 183–185, 1903. *Tardy, Lajos: Rémmesék II. Lajos és „természetes” fia körül. (Blood-freezers about King Louis Jagiellon and his 'Natural' Son In Lajos Tardy: ''Kis magyar történetek (Short Hungarian Stories)'', Budapest, 40–53, 1986.

External links

Kubinyi, András: Törvénytelen gyermekek a magyar középkorban (Illegitimate Children in Medieval Hungary)
– 20. February 2011. {{DEFAULTSORT:Wass, Janos Jagiellonian dynasty 16th-century Hungarian people Illegitimate children of Hungarian monarchs Sons of kings