Rimgailė (also ''Rymgajla, Rimgaila, Ringaila'', pl, Ryngałła, ro, Ringala) was daughter of

Birutė Birutė (died 1382) was the second wife of Kęstutis, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and mother of Vytautas the Great. There is very little known about Birutė's life, but after her death a strong cult developed among Lithuanians, especially in Samogi ...

and

Kęstutis Kęstutis ( la, Kinstut, ; – 3 or 15 August 1382) was the Grand Duke of Lithuania. He was the Duke of Trakai and governed the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, 1342–1382, together with his brother Algirdas (until 1377), and with his nephew Jogaila ...

Grand Duke of Lithuania The monarchy of Lithuania concerned the monarchical head of state of Lithuania, which was established as an absolute and hereditary monarchy. Throughout Lithuania's history there were three ducal dynasties that managed to stay in power—House ...

, and thus sister of

Vytautas the Great Vytautas (c. 135027 October 1430), also known as Vytautas the Great ( Lithuanian: ', be, Вітаўт, ''Vitaŭt'', pl, Witold Kiejstutowicz, ''Witold Aleksander'' or ''Witold Wielki'' Ruthenian: ''Vitovt'', Latin: ''Alexander Vitoldus'', O ...

. ''Rimgailė'' (feminine) or ''Rimgailas'' (masculine) is a typical dual-

stem Stem or STEM may refer to: Plant structures * Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang * Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure * Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...

med pagan

Lithuanian name A Lithuanian personal name, as in most European cultures, consists of two main elements: the given name () followed by the family name (). The usage of personal names in Lithuania is generally governed (in addition to personal taste and family cus ...

constructed from ''rim''- (rimti - "be calm") + ''gail''- (*gailas - "strong"), which is quite common in Lithuania at present. By marriage with

Henry of Masovia Henry of Masovia ( pl, Henryk mazowiecki) (1368/1370–1392/1393) was a noble and a bishop of the Kingdom of Poland. Biography Henry of Masovia, born between 1368 and 1370 in Rawa Mazowiecka was the youngest child of one of the Piast dynasty pri ...

, she was Princess of

Masovia Mazovia or Masovia ( pl, Mazowsze) is a historical region in mid-north-eastern Poland. It spans the North European Plain, roughly between Łódź and Białystok, with Warsaw being the unofficial capital and largest city. Throughout the centurie ...

for about one year, until the death of her husband (winter of 1392–1393).

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 ...

in his chronicles wrote that to marry her Henry resigned from the title of

Bishop of Płock A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

. She was among the suspects in the death of Henry. Her second marriage (1419–1421) was with

Alexander the Good Alexander the Good ( ro, Alexandru cel Bun or ''Alexandru I Mușat''; c. 1375 – 1 January 1432) was a Voivode (Lord) of Moldavia, reigning between 1400 and 1432, son of Roman I Mușat. He succeeded Iuga to the throne, and, as a ruler, init ...

Voivode of Moldavia This is a list of rulers of Moldavia, from the first mention of the medieval polity east of the Carpathians and until its disestablishment in 1862, when it united with Wallachia, the other Danubian Principality, to form the modern-day state of Ro ...

(1400–1432). Upon the politically motivated divorce she was given the customs of the town of

Siret Siret (; german: Sereth; hu, Szeretvásár; uk, Серет, Seret; yi, סערעט, Seret) is a town, municipality and former Latin bishopric in Suceava County, northeastern Romania. It is situated in the historical region of Bukovina. Siret is ...

and 40 villages. Also, as part of the divorce settlement Alexander the Good promised to pay her lifetime income worth 600 Hungarian gold ducats or florins payable in two installments.Octavian Iliescu,
The History of Coins in Romania
, ''Editura Encyclopedica'', Bucharest, 2002

References

{{reflist Medieval Lithuanian nobility Medieval Romanian nobility 14th-century Romanian people 15th-century Romanian people 14th-century Romanian women 15th-century Romanian women 14th-century Lithuanian people 15th-century Lithuanian people 14th-century Lithuanian women 15th-century Lithuanian women

See also

References