Irene of Brunswick, born Adelheid, (c. 1293 – 16/17 August 1324) was the first wife of Andronikos III Palaiologos, and by marriage Empress of Constantinople, although she died before her husband became sole Emperor.

Biography

She was a daughter of Henry I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Agnes of Meissen. Her maternal grandparents were

Albert II, Margrave of Meissen Albert II, the Degenerate (de: ''Albrecht II der Entartete'') (1240 – 20 November 1314) was a Margrave of Meissen, Landgrave of Thuringia and Count Palatine of Saxony. He was a member of the House of Wettin. He was the eldest son of Henry II ...

and

Margaret of Sicily Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian. Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular through ...

. In March, 1318, she married Prince Andronikos Palaiologos. He was the eldest son of

Michael IX Palaiologos , image = 154 - Michael IX Palaiologos (Mutinensis - color).png , caption = 15th-century portrait of Michael IX (from a 15th-century codex containing a copy of the ''Extracts of History'' by Joannes Zonaras) , succession ...

and Rita of Armenia. Her father-in-law was at the time junior co-emperor with his own father, Andronikos II Palaiologos. She joined the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops vi ...

with her marriage and took the name Irene. They had a son (June 1320 – February 1322). She died in Rhaedestos during the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

between Andronikos II and Andronikos III from 1321 to 1328. Her husband claimed the throne for its duration, making her the empress to a rival emperor. Her husband proceeded to marry

Anna of Savoy Anna of Savoy, born Giovanna (1306–1365) was a Byzantine Empress consort, as the second spouse of Andronikos III Palaiologos. She served as regent, with the titles '' augusta'' and '' autokratorissa'', during the minority of her son John V Palai ...

External links

Her listing in "Medieval lands" by Charles Cawley.
The project "involves extracting and analysing detailed information from primary sources, including contemporary chronicles, cartularies, necrologies and testaments." {{DEFAULTSORT:Irene of Brunswick 1290s births 1324 deaths Year of birth uncertain Old House of Brunswick Palaiologos dynasty 14th-century German women 14th-century German nobility 14th-century Byzantine empresses Converts to Eastern Orthodoxy from Roman Catholicism Burials at Lips Monastery