Beatrice of Sicily (5 September 1326 – 12 October 1365) was a daughter of

Peter II of Sicily Peter II (, , ; 1304 – 8 August 1342) was the King of Sicily from 1337 until his death, although he was associated with his father as co-ruler from 1321. Peter's father was Frederick III of Sicily and his mother was Eleanor, a daughter of Char ...

and his wife Elisabeth of Carinthia. She was born into the

House of Barcelona The House of Barcelona was a medieval dynasty that ruled the County of Barcelona continuously from 878 and the Crown of Aragon from 1137 (as kings from 1162) until 1410. They descend from the Bellonids, the descendants of Wilfred the Hairy. Th ...

Family

Beatrice was the third of eight children, all of them living to adulthood apart from one sister, Violente. Beatrice's siblings included:

Frederick III the Simple Frederick IV (or III) (in Italian, ''Federico''; 1 September 1341 – Messina 27 July 1377Setton, Kenneth M. (1975) " Volume III: The fourteenth and fifteenth centuries", Edited by Harry W. Hazzard, page 214.), called the Simple, was King of Si ...

, Euphemia, Constance (both regents of Sicily),

Eleanor Eleanor () is a feminine given name, originally from an Old French adaptation of the Old Provençal name ''Aliénor''. It was the name of a number of women of royalty and nobility in western Europe during the High Middle Ages">Provençal dialect ...

, wife of

Peter II of Aragon Peter II the Catholic (; ) (July 1178 – 12 September 1213) was the King of Aragon and Count of Barcelona from 1196 to 1213. Background Peter was born in Huesca, the son of Alfonso II of Aragon and Sancha of Castile, Queen of Aragon, Sancha ...

Louis of Sicily Louis the Child ( or ; 4 February 1338 – 16 October 1355) was King of Sicily (also known as "Trinacria") from 15 September 1342 until his death. He was a minor upon his succession, and was under a regency until 1354. His actual rule was short, ...

, and Blanche, Countess of Ampurias. Beatrice's paternal grandparents were

Frederick III of Sicily Frederick III (also Frederick II, ', ', '); 13 December 1272 – 25 June 1337) was the regent of the Kingdom of Sicily from 1291 until 1295 and subsequently King of Sicily from 1295 until his death. He was the third son of Peter III of Ara ...

and

Eleanor of Anjou Eleanor of Anjou (August 1289 – 9 August 1341) was Queen of Sicily as the wife of King Frederick III of Sicily, Frederick III of Sicily. She was a member of the Capetian House of Anjou by birth. She was the third daughter of King Charles II of ...

, daughter of

Charles II of Naples Charles II, also known as Charles the Lame (; ; 1254 – 5 May 1309), was King of Naples, Count of Provence and Forcalquier (1285–1309), Prince of Achaea (1285–1289), and Count of Anjou and Maine (1285–1290); he also was King of Albania ( ...

and Maria of Hungary; maternal grandparents were

Otto III of Carinthia Otto III ( – 25 May 1310), a member of the House of Gorizia (''Meinhardiner'' dynasty), was Duke of Carinthia and Count of Tyrol from 1295 until his death. He ruled jointly with his younger brothers Louis and Henry VI. Life Otto was a son o ...

and his wife Euphemia of Legnica, daughter of

Henry V, Duke of Legnica Henry V (, ; – 22 February 1296), called the Fat (, ) was a Duke of Jawor from 1273, of Legnica from 1278, and Duke of Wrocław from 1290. He was the eldest son of Bolesław II the Bald, Bolesław II the Bald, Duke of Legnica and Hedwig, daug ...

and Elisabeth of Kalisz.

Life

Beatrice's parents resided in

Palermo Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The ...

, where Beatrice was likely born. In 1335, she was betrothed to

John Henry IV of Gorizia John Henry IV of Gorizia (1322–1338) was a medieval Count of Gorizia and a member of the Meinhardiner dynasty. He was the only surviving son of Henry III and his wife Beatrix of Lower Bavaria, the daughter of Duke Stephen I. He succee ...

, a cousin twice removed of her mother's. Her mother renounced her rights to

Tyrol Tyrol ( ; historically the Tyrole; ; ) is a historical region in the Alps of Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary, f ...

and

Carinthia Carinthia ( ; ; ) is the southernmost and least densely populated States of Austria, Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The Lake Wolayer is a mountain lake on the Carinthian side of the Carnic Main ...

on Beatrice's behalf.Wilhelm Baum, I conti di Gorizia (LEG, 2000), p. 139 However, the betrothal was cancelled by John Henry's mother who decided to settle with the new Habsburg rulers of Carinthia instead. In 1345, Beatrice married Rupert, Count Palatine of the Rhine from the

House of Wittelsbach The House of Wittelsbach () is a former Bavarian dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including the Electorate of Bavaria, the Electoral Palatinate, the Electorate of Cologne, County of Holland, Holland, County of Zeeland, ...

. They needed a papal dispensation in order to marry. Rupert supported his uncle Prince Elector Rupert I actively with the Government of the Palatinate and was constantly on the move. Beatrice's mother-in-law

Irmengard of Oettingen Irmengard of Oettingen ( – 6 November 1389) was a princess of the House of Oettingen, Counts von Oettingen by birth, and by marriage, Electorate of the Palatinate, Countess Palatine of the Rhine and, as a widow, a Dominican Order, Dominican ...

lived as a nun in the convent at

Worms The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive catalogue and list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scien ...

. Beatrice spent a lot of time here whilst her husband was away. Beatrice and Rupert had the following children: # Anna (1346 – 30 November 1415), married in 1363 to Duke Wilhelm VII of Jülich and Berg # Friedrich (1347 – c. 1395) # Johann (1349 – c. 1395) # Mechthild (born 1350), married to Landgrave Sigost of Leuchtenberg # Elisabeth (c. 1351 – 1360) # King

Rupert of Germany Rupert of the Palatinate (; 5 May 1352 – 18 May 1410), sometimes known as Robert of the Palatinate, a member of the House of Wittelsbach, was Elector Palatine from 1398 (as Rupert III) and King of Germany from 1400 until his death. Early ...

(1352–1410) # Adolf (1355 – 1 May 1358) Beatrice died in 1365, 25 years before her husband became elector. She was buried in the Cistercian monastery of Schönau near

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...

. The House of Wittelsbach founded the Collegiate Church in memory for Beatrice.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beatrice of Sicily 1326 births 1365 deaths Sicilian princesses 14th-century Italian women 14th-century Sicilian people House of Aragon Burials at Schönau Abbey House of Barcelona (Sicily) Nobility from Palermo Daughters of kings Mothers of German monarchs