Elisabeth of Wrocław (

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

: Elżbieta wrocławska) (c. 1232 – 16 January 1265), also known as ''Elisabeth of Poland'', was a daughter of

Henry II the Pious Henry II the Pious (; 1196 – 9 April 1241) was Duke of Silesia and High Duke of Poland as well as Duke of South-Greater Poland from 1238 until his death. Between 1238 and 1239 he also served as regent of Sandomierz and Opole– Racibórz. He ...

and his wife, Anna of Bohemia. She was a member of the

House of Piast The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented List of Polish monarchs, Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I of Poland, Mieszko I (–992). The Poland during the Piast dynasty, Piasts' royal rule in Pol ...

and was Duchess consort of Greater Poland by

marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

Family

Elisabeth was the seventh of ten children born to her parents. Her siblings included:

Bolesław II the Bald Bolesław or Boleslav may refer to: People * Bolesław (given name) (also ''Boleslav'' or ''Boleslaus''), including a list of people with this name Geography * Bolesław, Dąbrowa County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland * Bolesław, Olkusz Coun ...

Mieszko, Duke of Lubusz Mieszko of Lubusz (; – 1242), a member of the Silesian Piasts, was Duke of Lubusz from 1241 until his death. Life Mieszko was the second son of the Silesian duke Henry II the Pious (1196–1241), by his consort Anne (d. 1265), a daughter of ...

Henry III the White Henry III the White () ( – 3 December 1266), a member of the Silesian Piasts, was Duke of Silesia at Wrocław from 1248 until his death, as co-ruler with his brother Władysław. Life He was the third son of the Polish high duke Henry II the P ...

Konrad I, Duke of Silesia-Glogau Konrad is a German (English equivalent: Conrad or Coonrod) given name and surname that means "bold counselor" and may refer to: People Given name Surname * Alexander Konrad (1890–1940), Russian explorer *Antoine Konrad (born 1975), birth na ...

Ladislaus of Salzburg Władysław of Salzburg, also known as Władysław of Wrocław () or Władysław of Silesia (, ; – 27 April 1270), a member of the Silesian Piasts, was co-ruler in the Duchy of Wrocław since 1248. He served as chancellor of King Ottokar II ...

, Gertrude, Duchess of

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

and Constance, Duchess of Kujavia. Elisabeth's maternal grandparents were

Ottokar I of Bohemia Ottokar I (; 1155 – 1230) was Duke of Bohemia periodically beginning in 1192, then acquired the title of King of Bohemia, first in 1198 from Philip of Swabia, later in 1203 from Otto IV of Brunswick and in 1212 (as hereditary) from ...

and his second wife,

Constance of Hungary Constance of Hungary (in Hungarian, ''Konstancia''; in Czech, ''Konstancie''; c. 1180 – 6 December 1240) was the second Queen consort of Ottokar I of Bohemia. Family Constance was a daughter of Béla III of Hungary and his first wife Agnes of ...

. Constance was daughter of

Béla III of Hungary Béla III (, , ; 114823 April 1196) was King of Hungary and King of Croatia, Croatia between 1172 and 1196. He was the second son of King Géza II of Hungary, Géza II and Géza's wife, Euphrosyne of Kiev. Around 1161, Géza granted Béla a du ...

and his first wife,

Agnes of Antioch Agnes of Antioch ( 1154 – c. 1184), also known as Anna of Antioch and Anne de Châtillon, was Queen of Hungary from 1172 until 1184 as the first wife of Béla III. The accidental discovery of her intact tomb during the Hungarian Revolution o ...

. Elisabeth's paternal grandparents were

Henry I the Bearded Henry the Bearded (, ; c. 1165/70 – 19 March 1238) was a Polish duke from the Piast dynasty. He was Dukes of Silesia, Duke of Silesia at Wrocław from 1201, Seniorate Province, Duke of Kraków and List of Polish monarchs, High Duke of all Kin ...

and his wife,

Hedwig of Andechs Hedwig of Silesia (also Hedwig of Andechs (, , ; 1174 – 15 October 1243), a member of the Bavarian comital House of Andechs, was Duchess of Silesia from 1201 and of Greater Poland from 1231 as well as High Duchess consort of Poland from ...

(later canonized a saint in the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Life events

Elisabeth spent her childhood in Sanctuary of St. Jadwiga in Trzebnica where she would have lived with her paternal grandmother Hedwig, who would have been a big influence to her granddaughter. It is not certain whether there was pressure for Elisabeth to join the

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

. Elisabeth remained at Trzebnica until she was kidnapped by her brother

because her family wanted her to marry

Przemysł I of Greater Poland Przemysł I (4 June 1221 – 4 June 1257), a member of the Piast dynasty, was Duke of Greater Poland from 1239 until his death, from 1241 with his brother Bolesław the Pious as co-ruler. He was able to re-acquire large parts of Greater Poland, ...

. The marriage was for political reasons like most royal marriages of the time. Przemysł wanted to regain some of his father's lost lands in

Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...

. The marriage helped the reincorporation of

Kalisz Kalisz () is a city in central Poland, and the second-largest city in the Greater Poland Voivodeship, with 97,905 residents (December 2021). It is the capital city of the Kalisz Region. Situated on the Prosna river in the southeastern part of Gr ...

into Greater

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

. Little is known about the rule of Elisabeth as Duchess consort of her husband's lands. In 1250 she founded a

Owińska Owińska is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Czerwonak, within Poznań County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, in west-central Poland. It lies approximately north of Czerwonak and north of the regional capital Poznań. Owińska ...

. Some nuns were brought to it from her childhood home of

Trzebnica Trzebnica (Polish pronunciation: ; , ) is a town in Lower Silesian Voivodeship in west-central Poland. It is the seat of Trzebnica County, and of the smaller administrative district (gmina) called Gmina Trzebnica. It lies within the eastern Trzebni ...

. Elisabeth and Przemysł had five children: # Constance of Greater Poland (1245/46 – 8 October 1281); married in 1260

Conrad, Margrave of Brandenburg-Stendal Margrave Conrad I of Brandenburg ( – 1304) was a member of the House of Ascania and a co-ruler of Brandenburg. Life Conrad I was the fourth of six children of Margrave John I of Brandenburg and his wife Sophia, daughter of King Valdemar ...

. # Euphrosyne of Greater Poland (1247/50 – 17/19 February 1298), Abbess of St. Clara in

. # Anna of Greater Poland (1253 – aft. 26 June 1295), Abbess at

. #

Euphemia of Greater Poland Euphemia of Greater Poland () (c. 1230 – 15 February after 1281), was a Polish princess member of the House of Piast from the Greater Poland branch and by marriage was Duchess of Kalisz, Wieluń and Opole-Racibórz. Euphemia was the youngest ...

(1253 – 5 September 1298), twin of Anna; a nun at St. Clara,

Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...

. #

Przemysł II Przemysł II ( also given in English and Latin language, Latin as ''Premyslas'' or ''Premislaus'' or in Polish as '; 14 October 1257 – 8 February 1296) was the Duke of Poznań from 1257–1279, of Greater Poland from 1279 to 1296, of Kraków fr ...

(b. posthumously, 14 October 1257 – 8 February 1296). When Elisabeth's husband died on 4 June 1257, he left Elisabeth her

dower Dower is a provision accorded traditionally by a husband or his family, to a wife for her support should she become widowed. It was settlement (law), settled on the bride (being given into trust instrument, trust) by agreement at the time of t ...

, in which was an estate in Modrze. Elisabeth died on her estate on 16 January 1265 and was buried in the Poznań cathedral. Elisabeth's granddaughter from her son was

Elisabeth Richeza of Poland Elizabeth Richeza of Poland (; ; 1 September 1288 – 19 October 1335), was a Polish princess member of the House of Piast and by her two marriages Queen consort of Bohemia and Poland and Duchess consort of Austria and Styria. She was the on ...

who became the second wife of

Wenceslaus II of Bohemia Wenceslaus II Přemyslid (; ; 27 SeptemberK. Charvátová, ''Václav II. Král český a polský'', Prague 2007, p. 18. 1271 – 21 June 1305) was King of Bohemia (1278–1305), Duke of Cracow (1291–1305), and King of Poland (1296–130 ...

Ancestry

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elisabeth Of Wroclaw 1230s births 1265 deaths 13th-century Polish women 13th-century Polish people Duchesses of Greater Poland Formerly missing people Kidnapped Polish people Kidnapped children Missing person cases in Poland People from Trzebnica Mothers of Polish monarchs

Family

Life events

See also

Ancestry

References