Duke Wenceslaus II of Opava (also known as ''Wenceslaus of Głubczyce''; ; – between 1445 and 1447) was a member of the Opavian branch of the

Přemyslid dynasty The Přemyslid dynasty or House of Přemysl (, , ) was a Bohemian royal dynasty that reigned in the Duchy of Bohemia and later Kingdom of Bohemia and Margraviate of Moravia (9th century–1306), as well as in parts of Poland (including Silesia ...

. He was Duke of

Opava Opava (; , ) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 55,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Opava (river), Opava River. Opava is one of the historical centres of Silesia and was a historical capital of Czech Sile ...

from 1433 until his death. From 1435 until his death, he was also Duke of

Głubczyce Głubczyce ( or sparsely ''Glubčice'', or ''Gubczycy'', ) is a town in Opole Voivodeship in south-western Poland, near the border with the Czech Republic. It is the administrative seat of Głubczyce County and Gmina Głubczyce. Geography Głu ...

and Lord of

Fulnek Fulnek () is a town in Nový Jičín District in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 5,500 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zone ...

Life

His parents were Duke Przemko I of Opava and his first wife, Anna of Lutz (d. 1405). Around 1420, Wenceslaus II married to Elisabeth of Kravař. After his father's death in 1433, Wenceslaus II took up the guardianship of his younger half-brothers

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

Ernest Ernest is a given name derived from the Germanic languages, Germanic word ''ernst'', meaning "serious", often shortened to Ernie. Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People *Archduke Ernest of Austria (1553–1595), ...

and Przemko II, while his younger brother Nicholas IV styled himself Lord of

Zlaté Hory Zlaté Hory (; until 1948 Cukmantl; ) is a town in Jeseník District in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,700 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone. Administrativ ...

. Although their father had stipulated in his will that they should rule the duchy jointly, the brothers divided their inheritance around 1435. William and Ernest received shares of Opava; the

Duchy of Głubczyce Duchy of Głubczyce (, , ) was one of the duchies of Silesia. Its capital was Głubczyce in Upper Silesia Upper Silesia ( ; ; ; ; Silesian German: ; ) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, located t ...

was split off for Wenceslas and a palace at

Charles Square Charles Square (; ) is a city square in the New Town, Prague, New Town of Prague, Czech Republic. At roughly 80,550 m² it is one of the List of city squares by size, largest squares in the world and was the largest town square of the medieval E ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. The youngest brother, Przemko II, was destined for an ecclesiastical career and did not receive a share of the duchy. When Nicholas IV died in 1437, Wenclaus II inherited Zlaté Hory. In late February 1428, during the

Hussite Wars The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, a ...

, Wenceslaus II managed to stave off the complete destruction of Głubczyce by concluding a treaty with the Hussites. On 27 December 1428, he participated in the Battle of

Stary Wielisław Stary Wielisław is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Kłodzko, in Kłodzko County, Lower Silesia Province, in southwestern Poland. It lies approximately southwest of Kłodzko, and south of the regional capital Wrocław. Local ...

, in which

John I John I may refer to: People Religious figures * John I (bishop of Jerusalem) * John Chrysostom (349 – c. 407), Patriarch of Constantinople * John I of Antioch (died 441) * Pope John I of Alexandria, Coptic Pope from 496 to 505 * Pope John I, P ...

, the last

Piast The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of King Casimir III the Great. Branches of ...

duke of Münsterberg, died. In 1436, Duke

Nicholas V Pope Nicholas V (; ; 15 November 1397 – 24 March 1455), born Tommaso Parentucelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 March 1447 until his death in March 1455. Pope Eugene IV made him a cardinal in 1446 afte ...

of Krnov occupied Głubczyce without giving any justification. Wenceclaus II then occupied the city of

Żory Żory (; , , ) is a town and city powiat, county in the Silesian Voivodeship, located in southern Poland with 62,848 inhabitants (2021). It is located in the historic Upper Silesia region about southwest of Katowice. Location Żory is located in ...

in return. In 1437, a compromise was reached. Due to financial difficulties, Wenclaus had to mortgage Zlaté Hory and Edelštejn Castle to Duke Bolko V of Opole in 1440. Wenceslaus II died between 1445 and 1447. His possessions were inherited by his sons

and

John II John II may refer to: People * John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg (1455–1499) * John II Casimir Vasa of Poland (1609–1672) * John II Comyn, Lord of Badenoch (died 1302) * John II Doukas of Thessaly (1303–1318) * John II Komnenos (1087–114 ...

. John I died in 1454 and John II inherited his share. John II sold his share of Opava in 1464 to

George of Poděbrady George of Kunštát and Poděbrady (23 April 1420 – 22 March 1471), also known as Poděbrad or Podiebrad (; ), was the sixteenth King of Bohemia, who ruled in 1458–1471. He was a leader of the Hussites, but moderate and tolerant toward the ...

, who had already purchased the other shares in 1454 from Wenceslaus's half-brother Ernest.

Marriage and issue

Wenceslaus II married Elisabeth of Kravař around 1420. They had three children: * John I ''Hanuš'' (1420–1454) * John II ''the Pious'', Duke of Opava and Głubczyce (d. ), married with a Catherine of unknown parentage * Anna (d. 1478 ), married around 1460 with John Zajícové z Hazmburka (d. 1495), who had earlier been married to Catherine, a daughter of Půta III of Častolovice.Pavel Sedláček: ''Vztahy mezi Kladskem a Frankenšteijnskem ve 14. a 15. stoleti'', in: ''Kladký Sborník'', vol. 2, 1998, p. 121

References

* Ludwig Petry ''et al.'': ''Geschichte Schlesiens'', vol. 1, Sigmaringen, 1988, , p. 191, 197f., 202 and 212 * Hugo Weczerka: ''Handbuch der historischen Stätten — Schlesien'', Stuttgart, 1977, and genealogical tables at p. 600 and 601 * Rudolf Žáček: ''Dějiny Slezska v datech'', Prague, 2004, , p. 438

External links

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wencelaus 02 Opava Moravian nobility Nobility from medieval Bohemia Opavian Přemyslids 14th-century births 15th-century deaths Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain 15th-century German nobility