Elizabeth of Austria (1526–1545)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For other uses, see Elisabeth of Austria (disambiguation).

Elizabeth of Austria
Anna of Bohemia and Hungary
Wives of
Sigismund II Augustus

Elizabeth of Austria (

epileptic seizures
, and died at age 18.

Marriage plans

Elizabeth at age four by Jakob Seisenegger

Elizabeth spent most of her childhood in the Hofburg, Innsbruck. She was raised with strict discipline and received a good education from humanist Kaspar Ursinus Velius,[1] but was not taught the Polish language despite her early arranged marriage to Sigismund II Augustus.[2] The marriage plan was first discussed when Elizabeth was only a one year old. Louis, King of Hungary and Bohemia, died in August 1526 without leaving an heir. The Hungarian throne was contested between Louis' brother-in-law Ferdinand I and John Zápolya.[2] Louis' uncle Sigismund I the Old and Hungarian nobility supported Zápolya. The marriage of Elizabeth to Sigismund's son was proposed as the means to end Polish support to Zápolya.[2] The Polish Queen Bona Sforza opposed the wedding as she opposed the growing influence of the Habsburgs.[3]

In February 1530, ten-year-old Sigismund II Augustus was co-crowned

Great Chancellor of the Crown Krzysztof Szydłowiecki supported the match and organized a preliminary marriage treaty, signed on 10–11 November 1530 in Poznań.[5] According to the treaty, the marriage was to take place in 1533 when Elizabeth reached the age of seven. Her dowry was 100,000 ducats. In exchange, the Poles would grant her the cities of Nowy Sącz, Sanok, Przemyśl, Biecz as her dower.[5]

Sigismund Augustus and Elizabeth were first cousins once removed. (

Margaret of France.[6]

Queen of Poland

Elizabeth and a twelve-person escort departed

Queen of Poland, which only increased the ire of Bona Sforza, who detested her title of "Old Queen".[7]

Elizabeth's sarcophagus (on the right) on display in Vilnius Cathedral in 1930s

The marriage was not a happy one. Sigismund Augustus, who already had several mistresses, did not find Elizabeth attractive and continued to have extramarital affairs.

Polish nobility liked and sympathized with Elizabeth – a young, pleasant woman who was ignored by her husband and taunted by her ambitious mother-in-law.[11] Her father-in-law Sigismund I the Old was also sympathetic to her, but was too weak to protect her from Bona.[12]

Two months after the wedding, plague reached Kraków and the royal family departed the capital city.[9] Sigismund Augustus left for the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, while Sigismund I the Old, Bona, and Elizabeth toured various cities in Poland. After a year of separation, the couple met again in Brest.[13] Sigismund Augustus liked living independently in Lithuania and convinced his father to entrust him with ruling the grand duchy.[13] In fall 1544, Elizabeth and Sigismund Augustus moved to Vilnius. For a few months Sigismund Augustus attempted to keep up appearances of a successful marriage to appease the Habsburgs, but soon started ignoring his wife and continued his affair with Barbara Radziwiłł.[13]

In April 1545, Elizabeth's health deteriorated and she was tormented by her increasingly frequent seizures. On 8 June 1545, Sigismund Augustus went to Kraków to receive Elizabeth's dowry, leaving his wife alone in Vilnius.[13] In Kraków, Sigismund Augustus inquired about treatments and asked Ferdinand I to send his own doctors.[13] But it was too late. On 15 June, the young queen died exhausted by her many epileptic seizures. She was buried on 24 July 1545 (after her husband returned from Kraków) in Vilnius Cathedral next to her husband's uncle, King Alexander Jagiellon.[13]

After Elizabeth's death Sigismund Augustus married his mistress Barbara Radziwiłł and, after her death, Elizabeth's younger sister, Catherine of Austria. Sigismund had no children with any his three wives.[citation needed]

Ancestors

8. Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor[18]
4. Philip I of Castile[14]
9. Mary, Duchess of Burgundy[19]
2. Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor
10. Ferdinand II of Aragon[20]
5. Joanna I of Castile[15]
11. Isabella I of Castile[21]
1. Elizabeth of Austria
12. Casimir IV Jagiellon[22]
6. Vladislaus II of Bohemia and Hungary[16]
13. Elisabeth of Austria[23]
3. Anne of Bohemia and Hungary
14. Gaston de Foix, Count of Candale[24]
7. Anne of Foix-Candale[17]
15. Catherine of Foix[25]

References

  1. ^ a b Duczmal (2012), p. 164
  2. ^ a b c Duczmal (2012), p. 165
  3. ^ Duczmal (2012), pp. 165–167
  4. ^ Duczmal (2012), p. 525
  5. ^ a b c d e f Duczmal (2012), p. 166
  6. ^ Duczmal (2012), pp. 166–167
  7. ^ a b c Duczmal (2012), p. 167
  8. ^ Duczmal (2012), pp. 167–168
  9. ^ a b c Duczmal (2012), p. 168
  10. ^ Duczmal (2012), p. 168–169
  11. ^ Duczmal (2012), p. 170
  12. ^ Duczmal (2012), p. 171
  13. ^ a b c d e f Duczmal (2012), p. 169
  14. von Wurzbach, Constantin, ed. (1861). "Habsburg, Philipp I. der Schöne von Oesterreich" . Biographisches Lexikon des Kaiserthums Oesterreich [Biographical Encyclopedia of the Austrian Empire] (in German). Vol. 7. p. 112 – via Wikisource
    .
  15. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Joanna" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
  16. ^ Vladislas II, King of Bohemia and Hungary at the Encyclopædia Britannica
  17. ^ Cazacu, Matei (2017). Reinert, Stephen W. (ed.). Dracula. Brill. p. 204.
  18. ^ Holland, Arthur William (1911). "Maximilian I. (emperor)" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 17 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
  19. ^ Poupardin, René (1911). "Charles, called The Bold, duke of Burgundy" . In Chisholm, Hugh (ed.). Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 5 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
  20. ^ Ferdinand II, King of Spain at the Encyclopædia Britannica
  21. ^ Isabella I, Queen of Spain at the Encyclopædia Britannica
  22. ^ Casimir IV, King of Poland at the Encyclopædia Britannica
  23. von Wurzbach, Constantin, ed. (1860). "Habsburg, Elisabeth von Oesterreich (Königin von Polen)" . Biographisches Lexikon des Kaiserthums Oesterreich [Biographical Encyclopedia of the Austrian Empire] (in German). Vol. 6. p. 167 – via Wikisource
    .
  24. ^ Boureau, Alain (1995). The Lord's First Night: The Myth of the Droit de Cuissage. Translated by Cochrane, Lydia G. The University of Chicago Press. p. 96.
  25. ^ Noubel, P., ed. (1877). Revue de l'Agenais [Review of the Agenais]. Vol. 4. Société académique d'Agen. p. 497.

Bibliography

  • Duczmal, Małgorzata (2012). Jogailaičiai (in Lithuanian). Translated by Birutė Mikalonienė; Vyturys Jarutis. Vilnius:
    ISBN 978-5-420-01703-6
    .

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Elisabeth of Austria (1526–1545).
Elizabeth of Austria
Born: 9 July 1526 Died: 15 June 1545
Royal titles
Preceded byas sole queen
Grand Duchess consort of Lithuania
1543–1545
with Bona Sforza
 Succeeded byas sole queen
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Elizabeth_of_Austria_(1526–1545)&oldid=1222504477"