Catherine of Pomerania (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

: ''Katharina von Pommern''; c. 1390 - 4 March 1426), was a

Pomerania Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...

n princess, and a Countess Palatine of Neumarkt as the wife of John, Count Palatine of Neumarkt, and the mother of

Christopher of Bavaria Christopher of Bavaria (26 February 1416 – 5/6 January 1448) was King of Denmark (1440–48, as Christopher III), Sweden (1441–48) and Norway (1442–48) during the era of the Kalmar Union. Biography Coming to power He was the son of John, ...

, king of the Kalmar Union.

Life

Catherine was the daughter of

Wartislaw VII Wartislaw VII ( pl, Warcisław VII) (1363/1365 – 1394/1395) was one of the Dukes of Pomerania. His full name was Henry Wartislaw.The King Who Became a Pirate Story by Anja Klemp Vilgaard · Illustrations by Darya Malikova · Edited by Shawna ...

Duke of Pomerania This is a list of the duchies and dukes of Pomerania. Dukes of the Slavic Pomeranian tribes (All Pomerania) The lands of Pomerania were firstly ruled by local tribes, who settled in Pomerania around the 10th and 11th centuries. Non-dynastic ...

Pomerania-Stolp The Duchy of Pomerania-Stolp, also known as the Duchy of Stolp, and the Duchy of Słupsk, was a feudal duchy in Farther Pomerania within the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Słupsk. It was ruled by the Griffin dynasty. It existed in the Hig ...

and Maria of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Maria was the daughter of

Henry III, Duke of Mecklenburg Henry III, Duke of Mecklenburg ( 1337 – 24 April 1383) was Duke of Mecklenburg from 1379 until his death. Life Henry was the first son of Duke Albert II of Mecklenburg and his wife Euphemia of Sweden, the sister of King Magnus IV of Sweden. ...

and Ingeborg of Denmark, eldest daughter of sonless King

Valdemar IV of Denmark Valdemar IV Atterdag (the epithet meaning "Return of the Day"), or Waldemar (132024 October 1375) was King of Denmark from 1340 to 1375. He is mostly known for his reunion of Denmark after the bankruptcy and mortgaging of the country to finance ...

and older sister of Margaret I of Denmark. Henry III's mother was

Euphemia of Sweden Euphemia of Sweden ( Swedish: ''Eufemia Eriksdotter''; 1317 – 16 June 1370) was a Swedish princess. She was Duchess consort of Mecklenburg, heiress of Sweden and of Norway, and mother of King Albert of Sweden. (c. 1338-1412) . Biography ...

, the daughter of Erik Magnusson and the sister of Magnus Eriksson. Catherine's brother was

Eric of Pomerania Eric of Pomerania (1381 or 1382 – 24 September 1459) was the ruler of the Kalmar Union from 1396 until 1439, succeeding his grandaunt, Queen Margaret I. He is known as Eric III as King of Norway (1389–1442), Eric VII as King of Denmark (1 ...

, future king of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway. The two siblings were adopted by their grandaunt Queen Margaret I of Denmark in 1388 and likely brought to Margaret at the same occasion. Initially, Margaret's plan was for Catherine to enter the

Vadstena Abbey The Abbey Pax Mariae ( la, Monasterium sanctarum Mariæ Virgìnis et Brigidæ in Vatzstena), more commonly referred to as Vadstena Abbey, situated on Lake Vättern in the Diocese of Linköping, Sweden, was the motherhouse of the Bridgettine Ord ...

Catherine was a candidate for a time for marriage to Prince Henry of Wales. This marriage was suggested in 1400–1401, and it was the idea that a double wedding was to be arranged between Catherine and Henry in parallel to the wedding between her brother Eric and Henry's sister

Philippa Philippa is a feminine given name meaning "lover of horses" or "horses' friend". Common alternative spellings include '' Filippa'' and ''Phillipa''. Less common is '' Filipa'' and even ''Philippe'' (cf. the French spelling of ''Philippa of Guelders ...

. The marriage between Catherine and Henry never occurred and was broken off in 1404. The English had wished for Catherine's children with Henry to inherit the Nordic thrones in the case of Eric dying without an heir (which was impossible since the Kalmar Union was elective), as well as an alliance against France, which Margaret could not agree to. In 1406, another indirect link to the English royal house was created when the brother-in-law of Philippa suggested a marriage with John, Count Palatine of Neumarkt. John was the son of

Rupert, King of Germany Rupert of the Palatinate (german: Ruprecht von der Pfalz; 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 ...

. An alliance with the German king was more valuable for the Nordic Union considering their problem with the Hanseatic League.Flemberg, Marie-Louise, Filippa: engelsk prinsessa och nordisk unionsdrottning, Santérus, Stockholm, 2014 The negotiations were completed in one year, and Margaret gave Catherine a dowry of 4,000 gulden, much less than was expected by her future father-in-law. On 15 August 1407, Catherine married John in

Ribe Ribe () is a town in south-west Jutland, Denmark, with a population of 8,257 (2022). It is the seat of the Diocese of Ribe covering southwestern Jutland. Until 1 January 2007, Ribe was the seat of both a surrounding municipality and county. It ...

, Denmark. They would have seven children, but only their youngest, Christopher, would live past infancy. Christopher would succeed his uncle Eric as king of the three Scandinavian kingdoms. Catharine died on 4 March 1426.

References

www.warholm.nu/Kingdan.html
*Edward Rymar. ''Rodowód książąt pomorskich''. Szczecin 1995. {{DEFAULTSORT:Catherine of Pomerania 1390 births 1426 deaths Year of birth uncertain House of Griffins House of Wittelsbach 15th-century Polish nobility House of Palatinate-Neumarkt