Oldřich, Duke of Bohemia
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Oldřich ( la, Odalricus, Udalrichus, german: Odalric, Udalrich; – 9 November 1034 or 1042), a member of the
Přemyslid dynasty The Přemyslid dynasty or House of Přemyslid ( cs, Přemyslovci, german: Premysliden, pl, Przemyślidzi) was a Bohemian royal dynasty that reigned in the Duchy of Bohemia and later Kingdom of Bohemia and Margraviate of Moravia (9th century–130 ...
, was
Duke of Bohemia The Duchy of Bohemia was established in 870 and raised to the Kingdom of Bohemia in 1198. Several Bohemian monarchs ruled as non-hereditary kings beforehand, first gaining the title in 1085. From 1004 to 1806, Bohemia was part of the Holy Roman ...
from 1012 to 1033 and briefly again in 1034. His accession to the
Bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...
throne marked the start of a phase of stability after a long period of internal dynastic struggles. Under his rule, the
Moravia Moravia ( , also , ; cs, Morava ; german: link=yes, Mähren ; pl, Morawy ; szl, Morawa; la, Moravia) is a historical region in the east of the Czech Republic and one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The me ...
n lands were reconquered from
Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...
occupation.


Life

Oldřich was the fourth (third surviving) son of Duke
Boleslaus II of Bohemia Boleslaus II the Pious ( cs, Boleslav II. Pobožný pl, Bolesław II. Pobożny; c. 940 – 7 February 999), a member of the Přemyslid dynasty, was Duke of Bohemia from 972 until his death. Life and reign Boleslaus was an elder son of Duke ...
(d. 999). Like all his father's children, his mother was
Adiva Adiva was the first wife of Boleslaus II of Bohemia. It has been speculated that she was the progeny of Edward the Elder, King of England, and his second wife Aelfflaed, but the evidence for this is weak. Favouring the conjecture is the similarity o ...
.Upon the death of his father, his eldest brother Boleslaus III succeeded as duke, however, he soon entered into a fierce conflict with his younger brothers Oldřich and
Jaromír Jaromír, Jaromir, Jaroměr is a Slavic male given name. Origin and meaning Jaromír is a West Slavic given name composed of two stems ''jaro'' and ''mír''. The meaning is not definite: *Polish ''jary'' (archaic) = „spry, young, strong“; ''m ...
. In 1001, both had to flee to the Bavarian court at
Regensburg Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the f ...
. When Boleslaus III was deposed by the rival
Vršovci The Vršovci (also Vrshovici; singular: Vršovec) were a Czech noble family in the Duchy of Bohemia. History In Bohemia First noted in the power struggles of the 10th–12th centuries in Bohemia. The Vršovci were the third most powerful politi ...
dynasty the next year and the Polish ruler Bolesław I the Brave invaded Bohemia, King Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor, Henry II of Germany intervened. As a part of Henry's expedition to Prague, Boleslaus's brothers were able to return to Bohemia, and Jaromír was installed as Bohemian duke in 1004. In the German–Polish War (1002–18), German–Polish War of 1002–18, Duke Jaromír remained a loyal supporter of the German king. Nevertheless, Henry did not take action when he was deposed and blinded by his brother Oldřich on 12 April 1012. While Jaromír fled to Poland, Oldřich recognised the suzerainty of the German king. He secured his rule by suppressing the Vršovci insurgents. Oldřich and his son Bretislaus I of Bohemia, Bretislaus sought to win back Moravia, once conquered from the Poles by Oldřich's grandfather Duke Boleslaus I of Bohemia, Boleslaus I. Bretislaus and his wife Judith of Schweinfurt took up residence in Olomouc. In 1029, the Bohemian forces, backed by Holy Roman Emperor Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor, Conrad II, finally drove the Poles out of the eastern lands. However, Bretislaus's efforts to occupy adjacent territories in what is today Slovakia by marching against the forces of the Kingdom of Hungary (1000–1301), Kingdom of Hungary failed in 1030 due to the jealousy of the emperor, who reached an agreement with King Stephen I of Hungary, Stephen I. In the following year, Bohemian forces refused to take the field for the emperor. In 1032, Duke Oldřich was invited to the ''Hoftag'' diet at Merseburg, but did not appear. His absence raised the ire of the emperor and Conrad, busy with events in Duchy of Burgundy, Burgundy, charged his son Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor, Henry III with punishing the recalcitrant Bohemian. Oldřich was arrested, deposed and sent to Bavaria. He was again replaced by his brother Jaromír. However, when Oldřich was pardoned the next year, he returned to Bohemia and had Jaromír captured and deposed. He seized power again and drove out Jaromír's son from Moravia. Oldřich died abruptly on 9 November 1034 and later examination of his skeleton reveal his skull to have suffered a fatal blow. Jaromír then renounced the throne in favour of his nephew Bretislaus.


Marriage and children

According to legend rendered by the medieval chronicler Cosmas of Prague, Duke Oldřich about 1002 married a Božena (Křesinová), Božena, daughter of Křesina, after discarding his first wife on the grounds that they were childless. Together they had a son: *Bretislaus I, Duke of Bohemia, Bretislaus I (1002/1005–1055), Duke of Bohemia from 1035 until his death


Notes


References

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External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oldrich, Duke Of Bohemia Dukes of Bohemia Burials at St. George's Basilica, Prague 970s births 1034 deaths Christian monarchs