Beatrice of Silesia (also known as Beatrice of Świdnica; pl, Beatrycze świdnicka, german: Beatrix von Schweidnitz ; 1290 – 24 October 1322) was a Polish princess member of the
House of Piast
The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (c. 930–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir III the Great.
Branc ...
in the Silesian branch of
Jawor
Jawor (german: Jauer) is a town in south-western Poland with 22,890 inhabitants (2019). It is situated in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship (from 1975 to 1998 it was in the former Legnica Voivodeship). It is the seat of Jawor County, and lies appr ...
-
Świdnica
Świdnica (; german: Schweidnitz; cs, Svídnice; szl, Świdńica) is a city in south-western Poland in the region of Silesia. As of 2019, it has a population of 57,014 inhabitants. It lies in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, being the seventh large ...
and by marriage Duchess of Bavaria and German Queen.
Family
She was the second daughter of
Bolko I the Strict
Bolko (Bolesław) I the Strict also known as the Raw or of Jawor ( pl, Bolko I Surowy or ''Srogi'' or ''Jaworski''; german: Bolko I. von Schweidnitz; 1252/56 – 9 November 1301), was a Duke of Lwówek (Löwenberg) 1278–81 (with his brother as c ...
, Duke of Jawor-
Świdnica
Świdnica (; german: Schweidnitz; cs, Svídnice; szl, Świdńica) is a city in south-western Poland in the region of Silesia. As of 2019, it has a population of 57,014 inhabitants. It lies in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, being the seventh large ...
, by his wife
Beatrice, daughter of
Otto V, Margrave of Brandenburg-Salzwedel
Margrave Otto V of Brandenburg-Salzwedel ( 1246 – 1298), nicknamed ''Otto the Tall'', was a son of Margrave Otto III and co-ruler of Brandenburg with his cousin, Margrave Otto IV.
Otto V spent many years in Prague, at the court of his maternal u ...
.
Beatrice was the third of ten children born to her mother and father. Her siblings included:
Bernard of Świdnica,
Henry I of Jawor
Henry I of Jawor ( pl, Henryk I. Jaworski; german: Heinrich I. von Jauer; – 15 May 1346), was a duke of Jawor-Lwówek-Świdnica- Ziębice during 1301–1312 (with his brothers as co-rulers), sole Duke of Jawor-Lwówek since 1312 and Duke of Gło ...
,
Bolko II of Ziębice and Judith, wife of
Stephen I, Duke of Bavaria
Stephen I. (March 14, 1271 – December 10, 1310) was duke of Lower Bavaria from 1290 until 1310 as co-regnant of his older brothers Otto III († 1312) and Louis III († 1296).
Biography
Stephen was born in Landshut, the son of Henry XIII, Du ...
.
Seven years after the death of Beatrice's father and the birth of her posthumous sister, Anna, her mother Beatrice was remarried to
Władysław of Bytom
Władysław of Bytom (1277/83 – around 8 September 1352), was a Duke of Koźle during 1303-1334, Duke of Bytom from 1316, Duke of Toszek from 1329 and Duke of Siewierz during 1328–1337.
He was the second son of Duke Casimir of Bytom by his ...
. From this marriage, Beatrice and her siblings gained two half-siblings:
Casimir of Koźle
Casimir of Koźle ( pl, Kazimierz kozielski; ca. 1312 – by 2 March 1347) was a Duke of Koźle from 1336 until his death.
He was the eldest son of Duke Władysław of Bytom the only one by his first wife Beatrix, daughter of Otto V the Long, Mar ...
and Euphemia, wife of
Konrad I of Oleśnica.
Life
After her father's early death in 1301, Beatrice and her siblings were placed under the tutelage of their maternal uncle
Herman, Margrave of Brandenburg-Salzwedel until 1305, when the oldest son of Bolko I, Bernard, assumed the government of his domains and the guardianship of his younger siblings, including Beatrix.
It was this brother Bernard who, wanting to secure an alliance with Bavaria, arranged Beatrice's marriage to
Louis IV, Duke of Upper Bavaria. The wedding took place by 14 October 1308. During her marriage, Beatrice gave birth to six children, but only three survived to adulthood:
Matilda -by marriage Margravine of Meissen-,
Louis V the Brandenburger -later Duke of Upper Bavaria, Margrave of
Brandenburg
Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...
and Count of
Tyrol
Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...
- and
Stephen II – later Duke of
Lower Bavaria
Lower Bavaria (german: Niederbayern, Bavarian: ''Niedabayern'') is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany, located in the east of the state.
Geography
Lower Bavaria is subdivided into two regions () – Landshut and Donau- ...
.
Duke Louis IV was elected
German King on 20 October 1314. However, another faction had elected
Frederick I of Austria as King on 19 October. The two rival Kings would continue their dispute for the rest of her life. She was one of two rival German queens, with
Isabella of Aragon, wife of Frederick I.
Beatrice died, at
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
, a long time before her husband's coronation as Holy Roman Emperor (in 1328). Two years after her death, Louis IV was remarried to
Margaret II, Countess of Hainaut.
Issue
Louis and Beatrix had six children; three of them lived to adulthood:
#
Mathilde (aft. 21 June 1313 – 2 July 1346,
Meißen
Meissen (in German orthography: ''Meißen'', ) is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, the Albrech ...
), married at
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
1 July 1329
Frederick II, Margrave of Meissen (d. 1349)
# Daughter (end September 1314 – died shortly after).
#
Louis V the Brandenburger (July 1316 – 17/18 September 1361), duke of Upper Bavaria, margrave of
Brandenburg
Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...
, count of
Tyrol
Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...
#
Anna (c. July 1317
''Mumie Anna - Die Rettung einer Prinzessin''
(in German) etrieved 5 August 2016 – 29 January 1319, Kastl)
# Agnes (c. 1318 – died shortly after).
# Stephen II (autumn 1319 – 19 May 1375), duke of Lower Bavaria
Lower Bavaria (german: Niederbayern, Bavarian: ''Niedabayern'') is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany, located in the east of the state.
Geography
Lower Bavaria is subdivided into two regions () – Landshut and Donau- ...
Notes and references
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beatrice Of Silesia
1290 births
1322 deaths
German queens consort
Piast dynasty
House of Wittelsbach
14th-century German women
Burials at Munich Frauenkirche