Kunigunde of Poland (Kunegunda) ( – 9 April 1331) was a daughter of

Władysław I the Elbow-high Władysław is a Polish given male name, cognate with Vladislav. The feminine form is Władysława, archaic forms are Włodzisław (male) and Włodzisława (female), and Wladislaw is a variation. These names may refer to: People Mononym * Włodzis ...

and his wife

Jadwiga of Greater Poland Jadwiga of Kalisz (Polish: ''Jadwiga kaliska'' (''Bolesławówna)''; c. 1266 – 10 December 1339) was a Queen of Poland by marriage to Ladislaus the Short. She was the mother of the last Piast King of Poland, Casimir III. She was the second of ...

. Her siblings included,

Casimir III of Poland Casimir III the Great (; 30 April 1310 – 5 November 1370) reigned as the King of Poland from 1333 to 1370. He also later became King of Ruthenia in 1340, retaining the title throughout the Galicia–Volhynia Wars. He was the last Polish king fr ...

and Elisabeth, Queen of Hungary. She was a member of the

House of Piast The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented List of Polish monarchs, Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I of Poland, Mieszko I (–992). The Poland during the Piast dynasty, Piasts' royal rule in Pol ...

Biography

Kunigunde's father was a bitter rival with

Wenceslaus II of Bohemia Wenceslaus II Přemyslid (; ; 27 SeptemberK. Charvátová, ''Václav II. Král český a polský'', Prague 2007, p. 18. 1271 – 21 June 1305) was King of Bohemia (1278–1305), Duke of Cracow (1291–1305), and King of Poland (1296–130 ...

who was

King of Poland Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of Royal elections in Poland, free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electab ...

between 1291 and 1305. Life was dangerous for Kunigunde, her mother and her siblings during this time, she, her mother and two of her siblings had to go into hiding for a while during 1300. In 1305, Wenceslaus II died and was succeeded by his son,

Wenceslaus III of Bohemia Wenceslaus III (, , , , ; 6 October 12894 August 1306) was King of Hungary and Croatia between 1301 and 1305, and King of Bohemia and Poland from 1305. He was the son of Wenceslaus II, King of Bohemia, who was later also crowned king of Poland, ...

. Wenceslaus III reigned for a year before he was assassinated under mysterious circumstances so his campaign of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

ended. His wife,

Viola Elisabeth of Cieszyn Viola of Teschen, later known as Viola Elizabeth (, ) ( – 21 September 1317), was Queen of Bohemia and Poland by marriage to Wenceslaus III of Bohemia. She was the daughter of Mieszko I, Duke of Cieszyn, by his unknown wife. She was named aft ...

had not bore him any children so his successor was Władysław. In 1318, Władysław embarked on a coronation campaign. The pope, though initially unwilling, finally granted his approval and so Kunigunde's parents were crowned King and Queen of

on 30 January 1320 in

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

Marriages

Kunigunde married

Bernard of Świdnica Bernard (II) of Świdnica () (c. 1291 – 6 May 1326) was a Duke of Jawor- Lwówek-Świdnica-Ziębice between 1301 and 1312 (with his brothers as co-rulers), of Świdnica-Ziębice during 1312–1322 (with his brother as co-ruler), and the sole Duke ...

, the couple had two sons and three daughters: *

Bolko II of Świdnica Bolko II the Small ( – 28 July 1368), was the last independent Duke of the Piast dynasty in Silesia. He was Duchy of Świdnica, Duke of Świdnica from 1326, Duke of Jawor and Lwówek Śląski, Lwówek from 1346, Duke of Lusatia from 1364, Duke ...

(d.1368), succeeded his father. *

Henry II of Świdnica Henry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Henry (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters * Henry (surname) * Henry, a stage name of François-Louis Henry (1786–1855), French baritone Arts and entertainmen ...

(d.1348), succeeded his childless brother and was father of Anne of Świdnica, wife of

Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV (; ; ; 14 May 1316 – 29 November 1378''Karl IV''. In: (1960): ''Geschichte in Gestalten'' (''History in figures''), vol. 2: ''F–K''. 38, Frankfurt 1963, p. 294), also known as Charles of Luxembourg, born Wenceslaus (, ), was H ...

. * Constance of Świdnica, married to Przemko II of Głogów. * Elisabeth of Świdnica, married to

Bolko II of Opole Bolko II of Opole (; before 1300 – 21 June 1356) was a Duke of Opole from 1313 (with his brother as co-ruler until 1323). He was the second son of Duke Bolko I of Opole by his wife Agnes, probably a daughter of Margrave Otto III of Brandenburg ...

. *Beata of Świdnica, who died young. Bernard died in 1326 and left Kunigunde as a widow, their with five children. In 1328, Kunigunde married a second time, she married Rudolf I, Duke of

Saxe-Wittenberg The Duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg () was a medieval duchy of the Holy Roman Empire centered at Wittenberg, which emerged after the dissolution of the stem duchy of Saxony. The Ascanian dukes prevailed in obtaining the Saxon electoral dignity until ...

. The marriage produced one son, Mieszko (b. ca. 1330 - d. 1350). Kunigunde died in 1333. Rudolf I remarried and in 1355 was proclaimed

Elector of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony ( or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356 to 1806 initially centred on Wittenberg that came to include areas around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. It was a ...

, one year before his own death.

Ancestry

In popular culture

Film

Duchess Kunigunde is played by Anna Grycewicz in Polish historical drama TV series "Korona królów" ("The Crown of the Kings"). She is a recurring character in the first season.

References

External links

Cunégonde Piast
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kunigunde of Poland 1290s births 1331 deaths Piast dynasty Princesses of Poland Duchesses of Saxe-Wittenberg 14th-century Polish women 14th-century Polish people Daughters of kings