Ludmilla Of Bohemia
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Ludmilla (Ludmiła) of Bohemia (died 14 August 1240) was a daughter of Frederick, Duke of Bohemia, and his wife,
Elizabeth of Hungary Elizabeth of Hungary (, , ; 7 July 120717 November 1231), also known as Elisabeth of Thuringia, was a princess of the Kingdom of Hungary and the landgravine of Thuringia. Elizabeth was married at the age of 14, and widowed at 20. After her hus ...
. Ludmilla was a member of the
Přemyslid dynasty The Přemyslid dynasty or House of Přemysl (, , ) was a Bohemian royal dynasty that reigned in the Duchy of Bohemia and later Kingdom of Bohemia and Margraviate of Moravia (9th century–1306), as well as in parts of Poland (including Silesia ...
. She was Duchess consort of Bavaria by her marriage to
Louis I, Duke of Bavaria Louis I (; 23 December 1173 – 15 September 1231), called the Kelheimer or of Kelheim, since he was born and died at Kelheim, was the Duke of Bavaria from 1183 and Electoral Palatinate, Count Palatine of the Rhine from 1214. He was the only ...
.


Family

Ludmilla was the third of six children born to her parents. Her siblings were Helena of Bohemia, betrothed to
Manuel I Komnenos Manuel I Komnenos (; 28 November 1118 – 24 September 1180), Latinized as Comnenus, also called Porphyrogenitus (; " born in the purple"), was a Byzantine emperor of the 12th century who reigned over a crucial turning point in the history o ...
but never married, and Sophia of Bohemia, wife of Albert, Margrave of Meissen. The rest of Ludmilla's siblings were short-lived or died in early adulthood. Ludmilla's paternal grandparents were Vladislaus II of Bohemia and his first wife Gertrude of Babenberg. Her maternal grandparents were
Géza II of Hungary Géza II (; ; ; 113031 May 1162) was King of Hungary and Croatia from 1141 to 1162. He was the oldest son of Béla the Blind and his wife, Helena of Serbia. When his father died, Géza was still a child and he started ruling under the guardia ...
and his wife Euphrosyne of Kiev. Geza was son of Béla II of Hungary and his wife Helena of Raška. Bela was son of Prince Álmos and his wife Predslava of Kiev, who was daughter of Sviatopolk II of Kiev and an unknown
Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...
n princess.


Marriages

Ludmilla married twice and had issue in both of her marriages. Her first marriage was to Count Albert III of Bogen, making Ludmilla Countess of Bogen. The couple had three children from their marriage, all sons: * Berthold IV, Count of Bogen (d. 1218) married Kunigunda of Hirschberg, no known issue. * Albert IV, Count of Bogen (d. 1242) married Richeza of Dillingen. * Diepold of Bogen (d. 1219) a priest in
Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...
. Albert died in 1197 and was succeeded by his eldest son with Ludmilla, Berthold. Ludmilla then married
Louis I, Duke of Bavaria Louis I (; 23 December 1173 – 15 September 1231), called the Kelheimer or of Kelheim, since he was born and died at Kelheim, was the Duke of Bavaria from 1183 and Electoral Palatinate, Count Palatine of the Rhine from 1214. He was the only ...
, (also known as Ludwig) a former enemy of her first husband. The marriage was good for Louis because it created an alliance with Ludmilla's uncle,
Ottokar I of Bohemia Ottokar I (; 1155 – 1230) was Duke of Bohemia periodically beginning in 1192, then acquired the title of King of Bohemia, first in 1198 from Philip of Swabia, later in 1203 from Otto IV of Brunswick and in 1212 (as hereditary) from ...
. The couple had one son: *
Otto II Wittelsbach, Duke of Bavaria Otto II (7 April 1206 – 29 November 1253), called the Illustrious (), was the Duke of Bavaria from 1231 and Count Palatine of the Rhine from 1228. He was the son of Louis I Wittelsbach, Duke of Bavaria, Louis I and Ludmilla of Bohemia and a m ...
(7 April 1206 – 29 November 1253), next Duke of Bavaria. Louis and Ludmilla tried to find a suitable bride for their only child. Otto married Agnes of the Palatinate in 1222. Within time, Agnes' closer relatives died and she became Countess of Palatinate, which became part of the Bavarian inheritance, starting with Ludmilla's grandson,
Louis II, Duke of Bavaria Louis the Strict () (13 April 1229 – 2 February 1294) was Duke of Upper Bavaria and Count Palatine of the Rhine from 1253. He is known as Louis II or Louis VI following an alternative numbering. Born in Heidelberg, he was a son of Otto II W ...
.


Widowhood

Louis was murdered in 1231 on a bridge in
Kelheim Kelheim () is a town and municipality in Bavaria, Germany. It is the capital of the Kelheim (district), district Kelheim and is situated at the confluence of the rivers Altmühl and Danube. Kelheim has a population of around 16,750 (2020). His ...
. The crime was never cleared up since the murderer was immediately lynched. Due to the following aversion of the Wittelsbach family the city of
Kelheim Kelheim () is a town and municipality in Bavaria, Germany. It is the capital of the Kelheim (district), district Kelheim and is situated at the confluence of the rivers Altmühl and Danube. Kelheim has a population of around 16,750 (2020). His ...
lost its status as one of the ducal residences. Louis was buried in the crypt of
Scheyern Abbey Scheyern Abbey, formerly also Scheyern Priory (), is a house of the Benedictine Order in Scheyern in Bavaria. First foundation The monastery at Scheyern was established in 1119 as the final site of the community founded in around 1077 at Ba ...
. Ludmilla lived to see the birth of four or five grandchildren from Otto and Agnes: Louis II, Henry XIII, Duke of Bavaria,
Elisabeth of Bavaria, Queen of Germany Elisabeth of Bavaria ( – 9 October 1273) was Queen of Germany and Jerusalem from 1246 to 1254 by her marriage to King Conrad IV of Germany. Life Elisabeth was born at Trausnitz Castle in Landshut, the eldest daughter of Otto II Wittels ...
, Sophie and Agnes. Ludmilla founded the Seligenthal convent, on the land of the hospital of the Holy Ghost near
Landshut Landshut (; ) is a town in Bavaria, Germany, on the banks of the Isar, River Isar. Landshut is the capital of Lower Bavaria, one of the seven administrative regions of the Free state (government), Free State of Bavaria, and the seat of the surrou ...
, Niederbayern, in 1232, as an independent foundation. It was the first female
Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...
order in Bavaria and the convent and church were completed by 1259.Victoria and Albert Museum. . She remained here for the rest of her days. Ludmilla died there 14 August 1240 and her body was buried there.


Ancestors


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ludmilla of Bohemia Bohemian princesses Přemyslid dynasty House of Wittelsbach German people of Czech descent Czech people of Hungarian descent 12th-century births 1240 deaths Female murder victims Year of birth unknown 13th-century women from Bohemia 13th-century German women 13th-century people from Bohemia 13th-century German nobility Mothers of Bavarian monarchs