Vratislaus I, Duke of Bohemia

Vratislaus I
Duke of Bohemia
Reign	915–921
Born	c. 888
Died	13 February 921
Buried	St. George's Basilica, Prague
Noble family	Přemyslid dynasty
Spouse(s)	Drahomíra
Issue	Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia Boleslaus I, Duke of Bohemia Střezislava (?)
Father	Bořivoj I, Duke of Bohemia
Mother	Ludmila of Bohemia

Vratislaus (or Wratislaus) I (Template:Lang-cs; c. 888 – 13 February 921), a member of the Přemyslid dynasty, was Duke of Bohemia from 915 until his death.

Life

He was a son of Duke Bořivoj I of Bohemia by his wife Ludmila and the younger brother of Duke Spytihněv I. Around 906, he married Drahomíra, a Hevellian princess, to establish close ties with the Polabian Slavs. Vratislaus had at least two sons, Wenceslaus and Boleslaus, both of whom succeeded him as Bohemian dukes. Some historians believe that Střezislava, the wife of the Bohemian nobleman Slavník, founder of the Slavník dynasty, was also the daughter of Vratislaus.

Upon the death of his elder brother Spytihněv in 915, Vratislaus became duke at a time when the Bohemian lands around Prague Castle had already distanced themselves from the political and cultural sphere of Great Moravia and fallen under the influence of East Francia, especially during the rule of Duke Arnulf of Bavaria. The contemporary Annales Fuldenses report that already in 900 the Bavarian forces had attacked Prince Mojmir II of Moravia in alliance with the Bohemians. On the other hand, Duke Vratislaus offered the Hungarian invaders free passage and supported their 915 campaign against the Saxon duke Henry the Fowler.

Vratislaus is credited with the establishment of St. George's Basilica at Prague Castle and also with the foundation of the Silesian city of Wrocław (Vratislavia). He died in battle against the Hungarians, possibly in 919, although 921 is more often conjectured.

References

• Ancestral Roots of Certain American Colonists Who Came to America Before 1700 by Frederick Lewis Weis; Line 244-7
• The Plantagenet Ancestry by William Henry Turton, Page 85
• Royal Highness, Ancestry of the Royal Child by Sir Iain Moncreiffe, Pages 64–65