Agnes of Austria (1150s–1182)
| Agnes of Austria | |
|---|---|
| Queen consort of Hungary | |
| Tenure | 1168 – 4 March 1172 |
| Predecessor | Yaroslavna of Halych |
| Successor | Maria Komnene |
| Duchess consort of Carinthia | |
| Tenure | 1173 – 4 October 1181 |
| Predecessor | Maria of Bohemia (?) |
| Successor | Judith of Bohemia (from 1202) |
| Born | c. 1154 |
| Died | 13 January 1182 |
| Burial | |
| Spouse | Stephen III of Hungary Herman, Duke of Carinthia |
| Issue | Ulrich II, Duke of Carinthia Bernhard von Spanheim |
| House | House of Babenberg (by birth) Árpád dynasty (1st marriage) House of Sponheim (2nd marriage) |
| Father | Henry II, Duke of Austria |
| Mother | Theodora Komnene |
Agnes of Austria (c. 1151/54 – 13 January 1182), a member of the House of Babenberg, was Queen of Hungary from 1168 until 1172 by her first marriage with King Stephen III of Hungary and Duchess of Carinthia by her second marriage with Duke Herman of Carinthia from 1173 until 1181.
Life
Agnes was the eldest child of the Babenberg duke Henry II of Austria and his second wife, the Byzantine princess Theodora Komnene.
In 1166, Duke Henry II, who was mediating a peace between King Stephen III of Hungary and Emperor Manuel I Komnenos, proposed a marriage between his daughter, Agnes and the young king. However, the King decided to marry Princess Yaroslavna of Halych (1167); nevertheless, this marriage ended soon: the princess was repudiated and sent back to her father in 1168. The negotiations with Austria were renewed and Agnes was married to King Stephen III in the same year.[1][2][3]
She gave birth to a son, Béla, who died shortly afterwards (1168). Her husband fell suddenly ill and died on 4 March 1172 during a meeting with her father. Apparently, shortly before the death of Stephen, Agnes gave birth a second son, but the child was either stillborn or died shortly after birth.
Just after her husband's funeral, the widowed Agnes left for the Duchy of Austria with her father. One year later (1173) she was married again, to the Sponheim duke herman of Carinthia. They had two sons: Ulrich II (born in 1176) and Bernhard II (born in 1180) who were later Dukes of Carinthia.
Duke Herman died in 1181. Agnes survived him only one year. She was buried in the Crypt of the Schottenstift in Vienna, next to her parents.
Sources
- Soltész, István: Árpád-házi királynék (Gabo, 1999)
- Kristó, Gyula - Makk, Ferenc: Az Árpád-ház uralkodói (IPC Könyvek, 1996)
- ^ http://books.google.hu/books?q=agnes+of+austria+stephen+III&lr=&sa=N&start=0 "Henry gave his daughter [Agnes] in marriage to the king of Hungary [Stephen III]." Otto, Rahewin, Charles Christopher Mierow, Medieval Academy of America, Richard Emery: The deeds of Frederick Barbarossa. University of Toronto Press, in association with the Medieval Academy of America, 1995, ISBN 0-8020-7574-6
- ^ http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/565435/Stephen-III
- ^ http://books.google.hu/books?id=eYayIv9gfGYC&pg=PT101&dq=agnes+of+austria+stephen+III&lr=#PPT101,M1