Jadwiga of Poland

For the 13th-century duchess and saint canonized in 1267, see Hedwig of Silesia.
Jadwiga

Portrait of Queen Jadwiga by Bacciarelli, 1768–1771
Queen of Poland
Reign 16 October 1384 – 17 July 1399
Coronation 16 October 1384
Wawel Cathedral, Kraków
Predecessor Louis
Successor Władysław II Jagiełło
Born Between 3 October 1373 and 18 February 1374[1]
Buda, Kingdom of Hungary
Died 17 July 1399 (aged 25)
Kraków, Kingdom of Poland
Spouse Władysław II Jagiełło
Issue Elizabeth Bonifacia
House Capetian House of Anjou
Father Louis I of Hungary
Mother Elizabeth of Bosnia
Religion Roman Catholic

Jadwiga ([jadˈvʲiɡa]), also known as Hedwig (Hungarian: Hedvig; 1373/4 – 17 July 1399), reigned as the first female monarch of the Kingdom of Poland from 16 October 1384 until her death. She was the youngest daughter of Louis the Great, King of Hungary and Poland, and his wife, Elizabeth of Bosnia. Jadwiga was a member of the Capetian House of Anjou, but had more close ancestors among the Polish Piasts. She was canonized in the Roman Catholic Church in 1997.

Her marriage to William of Austria was planned in 1375 and she lived in Vienna between 1378 and 1380. Jadwiga and William were allegedly regarded as her father's favoured successors in Hungary after her eldest sister Catherine's death in 1379, since the Polish noblemen had paid homage to Louis' second daughter, Mary, and Mary's fiancé Sigismund of Luxemburg that same year. However, Louis died and Mary was crowned "King of Hungary" on the demand of her mother in 1382. Sigismund of Luxemburg tried to seize Poland, but the Polish noblemen countered that they would only obey a daughter of King Louis if she settled in their country. Queen Elizabeth then nominated Jadwiga to reign in Poland, but did not send her to Kraków to be crowned. During the interregnum, Siemowit IV, Duke of Masovia, became a candidate for the Polish throne. The nobles of Greater Poland especially favoured him, proposing he marry Jadwiga. However, the noblemen of Lesser Poland opposed his election and persuaded Queen Elizabeth to send Jadwiga to Poland.

Jadwiga was crowned "king" in Kraków on 16 October 1384. Her crowning either reflected the Polish lords' opposition to her intended future husband, William, adopting the royal title without a further Act or only emphasized that she was a queen regnant. With her mother's consent, Jadwiga's advisers opened negotiations with Jogaila, Grand Duke of Lithuania, who was still a heathen, about his marriage to Jadwiga. Jogaila signed the Union of Krewo, promising to convert to Roman Catholicism and to promote his 'pagan' subjects' conversion. Meanwhile, William of Habsburg hurried to Kraków to demand the consummation of his pre-arranged marriage with Jadwiga, but the Polish lords expelled him in late August 1385. Jogaila, who received the baptismal name Władysław, married Jadwiga on 15 February 1386. Legend says that she had only agreed to marry him after long prayers, seeking divine inspiration.

Władysław-Jogaila was crowned king on 4 March. As her co-ruler, Władysław closely cooperated with his wife. After rebellious lords had imprisoned her mother and sister, she marched into Ruthenia, which had been under Hungarian rule, and persuaded most local inhabitants to become subjects of the Polish Crown without resistance. She acted as mediator between her husband's quarreling kinsmen, and between Poland and the Teutonic Knights. After her sister, Mary died in 1395, Jadwiga and Władysław-Jogaila laid claim to Hungary against the widowed Sigismund of Luxemburg, but the Hungarian lords did not support them.

Childhood (1373 or 1374–82)

A lady and three girls pray on their knees before a bearded man
Jadwiga with her mother and sisters as depicted on Saint Simeon's casket in Zadar

Jadwiga was the third and youngest daughter of Louis I, King of Hungary and Poland, and his second wife, Elizabeth of Bosnia.[2][3] Both her grandmothers were Polish princesses, connecting her to the native Piast dynasty of Poland.[4] Historian Oscar Halecki concluded that Jadwiga's "genealogical tree clearly shows that [she] had more Polish blood than any other".[4] She was born in Buda.[5]

The date of her birth is unknown.[6] She was probably born after 3 October 1373; on this day, her father issued a charter which listed her two older sisters, Catherine and Mary, without mentioning Jadwiga.[7] Her name was first recorded in her father's instructions to his envoys to France on 17 April 1384.[5] If by then, Jadwiga had reached twelve years, (the minimum age prescribed by canon law for girls to marry),[8] she must have been born before 18 February 1374.[9] She was named after her distant ancestor, Saint Hedwig of Silesia, who was especially venerated in the Hungarian royal court at the time of her birth.[10][11]

King Louis who had not fathered any sons, wanted to ensure his daughters' right to inherit his realms.[12][3] Therefore, European royals regarded his three daughters as especially attractive brides.[3] Leopold III, Duke of Austria, proposed his eldest son, William, to Jadwiga already on 18 August 1374.[13] The envoys of the Polish nobles acknowledged that one of Louis's daughters would succeed him in Poland after he confirmed and extended their liberties in the Privilege of Koszyce on 17 September 1374.[12][14] They took an oath of loyalty to Catherine on Louis's demand.[15]

Louis agreed to give Jadwiga in marriage to William of Austria on 4 March 1375.[13] The two children's sponsalia de futuro, or "provisional marriage", was celebrated at Hainburg on 15 June 1378.[15][16][17] The ceremony established the legal framework for the consummation of the marriage without any further ecclesiastical act as soon as they both reached the age of maturity.[18] Duke Leopold agreed that Jadwiga would only receive Treviso, a town which was to be conquered from the Republic of Venice, as dowry from her father.[19] After the ceremony, Jadwiga stayed in Austria for almost two years; she mainly lived in Vienna.[8]

Catherine died in late 1378.[3] Louis persuaded the most influential Polish lords to swear an oath of loyalty to her younger sister, Mary, in September 1379.[15][20] She was betrothed to Sigismund of Luxemburg,[17] a great-grandson of Casimir the Great, who had been Louis's predecessor on the Polish throne.[21] The "promised marriage" of Jadwiga and William was confirmed at their fathers' meeting in Zólyom (now Zvolen in Slovakia) on 12 February 1380.[22][23] Hungarian lords also approved the document, implying that Jadwiga and William were regarded as her father's successors in Hungary.[24]

Louis suffered from a serious skin disease during his last years.[25] A delegation of the Polish lords and clergy paid formal homage to Sigismund of Luxemburg as their future king on 25 July 1382.[26][27] The Poles believed that he planned also to persuade the Hungarian lords and prelates to accept Jadwiga and William of Austria as his heirs in Hungary.[17] However, he died on 11 September 1382.[25] Jadwiga was present at her father's death bed.[26]

Towards coronation (1382–84)

Lands ruled or claimed around 1370 by Jadwiga's father, Louis the Great (or the Hungarian): Hungary and Poland are colored red, the vassal states and the Kingdom of Naples are coloured light red

Jadwiga's sister, Mary, was crowned "king" of Hungary five days after their father's death.[26][28] With the ceremony, their ambitious mother secured the right to govern Hungary on her twelve-year-old daughter's behalf instead of Mary's fiancé, Sigismund.[29][30] Sigismund could not be present at Mary's coronation, because Louis had sent him to Poland to crush a rebellion.[27] After he learnt of Louis's death, he adopted the title "Lord of the Kingdom of Poland", demanding oaths of loyalty from the towns in Lesser Poland.[27] On 25 November, the nobles of Greater Poland assembled at Radomsko and decided to obey nobody but the daughter of the late king as she would settle in Poland.[31] On their initiative, the noblemen of Lesser Poland passed a similar agreement in Wiślica on 12 December.[31] Queen Elizabeth sent her envoys to the assembled lords and forbade them to swear an oath of loyalty to anyone other than one of her daughters, thus invalidating the oath of loyalty that the Polish noblemen had sworn to Sigismund on the late King Louis's demand.[31]

However, both her daughters had been engaged to foreign princes (Sigismund and William, respectively) unpopular in Poland.[32] Polish lords who were opposed to a foreign monarch regarded the members of the Piast dynasty as possible candidates to the Polish throne.[32][27] Queen Elizabeth's uncle, Władysław the White had already attempted to seize Poland during Louis's reign.[33] However, he had taken monastic vows and settled in a Benedictine abbey in Dijon in Burgundy.[27] Antipope Clement VII, whom King Louis had refused to recognize against Pope Urban VI,[34] released Władysław from his vows, but he did not leave his monastery.[35] Meanwhile, Siemowit IV, Duke of Masovia, appeared as a more ambitious candidate.[32] He was especially popular among the nobility and townspeople of Greater Poland.[15][32]

Queen Elizabeth's representatives released the Poles from their oath of fidelity that their representatives had sworn to Mary at an assembly in Sieradz in February 1383.[36] The envoys also announced that she was willing to send Jadwiga to be crowned King of Poland, on condition that she return to Buda after her coronation to live there until her twelfth birthday.[36] The Polish lords accepted the proposal, but they soon realized that thereby the interregnum would be extended by a further three years.[36] At a new meeting in Sieradz, most noblemen were ready to elect Siemowit of Masovia king on 28 March.[36][37] They proposed that Siemowit should marry Jadwiga.[36] A member of the influential Tęczyński family, Jan, convinced them to postpone Siemowit's election.[38] The noblemen agreed to wait for Jadwiga until 10 May, stipulating that she was to live in Poland after her coronation.[38] They also demanded that Dobrzyń and Gniewków (two fiefdoms which her father had granted to Vladislaus II of Opole), and "Ruthenia" (that had passed to Hungary in accordance with a previous treaty)[39] be restored to the Polish Crown.[40]

A bearded monk, sitting by a window with a document in his hands
Władysław the White in Dijon, by Jan Matejko: Władysław the White was a candidate to the Polish throne after the death of Jadwiga's father

Meanwhile, Jan Tęczyński and his allies, including Sędziwój Pałuka, seem to have started negotiations with Jogaila, Grand Duke of Lithuania.[41] Siemowit's supporters however, tried to enter Kraków in the retinue of Bodzanta, Archbishop of Gniezno, in May, but the townspeople closed the gates of the city before their arrival.[42] Jadwiga had not arrived in Poland by the stipulated date (10 May).[42] Her mother's envoys stated that the spring floods had hindered Jadwiga's progress over the Carpathian Mountains.[42]

Siemowit of Mazovia took up arms and advanced as far as Kalisz.[42] His supporters assembled in Sieradz in August in order to elect him king, but Archbishop Bodzanta refused to perform his coronation.[43] In a meeting in Kassa, Queen Elizabeth promised the delegates of the Polish provinces to send Jadwiga to Poland before November.[44] The queen mother and the Poles also agreed that if either Jadwiga or Mary died childless, her kingdom would pass to her surviving sister.[44] Siemowit having laid siege to Kalisz, Queen Elizabeth sent Sigismund of Luxemburg at the head of an "improvised army"[44] to Lesser Poland. Siemowit failed to take Kalisz, but news about the appalling behaviour of Sigismund's soldiers increased Sigismund's unpopularity in Poland.[44] Sędziwój Pałuka, who was the castellan of Kalisz and starosta of Kraków, led a delegation to Zadar in Croatia to negotiate with Queen Elizabeth, but she had him imprisoned instead.[45] She sent Hungarian soldiers to Poland to garrison them in Wawel Castle in Kraków, but Pałuka escaped and successfully obstructed her soldiers entering the castle.[46]

At a general assembly in Radomsko in early March, the delegates of all the Polish provinces and towns decided to elect Siemowit king, if Jadwiga did not come to Poland within two months.[46] They set up a provisional government,[46] stipulating that only the "community of lords and citizens" had the authority to administer Poland during the interregnum.[47] Queen Elizabeth, who was only informed of the decision by an informal message, realized that she could not any longer postpone Jadwiga's coronation and so sent her to Poland.[46] The exact date of Jadwiga's arrival is unknown, because the main source for the history of Poland during this period  Jan of Czarnków's chronicle  ended prior to this event.[48]

Jadwiga's Reign

First years (1384–86)

A crowned woman sitting on a throne
Jadwiga's royal seal

The interregnum that followed Louis's death and caused such internal strife came to an end with Jadwiga's arrival in Poland.[49][50] A large crowd of clerics, noblemen and burghers gathered at Kraków "to greet her with a display of affection",[51] according to the 15th-century Polish historian, Jan Długosz.[50] Nobody protested when Archbishop Bodzenta crowned her on 16 October 1384.[48][52] According to traditional scholary consensus, Jadwiga was crowned "king".[53] Thereby, as Robert W. Knoll proposes, the Polish lords prevented her eventual spouse from adopting the same title without their consent.[54] Stephen C. Rowell, who says that sources that contradict the traditional view outnumber those verifying it, suggests that sporadic contemporaneous references to Jadwiga as "king" only reflect that she was not a queen consort, but a queen regnant.[53]

Bodzanta, Archbishop of Gniezno, Jan Radlica, Bishop of Kraków, Dobrogost of Nowy Dwór, Bishop of Poznań, and Duke Vladislaus II of Opole were Jadwiga's most trusted advisers during the first years of her reign.[55] According to a widely accepted scholarly theory, Jadwiga, who was still a minor, was "a mere tool" to her advisers.[10][56] However, Halecki refutes this view, contending that Jadwiga matured quickly and her personality, especially her charm and kindness, only served to strengthen her position.[56] Already in late 1384 she intervened on Duke Vladislaus's behalf to reconcile him with her mother's favourite, Nicholas I Garai.[57]

The Polish lords did not want to accept Jadwiga's fourteen-year-old fiancé, William of Habsburg, as their sovereign.[58][59] They thought that the inexperienced William and his Austrian kinsmen could not safeguard Poland's interests against its powerful neighbours, especially the Luxemburgs which controlled Bohemia and Brandenburg, and had a strong claim on Hungary.[60][61] According to Halecki, the lords of Lesser Poland were the first to suggest that Jadwiga should marry the heathen Jogaila of Lithuania.[62]

A bearded man on his knees by a young woman who stands at a door holding an axe
Dymitr of Goraj, by Jan Matejko

Jogaila sent his envoys  including his brother, Skirgaila, and a German burgher from Riga, Hanul  to Kraków to request Jadwiga's hand in January 1385.[60][63] Jadwiga refused to answer, stating only that her mother would decide.[64] Jogaila's two envoys left for Hungary and met Queen Elizabeth.[64][65] She informed them that "she would allow whatever was advantageous to Poland and insisted that her daughter and the prelates and nobles of the Kingdom had to do what they considered would benefit Christianity and their kingdom",[66] according to Jan Długosz's chronicle.[67] The nobles from Kraków, Sandomierz and Greater Poland assembled in Kraków in June or July and the "majority of the more sensible"[66] voted for the acceptance of Jogaila's marriage proposal.[68]

In the meantime, William's father, Leopold III hurried to Buda in late July 1385, demanding the consummation of the marriage between William and Jadwiga before 16 August.[69] Queen Elizabeth confirmed the previous agreements about the marriage, ordering Vladislaus II of Opole to make preparations for the ceremony.[70][71] According to canon law, Jadwiga's marriage sacrament could only be completed before her twelfth birthday if the competent prelate testified her precocious maturity.[71] Demetrius, Archbishop of Esztergom, issued the necessary document.[72] William went to Kraków in the first half of August, but his entry to Wawel Castle was barred.[73] Długosz states that Jadwiga and William would only be able to meet in the nearby Franciscan convent.[73]

Contemporary or nearly contemporaneous records of the completion of the marriage between William and Jadwiga are contradictory and unclear.[74][70] The official accounts of the municipal authorities of Kraków record that on 23 August 1385 an amnesty was granted to the prisoners in the city jail on the occasion of the celebration of the queen's marriage.[75] On the other hand, a contemporary Austrian chronicle, the Continuatio Claustroneubuzgis states that the Poles had tried to murder William before he slept with Jadwiga.[76] In the next century, Długosz states that William was "removed in a shameful and offensive manner and driven from the castle" after he entered "the Queen's bedchamber"; but the same chronicler also mentions that Jadwiga was well aware that "many people knew that ... she had for a fortnight shared her bed with Duke William and that there had been physical consummation".[77][78]

On the night when William entered the queen's bedchamber, a group of Polish noblemen broke into the castle, forcing William to flee, according to Długosz.[76] After this humiliation, Długosz continues, Jadwiga decided to leave Wawel and join William, but the gate of the castle was locked.[76] She called for "an axe and [tried] to break it open",[79] but Dymitr of Goraj convinced her to return to the castle.[80][70] Oscar Halecki says that Długosz's narrative "cannot be dismissed as a romantic legend";[81] Robert Frost writes, it is a "tale, almost certainly apocryphal".[70] There is no doubt, however, that William of Austria was forced to leave Poland.[82]

Meanwhile, Jogaila had signed the Union of Krewo, promising Queen Elizabeth's representatives and the Polish lords' envoys that he would convert to Catholicism, together with his pagan kinsmen and subjects, if Jadwiga married him.[83][84] He also pledged to pay 200,000 florins to William of Habsburg in compensation (William never accepted it).[85] Two days after the Union of Krewo, the Teutonic Knights invaded Lithuania.[86]

The Aeltere Hochmeisterchronik and other chronicles written in the Knights' territory accused the Polish prelates and lords of forcing Jadwiga to accept Jogaila's offer.[87] According to a Polish legend, Jadwiga agreed to marry Jogaila due to divine inspiration during her long prayers before a crucifix in Wawel Cathedral.[81] Siemowit IV of Mazovia resigned his claim to Poland in December.[88]

The Polish lords' envoys informed Jogaila that they would obey him if he married Jadwiga on 11 January 1386.[89][90] Jogaila went to Lublin where a general assembly unanimously declared him "king and lord of Poland" in early February.[91][92][93] Jogaila went on to Kraków where he was baptized, receiving the Christian name, Władysław, in Wawel Cathedral on 15 February.[82][94] Three days later, 35-year-old Władysław-Jogaila married 12-year-old Jadwiga.[6][94] Władysław-Jogaila styled himself as dominus et tutor regni Poloniae ("lord and guardian of the Kingdom of Poland") in his first charter issued after the marriage.[95]

Decisive years (1386–93)

Archbishop Bodzanta crowned Władysław-Jogaila king on 4 March 1386.[88] Poland was transformed into a diarchy  a kingdom, ruled over by two crowned sovereigns.[95] Jadwiga and her husband did not speak a common language, but they cooperated closely in their marriage.[91] She accompanied him to Greater Poland to appease the local lords who were still hostile to him.[96] The royal visit caused damage to the peasants who lived in the local prelates' domains, but Jadwiga persuaded her husband to compensate them, saying that "We have, indeed, returned the peasants' cattle, but who can repair their tears?",[97] according to Długosz's chronicle.[96] A court record of her order to the judges in favour of a peasant also shows that she protected the poor.[96]

Pope Urban VI sent his legate, Maffiolo Lampugnano, to Kraków to enquire about the marriage of the royal couple.[98] Lampugnano did not voice any objections, but the Teutonic Knights started a propaganda campaign in favour of William of Habsburg.[99] Queen Elizabeth pledged to assist Władysław-Jogaila against his enemies on 9 June 1386,[98] but Hungary had sunken into anarchy.[39] A group of Slavonian lords captured and imprisoned Jadwiga's mother and sister on 25 July.[100] The rebels murdered Queen Elizabeth in January 1387.[101][102] A month later, Jadwiga marched at the head of Polish troops to Ruthenia where all but one of the governors submitted to her without opposition.[103][104]

Duke Vladislaus of Opole who also had a claim on Ruthenia could not convince Wenceslaus, King of the Romans, to intervene on his behalf.[105] Jadwiga confirmed the privileges of the local inhabitants and promised that Ruthenia would never again be separated from the Polish Crown.[105] After the reinforcements that Władysław-Jogaila sent from Lithuania arrived in August, Halych, the only fortress to resist, also surrendered.[106] Władysław-Jogaila also came to Ruthenia in September.[106] Petru Muşat, Voivode of Moldavia, visited the royal couple and paid homage to them in Lviv on 26 September.[106] Władysław-Jogaila confirmed the privileges that Jadwiga had granted the Ruthenians in October.[105] She also instructed her subjects to show the same respect for her husband as for herself: in a letter addressed to the burghers of Kraków in late 1387, she stated that her husband was their "natural lord".[91][107]

A crowned young lady on her knees with her had on the Bible which is held by an old bearded man
Queen Jadwiga's Oath, by Józef Simmler

On William of Habsburg's demand, Pope Urban VI initiated a new investigation about the marriage of Jadwiga and Władysław-Jogaila.[108] They sent Bishop Dobrogost of Poznań to Rome to inform the pope of the Christianization of Lithuania.[109] In his letter to Bishop Dobrogost, Pope Urban jointly mentioned the royal couple in March 1388, which implied that he had already acknowledged the legality of their marriage.[109] However, Gniewosz of Dalewice, who had been William of Habsburg's supporter, spread rumours about secret meetings between William and Jadwiga in the royal castle.[109] Jadwiga took a solemn oath before Jan Tęczyński, stating that she had only had marital relations with Władysław-Jogaila.[110] After all witnesses confirmed her oath, Dalewice confessed that he had lied.[111] She did not take vengeance on him.[111]

Jadwiga's brother-in-law, Sigismund, who had been crowned King of Hungary,[112] started negotiations with the Teutonic Knights about partitioning Poland in early 1392.[113] Jadwiga met her sister, Mary of Hungary, in Stará Ľubovňa in May and returned to Kraków only in early July.[114] She most probably accompanied her husband to Lithuania, according to Oscar Halecki, because she was far from Kraków till the end of August.[115] On 4 August, Władysław-Jogaila's cousin, Vytautas, who had earlier fled from Lithuania to the Teutonic Knights, paid homage to Władysław-Jogaila near Lida in Lithuania on 4 August.[115]

Negotiations between Sigismund of Hungary and the Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, Konrad von Wallenrode, continued with the mediation of Vladislaus of Opole.[116] However, Hungary's southern border was exposed to Ottoman incursions, preventing Sigismund from taking military measures against Poland.[117] Wallenrode died on 25 July 1393.[118] His successor, Konrad von Jungingen, opened negotiations with the Poles.[118] During the discussions, Pope Boniface IX's legate, John of Messina, supported the Poles.[118]

Last years (1393–99)

Jadwiga was a skilful mediator, famed for her impartiality and intelligence.[104] She went to Lithuania to reconcile her brother-in-law, Skirgaila, with Vytautas in October 1393.[119] Relations between Poland and Hungary remained tense.[120] Sigismund of Hungary invaded Moldavia, forcing Stephen I of Moldavia to accept his suzerainty in 1394.[120] Soon after the Hungarian troops left Moldavia, Stephen sent his envoys to Władysław-Jogaila, promising to assist Poland against Hungary, the Ottoman Empire and the Teutonic Knights.[120]

On 17 May 1395, Jadwiga's sister, Mary of Hungary died after a riding accident.[121] According to the 1383 agreement between their mother and the Polish lords, Jadwiga was her sister's heir in Hungary.[122] Vlad I of Wallachia, whom the Ottoman Sultan Bayezid I had placed on the throne of Wallachia, issued an act of submission on 28 May, acknowledging Jadwiga and her husband as the legitimate successors of Queen Mary.[123] The widowed Sigismund's close supporter, Stibor of Stiboricz, expelled Vlad from Wallachia.[124] Władysław-Jogaila gathered his troops on the Polish-Hungarian border, but Eustache Jolsvai, Palatine of Hungary, and John Kanizsai, Archbishop of Esztergom, stopped his invasion of Hungary.[121][124] Konrad von Jungingen reminded the prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire that the union of Poland, Lithuania and Hungary under Władysław-Jogaila's rule would endanger Christendom in September 1395.[125] However, most of Sigismund's opponents who were especially numerous in Croatia, supported Ladislaus of Naples's (the last male member of the Capetian House of Anjou) claim to Hungary.[126] On 8 September, the most influential Hungarian lords declared that they would not support any change in government while Sigismund was far from Hungary fighting against the Ottoman Turks.[125] Before the end of the year, peace negotiations between the representatives of Hungary and Poland ended with an agreement.[127] Jadwiga adopted the title "heir to Hungary", but she and her husband took no further action against Sigismund.[128]

The relationship between Lithuania and the Teutonic Knights remained tense.[129] Jadwiga and her Polish advisers invited the Grand Master, Konrad von Jungingen, to Poland to open new negotiations in June 1396.[130] Conflicts with Vladislaus of Opole and Siemowit of Masovia, who had not given up their claims to parts of Ruthenia and Cuyavia, also intensified.[131] To demonstrate that the territories were under Jadwiga's direct control, Władysław-Jogaila granted the Duchy of Belz in Ruthenia and Cuyavia to her in early 1397.[132] However, Jadwiga and her Polish advisers wanted to avoid a war with the Teutonic Order.[133] In response, Władysław-Jogaila replaced most Polish stratostas in Ruthenia with local Orthodox noblemen.[133] According to German sources, Władysław-Jogaila and Vytautas jointly asked Pope Boniface IX to sanction Vytautas' coronation as king of Lithuania and Ruthenia.[133]

Jadwiga and Jungingen met in Włocławek in the middle of June, but they did not reach a compromise.[134] The Teutonic Order entrusted Vladislaus of Opole with the task of representing their claims to Dobrzyń against Jadwiga.[135] Jadwiga and her husband met Sigismund of Hungary, who had returned there after his catastrophic defeat in the Battle of Nicopolis, on 14 July.[136] They seem to have reached a compromise, because Sigismund of Hungary offered to mediate between Poland, Lithuania and the Teutonic Knights.[137] On Jadwiga's request, Wenceslaus of Bohemia granted permission for the establishment of a college for Lithuanian students in Prague on 20 July 1397.[138] Jadwiga, who had spent "many sleepless nights" thinking of this project, according to herself, issued a charter of establishment for the college on 10 November.[138]

She opened new negotiations with the Teutonic Knights, but Konrad von Jungingen dispatched a simple knight to meet her in May 1398.[139] Władysław-Jogaila's cousin Vytautas also entered into negotiations with the Teutonic Knights because he wanted to unite Lithuania and Ruthenia under his rule and to receive a royal crown from the Holy See.[140] According to the chronicle of John of Posilge, who was an official of the Teutonic Order, Jadwiga sent a letter to Vytautas, reminding him to pay the annual tribute that Władysław-Jogaila had granted her as his dowry.[133][141] Offended by Jadwiga's demand, Vytautas sought the opinion of the Lithuanian and Ruthenian lords who refused Jadwiga's claim to a tribute.[133] On 12 October 1398, he signed a peace treaty with the Teutonic Knights, without referring to Władysław-Jogaila's right to confirm it.[140] Oscar Halecki says that Posilge's "sensational story" is either an invention based on gossip or a guess by the chronicler.[142]

Jadwiga was childless for more than a decade, which caused conflicts between her and her husband, according to chronicles written in the Teutonic lands.[143] She became pregnant in late 1398 or early 1399.[144] Sigismund, King of Hungary, came to Kraków in early March to negotiate about a campaign against the Ottoman Turks to defend Wallachia.[145] Vytautas decided to launch an expedition against Timur, who had subdued the Golden Horde, to expand his authority over the Rus' principalities.[146] According to Jan Długosz's chronicle, Jadwiga warned the Polish noblemen not to join Vytautas's campaign because it would end in failure.[146] Halecki says that the great number of Polish knights who joined Vytautas's expedition proves that Długosz's report is not reliable.[147]

Most political responsibilities, however, were probably in Władysław's hands, with Jadwiga attending to cultural and charitable activities.[148] She sponsored writers and artists and donated much of her personal wealth, including her royal insignia, to charity, for purposes including the founding of hospitals.[149] She financed a scholarship for twenty Lithuanians to study at Charles University in Prague to help strengthen Christianity in their country, to which purpose she also founded a bishopric in Vilnius. Among her most notable cultural legacies was the restoration of the Kraków Academy, which in 1817 was renamed Jagiellonian University in honour of the couple.[150]

Death and funeral (1399)

Jadwiga gave birth to a daughter, Elizabeth Bonifacia, on 22 or 23 June 1399.[151] Her infant daughter died on 13 July.[151] Stanisław of Skarbimierz expressed the hope that Jadwiga would survive, describing her as the spiritual mother of the poor, weak and ill in Poland in his Soloqium de transitu Hedvigis Reginae Poloniae.[152] However, Jadwiga was dying. She advised her husband to marry Anna of Cilli, who was Casimir the Great's granddaughter, after her death.[153] She died on 17 July.[151][147] Jadwiga and her daughter were buried together in Wawel Cathedral on 24 August.[151][147]

Family

The following family tree illustrates Jadwiga's connection to her notable relatives. Kings of Poland are colored blue.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Konrad I of Masovia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Casimir I of Kuyavia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Siemowit I of Masovia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Władysław the Elbow-high (r. 1320–1333)
 
 
 
 
Ziemomysł of Kuyavia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Bolesław II of Masovia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Casimir the Great (r. 1333–1370)
 
 
 
Elizabeth of Poland
 
Casimir II of Kuyavia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Trojden I of Masovia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Elizabeth of Poland
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Elizabeth of Kuyavia
 
Władysław the White
 
 
 
Anna of Poland
 
 
 
 
 
Siemowit III of Masovia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Elizabeth of Pomerania
 
 
 
Louis the Great (r. 1370–1382)
 
Elizabeth of Bosnia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Siemowit IV of Masovia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Sigismund of Luxemburg
 
Mary of Hungary
 
 
 
 
 
Jadwiga (r. 1384–1399)
 
Władysław-Jogaila (r. 1386–1434)
 
Anna of Cilli
 
 
 

Legacy

Achievements

Two leading historians, Oscar Halecki and S. Harrison Thomson, agree that Jadwiga was one of the greatest rulers of Poland, comparable to Bolesław the Brave and Casimir the Great.[155] Her marriage to Władysław-Jogaila enabled the union of Poland and Lithuania, establishing a large state in East Central Europe.[155] Jadwiga's decision to marry the 'elderly' Władysław-Jogaila instead of her beloved fiancé, William of Habsburg, has often been described as a sacrifice for her country in Polish historiography.[10] Her biographers emphasize Jadwiga's efforts to preserve the peace with the Teutonic Order, which enabled Poland to make preparations for a decisive war against the Knights.[156] Jadwiga's childless death weakened Władysław-Jogaila's position, because his claim to Poland was based on their marriage.[157] Six days after her funeral, Władysław-Jogaila left Poland for Ruthenia, stating that he was to return to Lithuania after his wife's death.[151] The Polish lords sent their envoys to Lviv to open negotiations with him.[151] The delegates took new oaths of loyalty to him, confirming his position as king.[151] On the lords' demand, he agreed to marry Anna of Cilli.[151] Their wedding was celebrated on 29 January 1402.[158]

Jadwiga's cultural and charitable activities were of exceptional value.[156] She established new hospitals, schools and churches, and restored older ones.[156] Jadwiga promoted the use of vernacular in church services, especially the singing of hymns in Polish.[156] The Scriptures were translated into Polish on her order.[156]

Casimir the Great had already in 1364 established the University of Kraków, but it did not survive his death.[159] Władysław-Jogaila and Jadwiga jointly asked Pope Boniface IX to sanction the establishment of a faculty of theology in Kraków.[160] The pope granted their request on 11 January 1397.[161][162] Jadwiga bought houses along a central street of Kraków for the university.[162] However, the faculty was only set up a year after Jadwiga's death: Władysław-Jogaila issued the charter for the reestablished university on 26 July 1400.[159][161][162] In accordance with Jadwiga's last will, the restoration of the university was partially financed through the sale of her jewellery.[160]

Holiness

Jadwiga of Poland
King of Poland
Venerated in Roman Catholic Church
Beatified 8 August 1986, Kraków, Poland
Canonized 8 June 1997, Kraków, Poland
Major shrine Wawel Cathedral, Kraków, Poland
Feast 8 June
Attributes Royal dress and shoes, apron full of roses
Patronage Queens, united Europe

Oscar Halecki writes that Jadwiga transmitted to the nations of East Central Europe the "universal heritage of the respublica Christiana, which in the West was then waning, but in East Central Europe started flourishing and blending with the pre-Renaissance world".[4] She was closely related to the saintly 13th-century princesses, venerated in Hungary and Poland, including Elizabeth of Hungary and her nieces, Kinga and Yolanda, and Salomea of Poland.[163] She was born to a family famed for it religious zeal.[164][155] She attended Mass every day.[10] In accordance with her family's tradition, Jadwiga was especially devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary.[165] An inscription engraved on her request on a precious chalice, which was placed in the Wawel Cathedral, asked Our Lady to place Poland under her protection.[165]

Jadwiga was venerated in Poland soon after her death.[166] Stanisław of Skarbimierz states that she had been "the most Christian queen" in his sermon composed for her funeral.[166] Paul of Zator referred to the wax figures placed by her grave.[166] Sermons written in the early 15th century emphasized that Jadwiga had been a representative of the traditional virtues of holy women, such as mercy and benevolence.[166] Jadwiga's contribution to the restoration of the University of Kraków was also mentioned by early 15th-century scholars.[166]

Jadwiga's sarcophagus, Wawel Cathedral, Kraków

Numerous legends about miracles were recounted to justify her sainthood. The two best-known are those of "Jadwiga's cross" and "Jadwiga's foot":

Jadwiga often prayed before a large black crucifix hanging in the north aisle of Wawel Cathedral. During one of these prayers, the Christ on the cross is said to have spoken to her. The crucifix, "Saint Jadwiga's cross", is still there, with her relics beneath it. Because of this event, she is considered a medieval mystic.[148] According to another legend, Jadwiga took a piece of jewellry from her foot and gave it to a poor stonemason who had begged for her help. When the king left, he noticed her footprint in the plaster floor of his workplace, even though the plaster had already hardened before her visit. The supposed footprint, known as "Jadwiga's foot", can still be seen in one of Kraków's churches.

In yet another legend, Jadwiga was taking part in a Corpus Christi Day procession when a coppersmith's son drowned by falling into a river. Jadwiga threw her mantle over the boy's body, and he regained life.[167]

On 8 June 1979 Pope John Paul II prayed at her sarcophagus; and the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments officially affirmed her beatification on 8 August 1986. The Pope went on to canonize Jadwiga in Kraków on 8 June 1997.

See also

References

  1. Sroka, S. A. Genealogia Andegawenów, Kraków
  2. Wolf 1993, p. xliii.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Engel 2001, p. 169.
  4. 1 2 3 Halecki 1991, p. 78.
  5. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 56.
  6. 1 2 Jackson 1999, p. 190.
  7. Sroka 1999, p. 54.
  8. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 93.
  9. Sroka 1999, pp. 54–55.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Gromada 1999, p. 434.
  11. Halecki 1991, p. 89.
  12. 1 2 Davies 2005, p. 90.
  13. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 58.
  14. Sedlar 1994, pp. 39–40.
  15. 1 2 3 4 Frost 2015, p. 8.
  16. Halecki 1991, pp. 65, 93.
  17. 1 2 3 Engel 2001, p. 170.
  18. Halecki 1991, p. 65.
  19. Halecki 1991, pp. 64–65.
  20. Halecki 1991, p. 71.
  21. Halecki 1991, p. 52.
  22. Frost 2015, pp. 8, 10.
  23. Halecki 1991, pp. 72–73.
  24. Halecki 1991, p. 73.
  25. 1 2 Engel 2001, p. 173.
  26. 1 2 3 Halecki 1991, p. 75.
  27. 1 2 3 4 5 Frost 2015, p. 10.
  28. Engel 2001, p. 195.
  29. Monter 2012, p. 195.
  30. Halecki 1991, p. 97.
  31. 1 2 3 Halecki 1991, p. 99.
  32. 1 2 3 4 Halecki 1991, p. 100.
  33. Halecki 1991, pp. 66, 100.
  34. Halecki 1991, pp. 69–70.
  35. Frost 2015, p. 11.
  36. 1 2 3 4 5 Halecki 1991, p. 101.
  37. Frost 2015, p. 15.
  38. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 104.
  39. 1 2 Deletant 1986, p. 202.
  40. Halecki 1991, pp. 71, 104.
  41. Halecki 1991, pp. 103–104.
  42. 1 2 3 4 Halecki 1991, p. 106.
  43. Halecki 1991, pp. 101, 106.
  44. 1 2 3 4 Halecki 1991, p. 107.
  45. Halecki 1991, pp. 107–108.
  46. 1 2 3 4 Halecki 1991, p. 108.
  47. Frost 2015, p. 16.
  48. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 109.
  49. Jackson 1999, p. 188.
  50. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 113.
  51. The Annals of Jan Długosz (A.D. 1384), p. 344.
  52. Davies 2005, p. 91.
  53. 1 2 Frost 2015, p. 17 (note 38).
  54. Knoll 2011, p. 37.
  55. Halecki 1991, pp. 114–115.
  56. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 114.
  57. Halecki 1991, p. 116.
  58. Frost 2015, p. 17.
  59. Halecki 1991, pp. 116–117.
  60. 1 2 Frost 2015, pp. 17, 33.
  61. Halecki 1991, p. 117.
  62. Halecki 1991, p. 118.
  63. Halecki 1991, pp. 121–123.
  64. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 123.
  65. Frost 2015, p. 3.
  66. 1 2 The Annals of Jan Długosz (A.D. 1385), p. 345.
  67. Halecki 1991, p. 127.
  68. Halecki 1991, p. 129.
  69. Halecki 1991, pp. 127, 129.
  70. 1 2 3 4 Frost 2015, p. 34.
  71. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 130.
  72. Halecki 1991, p. 131.
  73. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 132.
  74. Halecki 1991, p. 132-135.
  75. Halecki 1991, pp. 132–133.
  76. 1 2 3 Halecki 1991, p. 135.
  77. The Annals of Jan Długosz (A.D. 1385 and 1386), pp. 346–347.
  78. Halecki 1991, pp. 134–135.
  79. The Annals of Jan Długosz (A.D. 1385), p. 346.
  80. Halecki 1991, p. 138.
  81. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 139.
  82. 1 2 Davies 2005, p. 95.
  83. Frost 2015, pp. 47, 50.
  84. Gromada 1999, pp. 434–435.
  85. Frost 2015, pp. 34, 47.
  86. Halecki 1991, p. 157.
  87. Halecki 1991, pp. 139–140.
  88. 1 2 Frost 2015, p. 4.
  89. Frost 2015, p. 49.
  90. Halecki 1991, p. 147.
  91. 1 2 3 Monter 2012, p. 74.
  92. Frost 2015, pp. 49–50.
  93. Halecki 1991, pp. 150–151.
  94. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 152.
  95. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 155.
  96. 1 2 3 Halecki 1991, p. 160.
  97. The Annals of Jan Długosz (A.D. 1386), p. 348.
  98. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 158.
  99. Halecki 1991, pp. 157–159.
  100. Engel 2001, p. 198.
  101. Engel 2001, pp. 198–199.
  102. Halecki 1991, p. 164.
  103. Halecki 1991, pp. 165–166.
  104. 1 2 Gromada 1999, p. 435.
  105. 1 2 3 Halecki 1991, p. 166.
  106. 1 2 3 Deletant 1986, p. 203.
  107. Halecki 1991, p. 156.
  108. Halecki 1991, pp. 167–168.
  109. 1 2 3 Halecki 1991, p. 170.
  110. Halecki 1991, pp. 137, 180.
  111. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 180.
  112. Engel 2001, p. 199.
  113. Halecki 1991, p. 194.
  114. Halecki 1991, pp. 195–197.
  115. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 198.
  116. Halecki 1991, pp. 200–201.
  117. Halecki 1991, p. 207.
  118. 1 2 3 Halecki 1991, p. 211.
  119. Halecki 1991, p. 199.
  120. 1 2 3 Halecki 1991, p. 214.
  121. 1 2 Engel 2001, p. 201.
  122. Halecki 1991, p. 220.
  123. Halecki 1991, p. 221.
  124. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 222.
  125. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 224.
  126. Halecki 1991, pp. 223–224.
  127. Halecki 1991, p. 225.
  128. Halecki 1991, pp. 226–227.
  129. Halecki 1991, pp. 230–233.
  130. Halecki 1991, p. 233.
  131. Halecki 1991, pp. 234–235.
  132. Halecki 1991, p. 235.
  133. 1 2 3 4 5 Frost 2015, p. 89.
  134. Halecki 1991, pp. 236–237.
  135. Halecki 1991, p. 237.
  136. Halecki 1991, pp. 236, 238.
  137. Halecki 1991, p. 240.
  138. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 247.
  139. Halecki 1991, p. 241.
  140. 1 2 Halecki 1991, pp. 242–243.
  141. Halecki 1991, pp. 243–244.
  142. Halecki 1991, p. 244.
  143. Halecki 1991, p. 245.
  144. Halecki 1991, p. 252.
  145. Halecki 1991, pp. 252–253.
  146. 1 2 Halecki 1991, pp. 256–257.
  147. 1 2 3 Halecki 1991, p. 257.
  148. 1 2 Jasienica 1988.
  149. Norman Davies (2005). "Jadwiga (chapter Jogalia)". God's Playground: A History of Poland in Two Volumes, Volume 1. Oxford University Press. pp. 94–96. ISBN 0-19-925339-0. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
  150. Stanisław Waltos (2004). "The Past and the Present". Jagiellonian University's web page. Jagiellonian University. Retrieved 2006-08-04.
  151. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Frost 2015, p. 91.
  152. Brzezińska 1999, pp. 407–408.
  153. Halecki 1991, pp. 264–265.
  154. Halecki 1991, p. 365.
  155. 1 2 3 Gromada 1999, p. 433.
  156. 1 2 3 4 5 Gromada 1999, p. 436.
  157. Halecki 1991, p. 263.
  158. Halecki 1991, p. 265.
  159. 1 2 Davies 2005, p. 80.
  160. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 262.
  161. 1 2 Halecki 1991, pp. 261–262.
  162. 1 2 3 Gromada 1999, p. 437.
  163. Halecki 1991, pp. 82, 90.
  164. Engel 2001, pp. 170–171.
  165. 1 2 Halecki 1991, p. 115.
  166. 1 2 3 4 5 Brzezińska 1999, p. 408.
  167. Catholic World Culture Chapter XXIII, pp. 146–151

Sources

Primary sources

  • The Annals of Jan Długosz (An English abridgement by Maurice Michael, with commentary by Paul Smith) (1997). IM Publications. ISBN 1-901019-00-4.

Secondary sources

  • Brzezińska, Anna (1999). "Jadwiga of Anjou as the Image of a Good Queen in Late Medieval and Early Modern Poland". The Polish Review. The Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences of America. XLIV (4): 407–437. 
  • Davies, Norman (2005). God's Playground: A History of Poland, Volume I: The Origins to 1795 (Revised Edition). Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-12817-9. 
  • Deletant, Dennis (1986). "Moldavia between Hungary and Poland, 1347–1412". The Slavonic and East European Review. 64 (2): 189–211. 
  • Engel, Pál (2001). The Realm of St Stephen: A History of Medieval Hungary, 895–1526. I.B. Tauris Publishers. ISBN 1-86064-061-3. 
  • Frost, Robert I. (2015). The Oxford History of Poland-Lithuania, Volume I: The Making of the Polish-Lithuanian Union, 1385–1567. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-820869-3. 
  • Gromada, Thaddeus V. (1999). "Oscar Halecki's Vision of Saint Jadwiga of Anjou". The Polish Review. The Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences of America. XLIV (4): 433–437. 
  • Halecki, Oscar (1991). Jadwiga of Anjou and the Rise of East Central Europe. Polish Institute of Arts and Sciences of America. ISBN 0-88033-206-9. 
  • Jackson, Guida M. (1999). Women Rulers Throughout the Ages: An Illustrated Guide. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 1-57607-091-3. 
  • Jasienica, Paweł (1988). Polska Jagiellonów [Jagellonian Poland] (in Polish). Państwowy Instytut Wydawniczy. ISBN 83-06-01796-X. 
  • Knoll, Paul W. (2011). "Religious Toleration in Sixteenth-Century Poland: Political Realities and Social Constraints". In Louthan, Howard; Cohen, Gary B.; Szabo, Franz A. J. Diversity and Dissent: Negotiating Religious Difference in Central Europe, 1500–1800. Berghahn Books. pp. 30–52. ISBN 978-0-85745-108-8. 
  • Monter, William (2012). The Rise of Female Kings in Europe, 1300–1800. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-17327-7. 
  • Sedlar, Jean W. (1994). East Central Europe in the Middle Ages, 1000–1500. University of Washington Press. ISBN 0-295-97290-4. 
  • Sroka, Stanisław Andrzej (1999). Genealogia Andegawenów węgierskich [Genealogy of the Hungarian Angevins] (in Polish). Towarzystwo Naukowe Societas Vistulana. ISBN 83-909094-1-3. 
  • Wolf, Armin (1993). "Reigning Queens in Medieval Europe: When, Where, and Why". In Parsons, John Carmi. Medieval Queenship. Sutton Publishing. pp. 169–188. ISBN 0-7509-1831-4. 

Further reading

  • Heinze, Karl (8 December 2003). Baltic Sagas. Virtualbookworm Publishing. ISBN 1-58939-498-4. 
  • Kellogg, Charlotte (1931). Jadwiga, Poland's Great Queen. The Macmillan Company. 
  • Rowell, S. C. (2006). "1386: the Marriage of Jogaila and Jadwiga embodies the union of Lithuania and Poland". Lithuanian Historical Studies. Lietuvos istorijos institutas. 11: 137–144. ISSN 1392-2343. 
  • Lukowski, Jerzy; Hubert Zawadzki (20 September 2001). A Concise History of Poland. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-55917-0. 
  • Turnbull, Stephen; Richard Hook (30 May 2003). Tannenberg 1410. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-84176-561-9. 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
Jadwiga of Poland
Born: 1373/4 Died: 17 July 1399
Regnal titles
Vacant
Title last held by
Louis
King of Poland
1384–1399
with Vladislaus II (1386–1399)
Succeeded by
Vladislaus II
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