Euphrosyne (daughter of Mieszko IV Tanglefoot)

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Euphrosyne
Princess of Racibórz and Opole, probably Lady of Kraków
Bornat the latest at the end of the 12th century
DiedMay 23 or 25, at the earliest with the beginning of the 13th century
Husbandprobably one of the von Woldenberg counts
DynastyPiast dynasty
FatherMieszko IV Tanglefoot
MotherLudmila

Euphrosyne (born no later than the end of the 12th century,[1] died on May 23 or 25, earliest in the beginning of the 13th century)[2] was a princess of Racibórz and Opole, and probably also of Kraków between 1210 and 1211,[3] the daughter of Duke Mieszko IV Tanglefoot and Ludmila (most likely from the Přemyslid dynasty).

Early life[edit]

Origins[edit]

Euphrosyne's father was Duke Mieszko IV Tanglefoot. Presumably, between 1170 and 1180,[4] he married Ludmila, who probably hailed from the Přemyslid dynasty.[5] Researchers most commonly identify her as the daughter of either Otto III Detleb, the Duke of Olomouc, and Durancia,[6] or the son of the aforementioned couple, Włodzimierz, and his (unnamed) spouse.[7] There have also been isolated theories suggesting that Euphrosyne's mother was the daughter of the Bohemian Duke Soběslav I and the Croatian Princess Adelaide,[8] or the child of one of Soběslav's brothers.[9] From the marriage of Mieszko and Ludmila, most likely, five children were born: Kazimierz, Ludmiła, Agnieszka, Euphrosyne, and Ryksa.[10]

Euphrosyne was born no later than the end of the 12th century.[1] She was the first representative of the Piast dynasty to bear this name.[1] The reason for bestowing this name upon Mieszko Tanglefoot's daughter remains unclear. It is speculated that this name may have appeared in the Piast dynasty through Euphrosyne's maternal grandmother, who probably hailed from the Rurik dynasty. If that grandmother was Durancia, then Euphrosyne's name would allude to Durancia's presumed sister, Euphrosyne of Kiev (the wife of the Hungarian King Géza II).[11] After her, the name was given to her niece, the daughter of Casimir I of Opole, the Duchess of Kujawy.[12]

Associations with the monastery in Rybnik[edit]

Monastery in Czarnowąsy, founded by the family of Euphrosyne

The only information about the daughters of Mieszko and Ludmila is found in Nekrolog czarnowąski. Under the dates of January 14, May 9, and May 25, the deaths of three ducal daughters are recorded: Ludmila, Agnieszka, and Euphrosyne, respectively.[13] The source names Ludmila and Agnieszka as heiresses of the convent founded at the initiative of Duchess Ludmila between 1203 and 1207[14] in Rybnik near Racibórz, later transferred to Czarnowąsy. Nekrolog Czarnowąski does not list Euphrosyne as an heiress of the convent, recording only under May 25: Euphrosina ducissa Mesconis filia (Latin).[15] It is suspected that the princess was not closely associated with the Premonstratensians and, being an adult at the time, resided away from the convent in Rybnik.[16]

Possible marriage in Germany[edit]

According to some researchers, Euphrosyne died as a German countess. The basis for this assumption is an entry in the female necrology of the Augustinian convent in Derneburg, currently located in the municipality of Holle in Lower Saxony, placed under the date of May 23: (E)uffrosina polonika et cometissa obiit coma [?] (Latin).[1]

This entry was first interpreted in relation to Euphrosyne by 19th-century German historiography.[17] Initially, Polish historiography approached this identification skeptically.[18] However, currently, Polish literature also identifies both Euphrosynes.[19] Researchers point out the coincidence of names, dates of death, and the origin of both women.[20] Probably, the princess became the wife of one of the Saxon counts. At that time, the greatest benefactors of the Derneburg monastery were the counts of Wöltingerode and Woldenberg. However, the first of these families had its own monastery in Wöltingerode, so it is assumed that Euphrosyne's husband was a count from Woldenberg.[16]

According to historians, Euphrosyne from Opole died on May 23 or 25 in an unknown year in the 13th century.[21]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Jasiński (2007, p. 504)
  2. ^ Jasiński (2007, Table V/1)
  3. ^ It is not known whether Eufrozyna lived to see her father's assumption of power in Kraków, which is widely assumed to have occurred in 1210 (Horwat (1995, pp. 217, 218)). The supposition (Horwat (1995, pp. 215–217)), that Mieszko Tanglefoot was also Prince of Kraków in 1195–1197, and Edward Rymar's theory that he ruled in Cracow and died as early as 1206, have been questioned (Mika (2006, pp. 149, 150 and 162–165) and Dmochowski & Sikorski (2007, p. 163)). Mika (2006, pp. 160–162, 166 and 167) put forward the thesis that Mieszko's reign in Kraków was exclusively in 1211.
  4. ^ Jasiński (2007, p. 68) assumed that the marriage was concluded between 1170 and 1178, while favoring a date closer to the end date. In contrast, Mika (2006, p. 88) stated that the wedding took place between 1172 and 1180.
  5. ^ Jasiński (2007, p. 68), Mika (2006, pp. 86–90)
  6. ^ This hypothesis was put forward by Witold Brzeziński (Mika (2006, pp. 86–88)). Brzeziński's theory was supported by, among others, Dąbrowski (2008, p. 650, Footnote 2848)
  7. ^ This conjecture was made by Mika (2006, pp. 86–88), on the basis of the record of Włodzimierz's death in the Obituary of Černovsk. Mika's hypothesis was questioned by Dąbrowski (2008, p. 650, Footnote 2848), concluding that the note about Włodzimierz may have appeared in the obituary due to a different kind of close relationship with Ludmila.
  8. ^ This view was put forward by Horwat (2007, pp. 22, 23), supposing that Ludmilla was born around 1140, just before the death of her parents, and grew up at the court of her brother Sobiesław II, who arranged her marriage to Duke Mieszko. Horwat's theory has been found unsubstantiated by researchers (Dmochowski & Sikorski (2007, pp. 157, 158)).
  9. ^ Benedict Zientara's hypothesis. Mika (2006, p. 86) found this conjecture unconfirmed by any source account.
  10. ^ A document from 1209, in which Mieszko Tanglefoot's son named Władysław appears, is a forgery, while Władysław Spindleshanks mentioned in Długosz as Tanglefoot's son was in fact Mieszko III's son (Mika (2006, pp. 90, 91)). Historians also reject the existence of Mieszko's son named Bolesław, since the documents on which he appears are forgeries or the question of their dating (wrong dates on the original messages) is problematic (Mika (2006, pp. 92, 93)).
  11. ^ The origin of Durancia is not sufficiently confirmed in the sources (Dąbrowski (2008, pp. 649–651)). The Ruthenian origin of the name of Mieszko's daughter was advocated by: Jasiński (2007, p. 505, Footnote 2), Mika (2006, p. 87), and Dąbrowski (2008, pp. 650, 651)
  12. ^ Jasiński (2007, p. 514)
  13. ^ Mika (2006, p. 93)
  14. ^ Ludmila's independent initiative is indicated by the documents of Mieszko and Ludmila's son, Casimir, and the Silesian prince Henry the Bearded, as well as the naming of Ludmila prima fundatrix huius loci in the monastery's obituary (Śliwiński (2007, pp. 23, 24)). Mika (2006, p. 116) notes that the foundation of the monastery in Rybnik was a joint initiative of the spouses, while Horwat (1995, p. 219) dates the foundation of the monastery to the time before 1198, during the reign of Bishop Żyrosław of Wrocław.
  15. ^ Jasiński (2007, p. 505, Footnote 1)
  16. ^ a b Mika (2006, p. 94)
  17. ^ This record was referred to Euphrosyne of Opole by H. Markgraf, followed by H. Grotefend (Jasiński (2007, p. 504, Footnote 4)).
  18. ^ Jasiński (2007, pp. 504, 505, Footnote 7) pointed out two doubts. First, Nekrolog czarnowąski listed only Opole Piastesses who died in the territory of the Duchy of Opole. Second, the obituary should have included the title of Piastess, which she would have held if she had been married to some German aristocrat.
  19. ^ Mika (2006, pp. 93, 94)
  20. ^ The sameness of the names and the similarity of date of death and ethnic identity was first pointed out by Jasiński (2007, p. 505, Footnote 5), which was repeated by Mika (2006, p. 93)
  21. ^ Jasiński (2007, p. 504) stated that Euphrosyne died on May 25 in the 13th century. In view of the identification of Euphrosyne as a German countess, the date of May 23 is also considered (Mika (2006, pp. 93, 94)). Grotefend (1889, p. 8) in a genealogical table of the princes of Opole, has dated Euphrosyne's death to May 25 (or 23), knowing most likely the record from the Derneburg monastery. Rajman (1999, p. 718) gave an incorrect daily date for Euphrosyne's death: May 22. In addition, he concluded that her death occurred in the early 13th century.

Bibliography[edit]

  • Dąbrowski, Dariusz (2008). Genealogia Mścisławowiczów. Pierwsze pokolenia (do początku XIV wieku). Kraków: Avalon. ISBN 978-83-60448-55-7.
  • Dmochowski, P. A.; Sikorski, A. (2007). Górzyński, S. (ed.). "Piastowie górnośląscy". Rocznik Polskiego Towarzystwa Heraldycznego. IX (XX). Bytom: DiG. ISSN 1230-803X.
  • Grotefend, Hermann (1889). Stammtafeln der schlesischen Fürsten bis zum Jahre 1740. Wrocław: Josef Max & Comp.
  • Horwat, J. (1995). "Mieszko Plątonogi, książę raciborski, opolski oraz krakowski 1131–1211". In Bukowski, W.; Ożóg, Krzysztof; Sikora, F.; Szczur, Stanisław (eds.). Cracovia–Polonia–Europa. Studia z dziejów średniowiecza ofiarowane Jerzemu Wyrozumskiemu w sześćdziesiątą piątą rocznicę urodzin i czterdziestolecie pracy naukowej. Kraków: Secesja. ISBN 83-86077-67-0.
  • Horwat, J. (2007). "Piastowie górnośląscy". Rocznik Muzeum Górnośląskiego w Bytomiu (8). Bytom: Historia. ISSN 0068-4651.
  • Jasiński, Kazimierz (2007). Rodowód Piastów śląskich. Vol. II. Kraków: Avalon. ISBN 978-83-60448-28-1.
  • Mika, Norbert (2006). Mieszko syn Władysława II Wygnańca, książę raciborski i pan Krakowa – dzielnicowy władca Polski. Racibórz: WAW. ISBN 83-89802-21-X.
  • Rajman, Jerzy (1999). "Eufrozyna". In Ożóg, Krzysztof; Szczur, Stanisław (eds.). Piastowie. Leksykon biograficzny. Kraków: Wydawnictwo Literackie. ISBN 83-08-02829-2.
  • Śliwiński, B. (2007). Rajman, J. (ed.). "Okoliczności fundacji klasztoru norbertanek w Stołpie-Żukowie pod Gdańskiem". Annales Academiae Paedagogicae Cracoviensis 40, Studia Historica 5. Kraków: Wydawnictwo Naukowe Akademii Pedagogicznej. ISSN 1643-6547.
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