Elizabeth of Frankopan
Elizabeth of Frankopan | |
|---|---|
| Countess of Celje | |
 Actress Marija Vera in the role of Elizabeth of Frankopan in Oton Župančič's play Veronika of Desenice (1924) | |
| Born | 1386 Modruš |
| Died | 1422 Krapina |
| Noble family | Frankopan |
| Spouse(s) | Frederick II of Celje |
| Issue | Ulrich II of Celje |
| Father | Stephen II of Krk |
| Mother | Catherine of Carrara |
Elizabeth of Frankopan (Template:Lang-sl, Template:Lang-hr, Template:Lang-hu, 1386–1422 or 1423), was the first wife of Frederick II of Celje, son and heir to Count Hermann II, Ban of Slavonia. By virtue of her marriage, she became the sister-in-law of the Hungarian Queen Barbara of Celje. Her marriage was troubled by disagreements with her housband, and in 1422 or 1423 she was found killed in her bed.[1] The main suspect for the murder was her husband, who later married Veronika of Desenice, a woman of humble origin.[2] The affair deteriorated the relations between the Houses of Celje and Frankopan, and led to a long-lasting feud between Elizabeth widower Frederick and her cousin Ivan of Frankopan.[3] In the 19th and 20th century, Elizabeth's fate became the source of many literary and artistic adaptations in Slovenian, Croatian, and Hungarian culture.
Early life and betrothal
Elizabeth was born as the daughter of Stephen, lord of Krk, Modruš and Senj in Croatia, then a kingdom in personal union with Hungary.[4] Her mother was Catherine of Carrara, daughter of Francesco I da Carrara, Lord of Padua.[5] When she was two, she was betrothed to Frederick, the firstborn son of Count Hermann II of Celje, the powerful captain (governor) of Carniola and cousin of Queen Mary of Hungary.[6] Her father set aside a dowery of 40.000 golden ducats, an enormous sum for the time.[7] In addition, the dowry would include half of the island of Krk, the town of Bakar and the nearby fortresses of Trsat, Bribir, and Vinodol.[8] The unsually large dowry can be explained with Elizabeth being Stephen's only child, and was thus a way to transfer as much land and wealth to his descendands.
After Stephen's death in 1390, Elizabeth was under the tutelage of her paternal uncle Ivan (John) V of Frankopan, and the negotiations around the marriage and the dowry became more complicated. Finally, the sum of the money was cut in half, but Elizabeth was to receive the estate of Steničnjak in Slavonia, with the strategically important castle of Skrad, instead.[9] Elizabeth was married to the Celje scion around 1405.[10]
Troublesome marriage and death
Elizabeth and Frederick had two sons, Ulrich II of Celje and Frederick III; the latter would die as a child, while the former would inherit the entire Celje legacy.[11] The marriage seems to have been an unhappy one, since the spouses lived separately from at least 1415 onward.[12] In 1422 (or 1423, according to other sources), Elizabeth was murdered in her chambers in the Castle of Krapina.[13] Her murder caused a serious rift in the already precarious alliance between the Houses of Celje and Frankopan; according to the sources friendly to the latter, Elizabeth was in fact killed by her housband.[14] Frederick went on to marry Veronika of Desenice, a woman of much lower social standing, which caused the fury of his father Hermann II, and led to Frederick's imprisonment and Veronika's murder.
Notes
- ^ Fugger Germadnik, Rolanda (2006), K zvezdam in nazaj: Ob 550-letnici smrti poslednjega grofa celjskega, Celje: Pokrajinski muzej Celje. P. 16
- ^ https://www.slovenska-biografija.si/oseba/sbi776191/
- ^ Dvorakova, Daniela (2019), Barbara Celjska. Črna kraljica, Celje: Mohorjeva družba. Pp. 133-35
- ^ Dvorakova, Daniela (2019), Barbara Celjska. Črna kraljica, Celje: Mohorjeva družba. P. 133
- ^ Šercer, Marija (2011), "Žene Frankopanke", In Modruški zbornik, Vol. 4-5 No. 4-5, 2011. Pp. 21-81
- ^ Štih, Peter (1999), "Ulrik II. Celjski in Ladislav Posmrtni ali Celjski grofje v ringu visoke politike" In. Štih, Peter & Grdina, Igor, eds., Spomini Helene Kottanner, Ljubljana: Založba Nove revije. P. 15
- ^ Dvorakova, Daniela (2019), Barbara Celjska. Črna kraljica, Celje: Mohorjeva družba. Pp. 133
- ^ Štih, Peter (1999), "Ulrik II. Celjski in Ladislav Posmrtni ali Celjski grofje v ringu visoke politike" In. Štih, Peter & Grdina, Igor, eds., Spomini Helene Kottanner, Ljubljana: Založba Nove revije. P. 15
- ^ Klaić, Nada (1991). Zadnji knezi Celjski v deželah Sv. Krone. Ljubljana-Celje: Založba Prese, pp. 40-41
- ^ https://www.slovenska-biografija.si/oseba/sbi776191/
- ^ Grdina, Igor (1994). Celjski knezi v Evropi. Celje: Fit-Media, p. 250
- ^ Klaić, Nada (1991). Zadnji knezi Celjski v deželah Sv. Krone. Ljubljana-Celje: Založba Prese, pp. 42
- ^ Dvorakova, Daniela (2019), Barbara Celjska. Črna kraljica, Celje: Mohorjeva družba. Pp. 134
- ^ Dvorakova, Daniela (2019), Barbara Celjska. Črna kraljica, Celje: Mohorjeva družba. Pp. 135