Elizabeth of Austria (1436–1505)

For other people named Elisabeth of Austria, see Elisabeth of Austria (disambiguation).

Elisabeth of Austria
Queen consort of Poland Grand Duchess consort of Lithuania
Tenure	1454-1492
Spouse	Casimir IV of Poland
Issue	Vladislas II of Hungary Hedwig, Duchess of Bavaria Saint Casimir John I Albert of Poland Alexander Jagiellon Sigismund I the Old Barbara, Duchess of Saxony Sophia, Margravine of Brandenburg
House	House of Habsburg (by birth) House of Jagiellon (by marriage)
Father	Albert II of Germany
Mother	Elisabeth of Bohemia

Elisabeth of Austria (1436 – 30 August 1505), (in Polish Elżbieta Rakuszanka, Hungarian: Erzsébet), was a Polish-Lithuanian queen. In Polish, she is known as Elżbieta Rakuszanka and Elżbieta Austriaczka, both names meaning Elisabeth of Austria, or Elżbieta Habsburżanka, meaning Elisabeth of Habsburg.

Biography

Elisabeth was the daughter of Albert II of Germany (1397–1439) and his wife Elisabeth of Bohemia (1409–42). She married on 10 March 1454 King Casimir IV of Poland (Kazimierz Jagellon, 1427–92), monarch of Poland and Lithuania. Four of her sons became king, thus she is also called "mother of the Jagiellons" (or "mother of kings").

After the 1457 childless death of Elisabeth's brother, king Ladislas Posthumous, she and her family started to advance their claims to the thrones of Bohemia and Hungary. Ultimately, her eldest son became elected to both monarchies.

Her younger sons, in turn, became monarchs of Poland and Lithuania.

Upon the death of her brother Ladislas, his remaining heiresses shared the inherited rights in a way which put all their mother's rights to Polish principalities to Elisabeth and her children. Elisabeth's said mother, also named Elisabeth, was the only child of late Emperor Sigismund, himself the eldest son and heir of her mother, yet one Elisabeth, a daughter of ducal Pomeranian dynasty and the ultimate heiress of her mother, Elisabeth of Poland, the eldest daughter of Casimir III of Poland who also had inherited the principality of Kujavia (the elder branch of Masovia-Sandomir) and some rights to successions in parts of Greater Poland and Silesian principalities (Wladyslaw the Short's wife was from Poznan branch and mother from Wroclaw and Legnica branch). Since 1431, no other legitimate descendants of Casimir III survived than Elisabeth of Pomerania's. This was the way some ancient Piast estate property passed to the Jagiellons.

In 1467 she renounced her claim to the Duchy of Luxembourg to Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, whose father had bought the territory in 1443 from Elisabeth, Duchess of Luxembourg.

Casimir and Elisabeth had the following children:

• Vladislaus II of Bohemia and Hungary (1456–1516), who became elected to thrones earlier held by Elisabeth's parents (Wladyslaw, Vladislav, Ulaszlo)
• Hedwig (1457–1502). Duchess of Bavaria in Landshut, wife of Duke George.
• Saint Casimir (Kazimierz) (1458–84)
• John I Albert of Poland (Jan Olbracht, Jan Wojciech) (1459–1501)
• Alexander (1461–1506) of Lithuania, then also of Poland
• Sophia (Zofia) (1464–1512). Margravine of Brandenburg in Ansbach, wife of Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach and mother of Albert of Prussia
• Elisabeth (Elżbieta) (1465–66)
• Sigismund I of Poland (Zygmunt) (1467–1548)
• Frederick (Fryderyk) (1468–1503) cardinal-archbishop of Gniezno.
• Elisabeth (Elżbieta II) (1472–80)
• Anna (1476–1503). Duchess of Pomerania, wife of Duke Bogislas X.
• Barbara (1478–1534). Duchess of Sacony, wife of George, Duke of Saxony.
• Elisabeth (Elżbieta III)(1482–1517). Duchess of Legnica in Silesia, wife of Duke Frederick II.

Ancestors

Family of Elizabeth of Austria (1436–1505)

16. Albert II, Duke of Austria 8. Albert III, Duke of Austria 17. Joanna of Pfirt 4. Albert IV, Duke of Austria 18. Frederick V, Burgrave of Nuremberg 9. Beatrix of Nuremberg 19. Elisabeth of Meissen 2. Albert II of Germany 20. Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor 10. Albert I, Duke of Bavaria 21. Margaret II, Countess of Hainault 5. Johanna Sophia of Bavaria 22. Louis I, Duke of Brieg 11. Margaret of Brieg 23. Agnes of Sagan 1. Elisabeth of Austria 24. John of Bohemia 12. Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor 25. Elisabeth of Bohemia 6. Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor 26. Bogislaw V, Duke of Pomerania 13. Elizabeth of Pomerania 27. Elisabeth of Poland 3. Elisabeth of Bohemia 28. Hermann I, Count of Cilli 14. Hermann II, Count of Celje 29. Catherine of Bosnia 7. Barbara of Cilli 30. Henry VII, Count of Schaunberg 15. Anna of Schaunberg 31. Ursula of Görz

See also

• Ancestors of Nicholas II of Russia