Božena († after 1052) was probably mistress and second wife of duke Oldřich of Bohemia

Oldrich of Bohemia

Ulrich was the duke of Bohemia from 1012 to 1033 and briefly in 1034. He was a son of Boleslaus II and brother of Boleslaus III and Jaromir....

, mother of Břetislav I

Bretislaus I of Bohemia

Bretislaus I , known as Bohemian Achilles, of the house of the Přemyslids, was the duke of Bohemia from 1035 till death.-Youth:...

.

Meeting of Oldřich and Božena

Historian Cosmas of Prague

Cosmas of Prague

Cosmas of Prague was a Bohemian priest, writer and historian born in a noble family in Bohemia. Between 1075 and 1081, he studied in Liège. After his return to Bohemia, he became a priest and married Božetěcha, with whom he probably had a son. In 1086 Cosmas was appointed prebendary of Prague, a...

 took down the legend of Oldřich and Božena, the mother of his only son, in his Chronica Boëmorum ("Chronicle of Bohemians"). According to the legend, young (and married) Oldřich set out on a hunt and travelled to Peruc. There, he spied a beautiful peasant

Peasant

A peasant is an agricultural worker who generally tend to be poor and homeless-Etymology:The word is derived from 15th century French païsant meaning one from the pays, or countryside, ultimately from the Latin pagus, or outlying administrative district.- Position in society :Peasants typically...

 girl, Božena, by a well (known today as Božena's spring)
and was immediately entranced by her.

Oldřich abandoned his hunt and took Božena back to Prague

Prague

Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

, and she eventually gave birth to his illegitimate son Bretislaus

Bretislaus I of Bohemia

Bretislaus I , known as Bohemian Achilles, of the house of the Přemyslids, was the duke of Bohemia from 1035 till death.-Youth:...

. In the legend, Oldřich's first meeting with Božena took place in sight of the Oldřich Oak.

Cosmas may have been inspired during his study abroad. In fact, Oldřich's lover was the savior of the House of Přemysl. Oldřich had two brothers, but one of them, Jaromír, was castrated by the eldest sibling, Boleslaus III. Boleslaus was imprisoned in Poland, possibly having only a daughter. So Oldřich was the one Přemyslid able to have a son and heir, but his first wife is thought to have born no children.