Jelena Lijepa
Encyclopedia
Helen II the Beautiful was Queen consort
of Croatia
.
princess and was the daughter of Árpád dynasty
's King Bela I, sister to King Ladislaus I of Hungary, granddaughter of Polish
King Mieszko II Lambert
, and a great-granddaughter of Tsar
Samuil of Bulgaria
.
She became Queen of Croatia during her marriage with Croatia
n King Dmitar Zvonimir, a distant relative whom she married in 1063. They had a son, Radovan, who died in his late teens or early twenties.
Helen had excellent family connections, being an aunt to Ladislaus' daughter Piroska (who adopted the name Irene after converting to the orthodox rite), the mother of future Byzantine Emperor Manuel I and the wife of the Emperor John II Komnenos
.
Helen was very popular with the Croatians, and they often called her Jelena Lijepa (Helen the Beautiful). She is thought to have been a joint ruler with her husband Zvonimir, and they saw their kingdom expand during his 14-year rule until his death in 1089. Upon the death of King Zvonimir, Helen was said to have been quietly plotting the inheritance of the Croatian Crown for her brother, the King of Hungary, which caused a decade of war and instability in the kingdom. Helen died around 1091.
She is not to be confused with Helen I of Croatia, who was the wife of Mihajlo Krešimir II
in the 10th century.
Queen consort
A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king. A queen consort usually shares her husband's rank and holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles. Historically, queens consort do not share the king regnant's political and military powers. Most queens in history were queens consort...
of Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
.
Biography
Helen was born a HungarianKingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
princess and was the daughter of Árpád dynasty
Árpád dynasty
The Árpáds or Arpads was the ruling dynasty of the federation of the Hungarian tribes and of the Kingdom of Hungary . The dynasty was named after Grand Prince Árpád who was the head of the tribal federation when the Magyars occupied the Carpathian Basin, circa 895...
's King Bela I, sister to King Ladislaus I of Hungary, granddaughter of Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
King Mieszko II Lambert
Mieszko II Lambert
Mieszko II Lambert was King of Poland during 1025–1031, and Duke from 1032 until his death.He was the second son of Bolesław I the Brave, but the eldest born from his third wife Emmilda, daughter of Dobromir, possible ruler of Lusatia. He was probably named after his paternal grandfather, Mieszko I...
, and a great-granddaughter of Tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
Samuil of Bulgaria
Samuil of Bulgaria
Samuel was the Emperor of the First Bulgarian Empire from 997 to 6 October 1014. From 980 to 997, he was a general under Roman I of Bulgaria, the second surviving son of Emperor Peter I of Bulgaria, and co-ruled with him, as Roman bestowed upon him the command of the army and the effective royal...
.
She became Queen of Croatia during her marriage with Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n King Dmitar Zvonimir, a distant relative whom she married in 1063. They had a son, Radovan, who died in his late teens or early twenties.
Helen had excellent family connections, being an aunt to Ladislaus' daughter Piroska (who adopted the name Irene after converting to the orthodox rite), the mother of future Byzantine Emperor Manuel I and the wife of the Emperor John II Komnenos
John II Komnenos
John II Komnenos was Byzantine Emperor from 1118 to 1143. Also known as Kaloïōannēs , he was the eldest son of Emperor Alexios I Komnenos and Irene Doukaina...
.
Helen was very popular with the Croatians, and they often called her Jelena Lijepa (Helen the Beautiful). She is thought to have been a joint ruler with her husband Zvonimir, and they saw their kingdom expand during his 14-year rule until his death in 1089. Upon the death of King Zvonimir, Helen was said to have been quietly plotting the inheritance of the Croatian Crown for her brother, the King of Hungary, which caused a decade of war and instability in the kingdom. Helen died around 1091.
She is not to be confused with Helen I of Croatia, who was the wife of Mihajlo Krešimir II
Mihajlo Krešimir II
Michael Krešimir II was a King of Croatia from 949 to his death in 969. He was a member of the House of Trpimir. Krešimir II was a son of Krešimir I and the younger brother of Miroslav, who preceded him as King of Croatia in 945....
in the 10th century.
External links
- http://members.tripod.com/royalcroatia/zvonimir.htm