Maria of Bulgaria, Latin Empress
Encyclopedia
Maria of Bulgaria was the second Empress consort of Henry of Flanders
, Latin Emperor
of Constantinople
.
. Her mother may have been his wife Anna of Cumania. She went on to marry Boril of Bulgaria
, a nephew of her first husband. Her paternal uncles included Peter IV of Bulgaria
and Ivan Asen I of Bulgaria
. The further ancestry of the Asen dynasty
is uncertain.
and Kingdom of Thessalonica
from the threat of invasion from the Second Bulgarian Empire
. Allowing Henry to turn his attention to facing the Empire of Nicaea
instead. On the other hand, Boril had suffered losses in both men and territory while the war continued. Unable at the moment to expand his borders, he might have seen the alliance as a way to secure his own borders from Latin invasion. In any case the marriage concluded the first phase of the Bulgarian-Latin Wars
.
On 11 June, Henry died in Thessaloniki
. Maria was reportedly suspected of having poisoned him. Her further fate is unknown. Their marriage was childless and Henry was succeeded by his brother-in-law Peter II of Courtenay.
Henry of Flanders
Henry was the second emperor of the Latin Empire of Constantinople. He was a younger son of Baldwin V, Count of Hainaut , and Margaret I of Flanders, sister of Philip of Alsace, count of Flanders....
, Latin Emperor
Latin Empire
The Latin Empire or Latin Empire of Constantinople is the name given by historians to the feudal Crusader state founded by the leaders of the Fourth Crusade on lands captured from the Byzantine Empire. It was established after the capture of Constantinople in 1204 and lasted until 1261...
of Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
.
Family
She was a daughter of Kaloyan of BulgariaKaloyan of Bulgaria
Kaloyan the Romanslayer , Ivan II , ruled as emperor of Bulgaria 1197-1207. He is the third and youngest brother of Peter IV and Ivan Asen I who managed to restore the Bulgarian Empire...
. Her mother may have been his wife Anna of Cumania. She went on to marry Boril of Bulgaria
Boril of Bulgaria
Boril reigned as emperor of Bulgaria from 1207 to 1218. He was the son of an unnamed sister of his predecessor Kaloyan.-Biography:It is unclear whether Boril was party to the murder of Kaloyan in front of the walls of Thessalonica in 1207, but Kaloyan's intended heirs, his nephews Ivan Asen and...
, a nephew of her first husband. Her paternal uncles included Peter IV of Bulgaria
Peter IV of Bulgaria
Peter IV ruled as emperor of Bulgaria 1185–1197. Together with his brother Asen he managed to restore the Bulgarian Empire after nearly 170 years of Byzantine domination.-Name:...
and Ivan Asen I of Bulgaria
Ivan Asen I of Bulgaria
Ivan Asen I ruled as emperor of Bulgaria 1189–1196. The year of his birth is unknown.-Life:...
. The further ancestry of the Asen dynasty
Asen dynasty
The Asen dynasty ruled a medieval Bulgarian state, called in modern historiography the Second Bulgarian Empire, between 1187 and 1280.The Asen dynasty and the Second Bulgarian Empire rose as the leaders of a rebellion against the Byzantine Empire at the turn of the year 1185/1186 caused by the...
is uncertain.
Empress consort
In 1213, Maria married Henry of Flanders of the Latin Empire. According to The Late Medieval Balkans (1987) by John V.A. Fine, the marriage was part of an alliance between her stepfather Boril and Henry. The alliance would benefit the Latin Empire by securing ThraceThrace
Thrace is a historical and geographic area in southeast Europe. As a geographical concept, Thrace designates a region bounded by the Balkan Mountains on the north, Rhodope Mountains and the Aegean Sea on the south, and by the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara on the east...
and Kingdom of Thessalonica
Kingdom of Thessalonica
The Kingdom of Thessalonica was a short-lived Crusader State founded after the Fourth Crusade over the conquered Byzantine lands.- Background :...
from the threat of invasion from the Second Bulgarian Empire
Second Bulgarian Empire
The Second Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state which existed between 1185 and 1396 . A successor of the First Bulgarian Empire, it reached the peak of its power under Kaloyan and Ivan Asen II before gradually being conquered by the Ottomans in the late 14th-early 15th century...
. Allowing Henry to turn his attention to facing the Empire of Nicaea
Empire of Nicaea
The Empire of Nicaea was the largest of the three Byzantine Greek successor states founded by the aristocracy of the Byzantine Empire that fled after Constantinople was occupied by Western European and Venetian forces during the Fourth Crusade...
instead. On the other hand, Boril had suffered losses in both men and territory while the war continued. Unable at the moment to expand his borders, he might have seen the alliance as a way to secure his own borders from Latin invasion. In any case the marriage concluded the first phase of the Bulgarian-Latin Wars
Bulgarian-Latin Wars
The Bulgarian–Latin Wars were a series of conflicts between the Bulgarian Empire and the Latin Empire, which was created during the Fourth Crusade in 1204...
.
On 11 June, Henry died in Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki
Thessaloniki , historically also known as Thessalonica, Salonika or Salonica, is the second-largest city in Greece and the capital of the region of Central Macedonia as well as the capital of the Decentralized Administration of Macedonia and Thrace...
. Maria was reportedly suspected of having poisoned him. Her further fate is unknown. Their marriage was childless and Henry was succeeded by his brother-in-law Peter II of Courtenay.
External links
- http://books.google.gr/books?id=QDFVUDmAIqIC&dq=john+va+fine+late+medieval+balkans&pg=PP1&ots=8BfcM02Zfm&sig=oM5l2vA2bygDJ15PNYYU0D4RWhw&hl=el&prev=http://www.google.gr/search%3Fq%3DJohn%2BV.A.%2BFine%2BLate%2BMedieval%2BBalkans%26ie%3Dutf-8%26oe%3Dutf-8%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:el:official%26client%3Dfirefox-a&sa=X&oi=print&ct=title&cad=one-book-with-thumbnail#PPA101,M1-The page of the "Late Medieval Balkans" mentioning her marriage]
- A genealogy of the Asen, including her