Sarolt
Encyclopedia
Sarolt was wife of Géza
, Grand Prince of the Magyars
.
She was a daughter of Gyula
of Transylvania
and was probably educated in the Eastern Orthodox
faith. She was married to Géza
, the son of Taksony
, High Prince of the Magyars, who succeeded his father before 972.
Sarolt exerted a powerful influence on her husband which allowed her to also influence his government. She was watched suspiciously by Catholic
missionaries. The chronicles accused her of drinking insatiably and even committing manslaughter.
After her husband's death in 997, one of his distant cousins Koppány
, who declared his claim to the leadership of the Magyars against her son, Stephen (Vajk), wanted to marry Sarolt, referring to the Hungarian tradition. Koppány
, nevertheless, was defeated, and shortly afterward Sarolt's son was crowned as the first King of Hungary
.
Her name (Šar-oldu) is of Turkic
origin and means "white weasel". She was also called "Beleknegini" by her Slavic
subjects that means "white queen".
# before 972: Géza
, High Prince of the Magyars (c. 945 – 997)
Géza of Hungary
Géza , Grand Prince of the Hungarians .Géza was the son of Taksony of Hungary, Grand Prince of the Hungarians and his Pecheneg or Bulgar wife. Géza's marriage with Sarolt, the daughter of Gyula of Transylvania, was arranged by his father.After his father's death , Géza followed him as Grand Prince...
, Grand Prince of the Magyars
Grand Prince of the Magyars
Grand Prince was the title used by contemporary sources to name the leader of the federation of the Hungarian tribes in the tenth century.-The title:...
.
She was a daughter of Gyula
Gyula II
Gyula II was a Hungarian tribal leader in the middle of the 10th century. He visited Constantinople where he was baptized. His baptismal name was Stephen .- Life :...
of Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
and was probably educated in the Eastern Orthodox
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
faith. She was married to Géza
Géza of Hungary
Géza , Grand Prince of the Hungarians .Géza was the son of Taksony of Hungary, Grand Prince of the Hungarians and his Pecheneg or Bulgar wife. Géza's marriage with Sarolt, the daughter of Gyula of Transylvania, was arranged by his father.After his father's death , Géza followed him as Grand Prince...
, the son of Taksony
Taksony of Hungary
Taksony , Grand Prince of the Hungarians .Taksony was the son of Zoltán , the fourth son of Árpád, the second Grand Prince of the Hungarians...
, High Prince of the Magyars, who succeeded his father before 972.
Sarolt exerted a powerful influence on her husband which allowed her to also influence his government. She was watched suspiciously by Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
missionaries. The chronicles accused her of drinking insatiably and even committing manslaughter.
After her husband's death in 997, one of his distant cousins Koppány
Koppány
Koppány was a Hungarian nobleman of the tenth century. Brother of the ruling prince of Hungary, Géza of the Árpád dynasty, Koppány ruled as Prince of Somogy in the region south of Lake Balaton...
, who declared his claim to the leadership of the Magyars against her son, Stephen (Vajk), wanted to marry Sarolt, referring to the Hungarian tradition. Koppány
Koppány
Koppány was a Hungarian nobleman of the tenth century. Brother of the ruling prince of Hungary, Géza of the Árpád dynasty, Koppány ruled as Prince of Somogy in the region south of Lake Balaton...
, nevertheless, was defeated, and shortly afterward Sarolt's son was crowned as the first King of Hungary
King of Hungary
The King of Hungary was the head of state of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1000 to 1918.The style of title "Apostolic King" was confirmed by Pope Clement XIII in 1758 and used afterwards by all the Kings of Hungary, so after this date the kings are referred to as "Apostolic King of...
.
Her name (Šar-oldu) is of Turkic
Turkic languages
The Turkic languages constitute a language family of at least thirty five languages, spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean to Siberia and Western China, and are considered to be part of the proposed Altaic language family.Turkic languages are spoken...
origin and means "white weasel". She was also called "Beleknegini" by her Slavic
Slavic peoples
The Slavic people are an Indo-European panethnicity living in Eastern Europe, Southeast Europe, North Asia and Central Asia. The term Slavic represents a broad ethno-linguistic group of people, who speak languages belonging to the Slavic language family and share, to varying degrees, certain...
subjects that means "white queen".
Marriage and children
Géza of Hungary
Géza , Grand Prince of the Hungarians .Géza was the son of Taksony of Hungary, Grand Prince of the Hungarians and his Pecheneg or Bulgar wife. Géza's marriage with Sarolt, the daughter of Gyula of Transylvania, was arranged by his father.After his father's death , Géza followed him as Grand Prince...
, High Prince of the Magyars (c. 945 – 997)
- JudithJudith of HungaryJudith of Hungary was a Hungarian princess member of the House of Arpad and by marriage member of the House of Piast, who ruled Poland at that time....
(? – after 988), wife of the future King Boleslaw I of PolandBoleslaw I of PolandBolesław I Chrobry , in the past also known as Bolesław I the Great , was a Duke of Poland from 992-1025 and the first King of Poland from 19 April 1025 until his death... - Margareth (? – after 988), wife of the future Tsar Gavril Radomir of BulgariaGavril Radomir of BulgariaGavril Radomir , normally rendered as Gabriel Radomir in English and Gavriil Romanos in Greek, was the ruler of the First Bulgarian Empire from October 1014 to August or September 1015. He was the son of Samuel of Bulgaria. During his father's reign, his cousin Ivan Vladislav and Ivan's entire...
- King Stephen I of Hungary (967/969/975 – 15 August 1038)
- Gizella (? – after 1026), wife of Otto OrseoloOtto OrseoloOtto Orseolo was the Doge of Venice from 1008 to 1026. He was the third son of Pietro II Orseolo, whom he succeeded at the age of sixteen, becoming the youngest doge in Venetian history....
, Doge of VeniceDoge of VeniceThe Doge of Venice , often mistranslated Duke was the chief magistrate and leader of the Most Serene Republic of Venice for over a thousand years. Doges of Venice were elected for life by the city-state's aristocracy. Commonly the person selected as Doge was the shrewdest elder in the city... - Sarolta (? – ?), wife of the future King Samuel Aba of HungarySamuel Aba of HungarySamuel Aba , King of Hungary , Palatine of Hungary .-King of Hungary:Samuel was from Northern Hungary, Castle Gonce / Castle Abaújvár, County of Aba...
Sources
- Kristó Gyula - Makk Ferenc: Az Árpád-ház uralkodói (IPC Könyvek, 1996)
- Korai Magyar Történeti Lexikon (9-14. század), főszerkesztő: Kristó Gyula, szerkesztők: Engel Pál és Makk Ferenc (Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1994)