# Margaret of Hungary

Margaret of Hungary (Margit in Hungarian; b. 1175 – d. after 1229) was a Hungarian princess from the House of Árpád. She was a Byzantine Empress by marriage to Isaac II Angelos (d. 1204), and Queen of Thessalonica by marriage to Boniface of Montferrat (d. 1207). She was regent of Thessalonica during the minority of her son Demetrius of Montferrat, from 1207 to 1216. In later years (c. 1223) she governed some of the most southern regions of the Kingdom of Hungary, with her domains being centered in the region of Syrmia.

## Early life

Margaret was the eldest daughter of Béla III of Hungary and his first wife Agnes of Antioch. She was a younger sister of Emeric, King of Hungary. Her younger siblings were Andrew II of Hungary and Constance of Hungary. Two other siblings, Solomon and Stephen, are mentioned in the standard reference work on the genealogy of medieval European aristocracy, "Europäische Stammtafeln" (1978–1995) by Detlev Schwennicke. They reportedly died young.

## Empress

In January 1186, 10 year old Margaret married the Byzantine Emperor Isaac II Angelos, who wanted a politically strategic alliance with Hungary in order to strengthen his claim to the throne and due to the changing policy towards dynastic marriages with foreign rulers. Upon this marriage, Margaret took the baptismal name "Maria" and was brought up following Byzantine customs.
With Isaac, she had two sons:
* Manuel Angelos (died 1212), he was evidently the elder son, being contemplated in 1205 to ascend the Byzantine throne
* John Angelos (b. ca. 1193 – died c. 1253). He migrated to Hungary and ruled over Syrmia and Kovin counties (c. 1227–1242) as a vassal of King Béla IV of Hungary.
Isaac had been deposed and blinded in 1195 by his brother Alexios III Angelos who then assumed the throne. Isaac was imprisoned, but it's not yet clear if Margaret was also. Her step-son Alexios IV Angelos had escaped and went to join the military discussions which were shortly to launch the Fourth Crusade. There, he and others convinced the Crusaders to besiege Constantinople in order to depose his uncle and restore his imprisoned father and himself to the throne. This was done, but his restored reign was short-lived, as the Crusaders took over the empire for themselves in 1204.

## Queen of Thessalonica

Margaret's husband Isaac died in February 1204, "whose end was accelerated by the fate of his son", who was "strangled in his dungeon after poison had failed to do its work". When Boniface of Montferrat, commander of the land forces at the taken of Constantinople, took the Boukoleon Palace, it was found that Margaret had taken refuge there alongside another dowager empress, the French Agnes of France. Boniface was one of only two contenders put forth to be elected emperor, but he lost to Baldwin IX, Count of Flanders. As compensation, he was granted "all the territories on the Asiatic side of the Bosphorus as well as the Ille de Griesse [the Peloponnese]." The coronation of the new emperor took place in the church of St Sophia on May 16, 1204.
Later that year, in Constantinople the widowed Margaret, dowager Empress, married Boniface of Montferrat, with the wedding taking place according to the rites of the Latin church. The marriage was intended to both bolster Boniface's position with the Byzantine aristocracy and provide him with Margaret's Hungarian connection.
According to Pope Innocent, after the marriage Margaret initially 'shrank from returning to Latin ways so immediately, as a too impudent champion of the Greek custom,' but was pressured by the papacy and her husband to return to the Roman Catholic church. When she accepted a Latin blessing, the pope wrote to her an offered his congratulations.
In this same year of 1204, but after his new marriage, Boniface requested that he be allowed to exchange his lands in Asia for the Kingdom of Thessalonica, which he considered to be better suited for a political alignment with his new brother-in-law Andrew, then Regent of Hungary who would then be his neighbor, and the new emperor agreed to this exchange. Boniface however did not enjoy his domains in peace, being engaged in almost constant warfare until his death. Margaret's step-daughter Agnes of Montferrat was married to the new emperor, Henry of Flanders, in February 1207. That same year, Boniface was returning to Thessalonica when he was ambushed by Bulgarians. He was taken alive and decapitated, his head being sent to Kaloyan of Bulgaria.
With Boniface, Margaret had a son:
* Demetrius of Montferrat in 1207, named after Saint Demetrius the patron saint of Thessalonica. He wed a sister of the Lord of Athens but they had no children.

## Regency

Boniface left a will designating Demetrius as his successor in Thessalonica under the regency of his mother. His son William of Montferrat, by an earlier marriage, succeeded to the Marquisate of Montferrat. The barons however, knowing that a strong government was necessary, constituted themselves a council of regency for the infant Demetrius.
In 1207, on his father's death, Demetrius became king of Thessalonica, at least in title. When the Emperor Henry of Flanders visited Thessalonica to receive the homage in the infant's name, he was barred from the city by the bailiff Biandrate until he would agree to outrageous demands. The emperor pretended to accept Biandrate's terms (provided that Margaret accepted them) long enough to gain entrance into the city. Margaret, now in the Emperor's presence revealed the plot against her son and was instructed to overrule the terms. The Emperor then crowned the infant Demetrius King of Thessalonica on 6 January 1209 and extracted oaths from the Lombard Lords. His actions were confirmed by Pope Innocent III. Margaret secured the position of regent, as was stipulated in her spouse's will.
Biandrate fled, but conspiring at a distance, returned once more in 1216 to claim the Regency. The regent Margaret asked the emperor for assistance: "In response to Queen Margaret's appeal the Emperor hurried to her assistance, but arrived on the scene only to die with mysterious suddenness in the flower of his age." The new Latin Emperor, Peter of Courtenay, installed Demetrius' half-brother William of Montferrat as effective ruler. Losing regency, Margaret left Thessalonica, apparently leaving her son Demetrius in the city.

## Later life

She married thirdly Nicholas I of Saint Omer. Nicholas was the son of Geoffrey of Saint Omer, had accompanied his uncle on the fourth crusade and was granted a fief in Doris. He is also called "Lord of Boeotia".
With Nicholas, Margaret had two known sons:
* Bela of Saint Omer, who married Bonne de La Roche.
* William of Saint Omer, who married but died childless.
Returning to Hungary with her sons, Margaret was well received by her brother, King Andrew II of Hungary (1205-1235), who granted her possessions in southern regions of the Kingdom, centered on Syrmia. Her sister-in-law, Queen Yolanda of Hungary, was instrumental in arranging the marriage between Margaret's son John and Matilda, daughter of Yolanda's sister Margaret of Courtenay.
On 30 March 1223, Pope Honorius II took Margaret under his protection, issuing a document that contains a list of her properties.

## Death

Margaret was still living in 1229, when she was mentioned in a papal letter. Her exact death date and place, and burial location are apparently unknown.