Maria of Slavonia

Queen of Hungary

Ferdinand I, Count of Verona

(m. 1189 d. 1201)

Ferdinand II, Count of Verona and Ragusa

Adelaide of Verona

Catherine of Verona

**Maria of Slavonia** (C. 1150 - 1206) was the 3rd daughter of Lothar I, Duke of Slavonia and a Polish noblewoman Katherine of Głogów. Maria of Slavonia was never expected to marry the King of Hungary as he was currently married to Lydia of Kiev, but when Maria was 23, the King Andrew annulled his marriage to Lydia as she committed adultery, Maria was betrothed to Andrew of Slavonia, and then sent to Budapest, Hungary to marry Andrew. Maria almost fainted when she heard she would be a Queen, something she always wanted to be. Maria was crowned the following day, an she had an order she wished to be followed while she was pregnant with her first child, she ordered her husband cut open Lydia's throat and get rid of the ex-Queen for good. Andrew listened to Maria and killed Lydia. Maria bore Andrew 2 children (Lothar and Maria of Hungary.) When Andrew died, her son Lothar inherited Bosnia, and Maria was regent. Maria remarried an Italian Count, Ferdinand and the marriage produced 3 children, Maria died in 1206 of diphtheria and was buried next to her husband in Verona.

## Early Life

### Childhood

Maria of Slavonia was born in the German Croatia, in her fathers duchy of Slavonia, she was the 5th child of Lothar I, Duke of Slavonia and Katherine of Głogów. Maria had 4 other siblings, Henry, Charles, Clotilde, and Stephan, when Maria was 6, her mother gave birth to her younger sister Cecillia of Slavonia who was raised with Maria, Maria liked her brothers more then her sisters, but she got along with Cecillia, Maria was raised a Roman Catholic and when she was 14, she visited Arles as a candiate for the Holy Roman Emperor's hand, the Holy Roman Emperor, the Emperor's mother Isabella did not like Maria's family, and swiftly married the Emperor to Matilda of Bavaria.

### Second Attempted Betrothal

Maria's father was concerned when Maria was 16 and still unmarried, maria's older sister and younger sister were already married and ad at least 2 children, her father took Maria to Naples in an attempted betrothal to the widowed Duke of Burgundy, but the Duke rejected Maria for a Princess of Luneberg. Maria's father then offered Maria the rich position of abbess of Kutjevo, but Maria did not wan't to turn into a Princess-Abbess, Maria wanted to get married, something Princess-abbesses could not do, instead Maria took a trip to Slovakia where she insisted on staying to avoid becoming an abbess.

### Life in Slovakia

Slovakia at the time was called "Szlovákia" as it was a Hungarian land. Maria did not like Slovakia as much as her home place, but she wanted to avoid forcefully becoming an Abbess or nun. Maria did not known Hungarian nor Slovak which were the dominant languages in Slovakia, she spoke Croatian and German but she learned Croatian was very similar to Hungarian and Slovak. She also learned both languages, which would be very useful later on.

## Moving to Hungary

When Maria was 21, she and her companions moved to Budapest the capital of Hungary, she moved into the Hungarian royal court and tried her best to find a husband, she tried some Hungarian counts and aristocrats, but Maria or the aristocrat was always unhappy with each-other. Maria was a beauty, but not as beautiful as one famous beauty named Lydia of Kiev who was also the Queen of Bohemia, Maria and Lydia were not close, Lydia was vain and did not wan't Maria to rival her own beauty. Maria also hated Lydia and was keen on staying in Hungary to avoid being with her, Maria became a mistress of the chambers to Maria of Castile who was the Queen of Hungary at the time.

## Court Scandal

In 1174, Maria of Castile's husband Géza III of Hungary died in battle, Maria oversaw his death as she was also on crusade in the 11th Crusade. Lydia of Kiev's husband Andrew of Hungary became King. Lydia of Kiev however had an affair with Géza before he died, and a local lord named Béla Szabó exposed the affair to the King of Hungary, Maria of Slavonia knew not to take sides as she was a witness to many executions of people who took sides, Maria instead celebrated her 23 birthday instead of overseeing the scandal. Lydia of Kiev was found guilty of adultery and imprisoned in Bosnia, Andrew was under pressure to remarry after he annulled his marriage to Lydia of Kiev.

## Queen of Hungary

Andrew of Hungary never noticed Maria of Slavonia, as he mostly saw Maria as a Slavonian-Germanic noblewoman, but the Prince of Swabia who was married to one of Maria's younger sisters Catherine of Slavonia insisted Andrew marry Maria of Slavonia, Maria was quite shocked to find out she was the top candiate for the king of Hungary's hand and alerted her father who was shocked that one of his daughters had a high chance of becoming Queen, he immediately sent Maria a dowry of 16,000 euros, while Maria was in Győr Castle with her father, Andrew proposed to Maria with a ring built with Gold, diamonds, rubies and pearls, this was the first time Maria ever met Andrew but she had no word in accepting or denying the proposal, her father instead said yes to the proposal for Maria and the couple were married in Budapest Cathedral and she was crowned Queen of Hungary. Now that she was Queen, her father sent and ambassador to Maria and ministers to spy on the Queen, and make sure whatever she was doing in Hungary was favorable to Slavonia. Maria now Queen, wanted to kill the former Queen Lydia of Kiev, the pregnant Maria was going to stab Lydia herself, but she feared Lydia would get out of control and kill her and her baby. So Maria ordered her husband to cut open Lydia's throat to end her for good, a former Kievan ambassador to Lydia said, "First you steal the King's heart, and now you wan't to murder the former Queen, how can heaven and earth still stand you?!" Maria responded with a Grin, "I am the Queen, and I did not steal his majesty's heart Césare, I simply married the king after he got rid of his wife you Doxy!" Andrew on Maria's orders wen't to Bosnia and cut open Lydia's throat, it took 8 strikes to kill her, Lydia's body was then covered in a cloth and presented to Maria who grinned and celebrated, Maria was given Lydia's jewels and private palaces. Maria's father controlled and manipulated Maria for his own political gain, Maria's father was given the rich position of Lord of the Hungarian parliment which was the highest non-royal peerage. Maria soon gave birth to her first child "Lothar" who was given the title heir to the Grand Duchy of Bosnia. That following year, all 3 of Maria's brothers died on crusade. And the Duchy of Slavonia only allowed males to inherit the throne because of the salic law, Maria's only son Lothar was the only male in the Slavonian family, so he was made heir to the Slavonian owned County of Tyrol, and the Duchy of Slavonia, making Lothar heir to Bosnia, Slavonia, Tyrol and lands that Slavonia owned. Maria had a hard time with her step-children whom were born by Lydia of Kiev, except for her one step-daughter Elizabeth of Bohemia who forgave Mary, Elizabeth was known to be a nice princess and she was later cannonized saint. Maria gave birth to her last child with Andrew, her name was Maria of Hungary whom Maria of Slavonia named after herself. Maria of Slavonia was Queen of Hungary for 16 years, during her tenure she often visited her childless sister Clotilde on advise on how to have children, when Clotilde was giving birth, Maria oversaw the birth of Clotilde's daughter Margaret, Clotilde died in childbirth. Maria husband died in crusade when Maria was 38. Maria became Queen Dowager, and her teenage step-sons raced to there territories to be crowned King, Maria's 13 year old son became Grand-Duke of Bosnia, and Maria sent her daughter to Jerusalem to marry Fulk III. Maria's father died in crusade leaving her 13 year old son Duke of Slavonia and Count of Tyrol. Maria made herself regent.

## Countess of Verona and Ragusa

Maria still knew she was able to produce children, but not a lot of men were lining up for her hand, men wanted a teenager as there wife as the teenager would live longer and produce more children, but the Count of Verona (Who was also the Count of Ragusa) offered his hand to the Dowager Queen, the Queen accepted the invatation and they were married in Verona, her husband was 26, and Maria was 38. Maria soon gave birth to the Count's first child Ferdinand who would also become his heir, when Maria turned 39, she gave birth to her last 2 children, twins. There names were Adelaide of Verona and Catherine of Verona. On Maria's 40th birthday she retired to having more children, and she wen't on every crusade she could and wen't to Jerusalem to visit her daughter, her son married Isabella of Majorca in a public ceremony in Venice, Maria attended her son's wedding ceremony in a red gown decked with silk lace.

## Dowager Countess and Death

When Maria was in her late 40's her husband died of malaria while in Valencia, Maria's daughters were both 12 and unmarried, Maria's step-sons who wanted to be close to Maria's son Lothar because of his power, kidnapped Maria's daughters and married them without Maria's approval. When Maria demanded they bring her 2 daughters back, one of them tried the letter for treason, and had the letter publically burned at the stake. But Maria's son Ferdinand approved of this marriage because of the power he could get having his sisters as Queen of Hungary and Queen of Bohemia. When Maria was 58, she died of yellow fever, she was buried next to her husband in Verona Abbey.