Catherine of Hungary (1370–1378) in the context of "Hedwig of Poland"

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⭐ Core Definition: Catherine of Hungary (1370–1378)

Catherine of Hungary (Hungarian: Katalin, Polish: Katarzyna; July 1370 – May 1378), a member of the Capetian House of Anjou, was heir presumptive to the thrones of Hungary and Poland as eldest child of King Louis the Great and his second wife, Elizabeth of Bosnia.

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Catherine of Hungary (1370–1378) in the context of Jadwiga of Poland

Jadwiga (Polish: [jadˈviɡa] ; 1373 or 1374 – 17 July 1399), also known as Hedwig (from German, Hungarian: Hedvig), was the first female monarch of the Kingdom of Poland, as well its last hereditary ruler. She reigned from 16 October 1384 until her death. Born in Buda, she was the youngest daughter of Louis I of Hungary and Poland, and his wife, Elizabeth of Bosnia. Jadwiga was a member of the Capetian House of Anjou, and had forebears among the Polish Piasts.

In 1375, it was planned that when becoming old enough, Jadwiga would marry William of Austria and she lived in Vienna from 1378 to 1380. Louis I is often thought to have regarded her and William as his favoured successors in Hungary after the 1378 death of her eldest sister, Catherine, since the following year the Polish nobility had pledged their homage to Louis' second daughter, Mary, and Mary's fiancé, Sigismund of Luxembourg. However, Louis died, and in 1382, at her mother's insistence, Mary was crowned "King of Hungary". Sigismund of Luxembourg tried to take control of Poland, but the Polish nobility countered that they would be obedient to a daughter of Louis only if she settled in Poland. Queen Elizabeth then chose Jadwiga to reign in Poland but did not send her to Kraków to be crowned. During the interregnum, Siemowit IV, Duke of Masovia, became a candidate for the Polish throne. The nobility of Greater Poland favoured him and proposed that he marry Jadwiga. However, Lesser Poland's nobility opposed him, and they persuaded Elizabeth to send Jadwiga to Poland.

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Catherine of Hungary (1370–1378) in the context of Elizabeth of Bosnia

Elizabeth of Bosnia (Serbo-Croatian: Elizabeta Kotromanić/Јелисавета Котроманић; Hungarian: Kotromanics Erzsébet; Polish: Elżbieta Bośniaczka; c. 1339  – January 1387) was queen consort of Hungary and Croatia, and queen consort of Poland, and, after becoming widowed, the regent of Hungary and Croatia between 1382 and 1385 and in 1386.

Daughter of Ban Stephen II of Bosnia, Elizabeth became Queen of Hungary upon marrying King Louis I the Great in 1353. In 1370, she gave birth to a long-anticipated heir, Catherine, and became Queen of Poland when Louis ascended the Polish throne. The royal couple had two more daughters, Mary and Hedwig, but Catherine died in 1378. Initially a consort with no substantial influence, Elizabeth then started surrounding herself with noblemen loyal to her, led by her favourite, Nicholas I Garai. When Louis died in 1382, Mary succeeded him with Elizabeth as regent. Unable to preserve the personal union of Hungary and Poland, Elizabeth secured the Polish throne for her youngest daughter, Hedwig.

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