Ladislaus I of Hungary

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Ladislaus I of Hungary bigraphy, stories - King of Hungary

Ladislaus I of Hungary : biography

June 27, 1040 – July 29, 1095

Saint Ladislaus I ( (in Medieval English texts: Saint Lancelothttp://dir.crossmap.com/church_and_denominations/denominations/Catholicism/Saints/L/Saint_Ladislaus), , , , ; c. 1045 – 29 July 1095) was King of Hungary from 1077 until his death, "who greatly expanded the boundaries of the kingdom and consolidated it internally; no other Hungarian king was so generally beloved by the people". Before his accession to the throne, he was the main advisor of his brother, Géza I of Hungary, who was fighting against their cousin, King Solomon of Hungary. After the death of Géza, the nobles passed over Solomon, the son of Andrew I, and chose Ladislaus to be their king in 1077. Following a long period of civil wars, he strengthened the royal power in his kingdom by introducing severe legislation. He would also extend his rule over Croatia. After his canonisation, Ladislaus became the model of the chivalrous king in Hungary.

Marriages and children

1077: Adelaide of Rheinfelden, daughter of Duke Rudolf I of Swabia and his second wife, Adelaida of Savoy

  • Prisca (c. 1080 – August 13, 1134), wife of John II, emperor of the Byzantine Empire
  • Unknown daughter (? – ?), wife of Prince Yaroslav of Volhynia.

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)
  • Magyarország Történeti Kronológiája I. – A kezdetektől 1526-ig, főszerkesztő: Benda Kálmán (Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1981)
  • Kosztolnyik, Z.J. Five Eleventh Century Hungarian Kings, 1981.

Legacy

No other Hungarian king was held in such high esteem. The whole nation mourned for him for three years, and regarded him as a saint long before his canonization. A whole cycle of legends is associated with his name. He was canonized on June 27, 1192.

A number of miracles are attributed to him. On the occasion of some pestilence in the country, he is said to have prayed for the cure before shooting an arrow into the air at random; the arrow then hit the herb which would cure the illness. At another time, he was pursuing a Pecheneg force raiding the realm. According to the story, the king was catching up to the raiders, who decided to scatter the money they had looted before the pursuing Hungarians. The ruse worked as the soldiers stopped to gather the money. The king is then reputed to have turned all the gold to stone through a prayer, allowing him to put his army on the march again, defeat the raiders and free their captives.

C.A. Macartney, in his Hungary: A Short History, eulogizes Ladislaus thus: "Ladislas I, who, like Stephen and his son, Imre, was canonised after his death, was the outstanding personality among them: a true paladin and gentle knight, a protector of his faith and his people, and of the poor and defenceless."

In a rather unusual manner for a saint, he is traditionally depicted with a battle-axe.

Saint Ladislaus is also the patron saint of an architecturally significant church in Chicago’s Portage Park area, St. Ladislaus.

Ancestors

Biography

Early years

Ladislaus was the second son of the future King Béla I of Hungary and his wife princess Richeza. He was born in Poland, where his father had sought refuge after his father, Duke Vazul, (Ladislaus’ grandfather) made an unsuccessful attempt against Vazul’s cousin, Saint Stephen I, the first king of Hungary. He was named according to the Slavic traditions of his mother’s kin and thus he brought the name László to yet increasing Hungarian use.

In 1048, the family moved to Hungary, where Béla received as appanage one third of Hungary ("Tercia pars Regni") from his brother, King Andrew I of Hungary who had taken the throne from King Peter after a pagan revolt. Following his accession, King Andrew I had to face the attacks of Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor whose supremacy had been acknowledged by King Peter. King Andrew I and Duke Béla cooperated closely against the German attacks to preserve Hungary’s independence. In 1053 King Andrew fathered a son, Solomon of Hungary, and sought ensure his son’s inheritance against any claims of his brother.