Ottokar II of Bohemia

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Ottokar II of Bohemia bigraphy, stories - King of Bohemia (1253-1278)

Ottokar II of Bohemia : biography

1233 – 26 August 1278

Ottokar II () (c. 1233 – 26 August 1278), called The Iron and Golden King, was the King of Bohemia from 1253 until 1278. He also held the titles Duke of Austria (1251–1276), Duke of Styria (1260–1276), Duke of Carinthia (1269–1276), Duke of Carniola (1269–1276), and lord of Pordenone.

Ottokar was the second son of King Wenceslaus I of the Přemyslid dynasty, and through his mother, Kunigunde of Hohenstaufen, was related to the Hohenstaufen family, being a grandson of Philip of Swabia.

Ancestry

Biography

Otacarvs II. rex. A statue by [[Ludwig von Schwanthaler (1847) placed at the National Museum in Prague (symbol of keep at his right foot is reminiscent of the many castles and towns, which he founded)]]

Rise to power

Ottokar was originally educated for the role of an ecclesiastical administrator. However, after the death in 1247 of Vladislaus, Margrave of Moravia, Ottokar’s older brother and the heir of Bohemia, Ottokar became the heir. According to popular oral tradition, Ottokar was profoundly shocked by his brother’s death and did not involve himself in politics, becoming focused on hunting and drinking. In 1248 he was enticed by discontented nobles to lead a rebellion against his father, King Wenceslaus. During this rebellion he received the nickname "the younger King" (mladší král).

Wenceslaus managed to defeat the rebels and imprisoned his son.Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition Ottokar II held the title of King of Bohemia from 31 July 1248 to November 1249.

Father and son were eventually reconciled to assist the King’s aim of acquiring the neighbouring Duchy of Austria. The Duchy had been without a ruler since the death of Duke Frederick II in 1246. Wenceslaus initially attempted to acquire the duchy by marrying his heir, Vladislav, to the last Duke’s niece Gertrude. That match had been cut short by Vladislav’s death and Gertrude’s re-marriage to Herman VI, Margrave of Baden. The latter was rejected by the Austrian estates and could not establish his rule in Austria. Wenceslaus used this as pretext to invade Austria in 1250 – according to some sources, the estates called upon him in to restore order.

Wenceslaus released Ottokar very soon and in 1251 made him Margrave of Moravia and installed him, with the approval of the Austrian nobles, as governor of Austria. Ottokar entered Austria, where the estates acclaimed him as Duke. To legitimize his position, Ottokar married the late Duke Frederick II’s sister Margaret, who was his senior by thirty years and the widow of Henry of Hohenstaufen (who, ironically, had been engaged to Ottokar’s aunt Saint Agnes of Bohemia prior to marrying Margaret). Their marriage took place on 11 February 1252.

In 1253, King Wenceslaus died and Ottokar succeeded his father as King of Bohemia. After the death of the German King Konrad IV in 1254, Ottokar also hoped to obtain the Imperial dignity for himself, but his election bid was unsuccessful and Richard of Cornwall was elected instead.

Building up of the empire

Krkonoše mountains to the Adriatic Sea.]] Feeling threatened by Ottokar’s growing regional power, his cousin Béla IV, King of Hungary, challenged the young King. Béla formed a loose alliance with the Duke of Bavaria and claimed the Duchy of Styria, which had been a component of Austria since 1192. The conflict was quelled through the Pope’s mediation. It was agreed that Ottokar was to yield large parts of Styria to Béla in exchange for recognition of his right to the remainder of Austria. However, after a few years the conflict resumed and Ottokar defeated the Hungarians in July 1260 at the Battle of Kressenbrunn and ended years of disputes over Styria with Béla IV.

Béla now ceded Styria back to Ottokar, and his claim to those territories was formally recognized by Richard of Cornwall, King of the Romans, the nominal liege lord of all German lands. This peace agreement was also sealed by a royal marriage. Ottokar ended his marriage to Margaret and married Béla’s young granddaughter Kunigunda of Slavonia. Kunigunde became the mother of his children. The youngest of them became his only legitimate son, Wenceslaus.