- Emeric of Hungary
:"There was also a Hungarian prince and saint named Emeric of Hungary (died 1031)."
Emeric I. (Hungarian: "I. Imre", Croatian: "Mirko/Emerik", Slovak: "Imrich I."), (1174 –
30 September /30 November 1204 ),King of Hungary and Croatia (1182-1204),Duke of Croatia and Dalmatia (1194-1196). He was crowned during his father's lifetime, but after his father's death he had to fight against his brother, Andrew, who forced Emeric to assigne the government of Croatia and Dalmatia to him. Emeric intervened in the internal struggles of the neighbouring countries and assisted the missionary work of the papal legates among the Bogumils of Bosnia. During his reign, theDoge of Venice ,Enrico Dandolo managed to persuade the leaders of theFourth Crusade to occupy Zára from Hungary.Crown prince
Emeric was the eldest son of King
Béla III of Hungary and his first wife,Agnes of Antioch . His father had Emeric crowned on16 May 1182 in order to ensure his succession. Emeric was betrothed to Agnes, the daughter ofFrederick I, Holy Roman Emperor , but her premature death in 1184 prevented their marriage.Emeric was crowned again in 1194, and his father appointed him to
Duke of Croatia and Dalmatia. In his last will, King Béla III left his kingdom unportioned to Emeric, while his younger son, Andrew inherited a large amount of money in order to fulfill his father's Crusader oath.truggles with his brother
On
23 April 1196 , King Béla III died and Emeric ascended the throne. Shortly afterwards, Emeric and his brother, Andrew began to quarrel, because the latter used the money he had inherited from his father to recruit followers among the barons. Duke Andrew also sought the assistance ofLeopold V, Duke of Austria , and they defeated Emeric in the Battle ofMecsek in December 1197. Following the battle, Emeric had to transfer the government of the Duchies of Croatia and Dalmatia to his brother. Emeric married InfantaConstance of Aragon probably in 1198.However, Duke Andrew continued his conspirations against Emeric. The king could count on the support of
Pope Innocent III who continuously tried to persuade the duke to fulfill his father's last will and organize aCrusade r. The discordance in the royal family enforced both the king and his brother to grant significant donations on the account of the royal estates and revenues, "e.g.", Emeric granted the tithe of the royal revenues to the Archbishop of Esztergom and he also transferred the royal palace inEsztergom to him.In the beginning of 1199, Emeric was informed that
Bishop Boleszlo of Vác had been conspiring with Duke Andrew against him; therefore he went to Vác and personally arrested the bishop on10 March . Afterwards, he deprived his brother's partisans ("e.g."Palatine Mog ) of their dignities. In the summer of 1199, in theBattle of Rád , Emeric could defeat his brother, who had to fleed to Austria. The two brothers made peace with the mediation of the Papal Legate Gregory, and Duke Andrew was granted the government ofCroatia andDalmatia again.Wars in the Balkans
Persuaded by Pope Innocent III, who wanted to suppress
Bogomilism in theBalkans , Emeric, in 1201, made a campaign against Grand Prince Stefan II of Serbia whom he expelled from his country where the Serb ruler's brother Vukan II acquired the power under the supremacy of Emeric, who took the title "King of Serbia" after his success. Emeric also defeatedBan Kulin of Bosnia who had been supporting the Bogumils in his province. During 1202, Emeric made a campaign againstKaloyan of Bulgaria , who was supporting Stefan II of Serbia to reconquer his country, but the Bulgarian troops avoid any battle and Emeric could not defeat them.In the meantime, a new conflict was emerging, when the city of Zára in
Dalmatia , formerly under the protection of theRepublic of Venice , recognised Emeric as overlord in 1201. DogeEnrico Dandolo managed to persuade the leaders of theFourth Crusade to take the city on behalf of the "Serenìssima" on24 November 1202 , despite the prohibition of Pope Innocent III. Although, on Emeric's request the Pope excommunicated the Venetians and the Crusaders, but the Hungarian troops could not reoccupy the city.On
8 April 1203 , Ban Kulin of Bosnia declared solemnly his allegiance to theRoman Catholic Church and confirmed his fidelity to the King of Hungary. In 1203, Emeric hindered Cardinal Leo, who was carrying the royal crown Pope Innocent III had bestowed on Kaloyan of Bulgaria, in Hungary.Last years
In 1203, Duke Andrew began to conspire against Emeric again; therefore the king lead his armies to his brother's duchies. Emeric, when he realised that the duke's troops outnumbered his armies, went unarmed, wearing only the crown and the
sceptre , to his brother's camp near Varasd and the duke surrendered voluntarily on the spur of the scene. Emeric had his brother arrested, but Duke Andrew managed to escape shortly afterwards.Emeric, who had become more and more ill, had his young son, Ladislaus crowned on
26 August 1204 . Then, he reconciled with his brother whom he appointed to govern the kingdom during his son's minority.Emeric was buried in the Cathedral of
Eger .Marriage and child
"# c. 1198:" Infanta
Constance of Aragon (c. 1179 – 23 June 1222), daughter of KingAlfonso II of Aragon and his wife, InfantaSancha of Castile
* KingLadislaus III of Hungary (c. 1200 – 7 May 1205)Ancestors
Ancestors of Emeric of HungaryLegacy
When Emeric died, his infant son briefly became king but died in 1205. Emeric's brother Andrew became king. Constance, meanwhile, fled to
Vienna and eventually married the Emperor Frederick II.ources
* 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)
*Ostrogorski, Georgjie. "History of the Byzantine State", 1986
* "Magyarország Történeti Kronológiája I. – A kezdetektől 1526-ig", főszerkesztő: Benda Kálmán (Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1981)
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