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Wenceslaus II
Portrayal in Codex Manesse
King of Bohemia
Reign	26 August 1278 – 21 June 1305
Coronation	2 June 1297, Prague
Predecessor	Ottokar II
Successor	Wenceslaus III
King of Poland
Reign	1296–1305
Coronation	25 July 1300, Gniezno
Predecessor	Przemysl II
Successor	Wenceslaus III
Born	27 September 1271 (1271-09-27) Prague, Bohemia
Died	21 June 1305 (1305-06-22) (aged 33) Prague, Bohemia
Spouse	Judith of Habsburg ​ ​(m. 1285; died 1297)​ Elisabeth Richeza of Poland ​ ​(m. 1303)​
Issue	Wenceslas III, King of Bohemia Anne, Queen of Bohemia Elisabeth, Queen of Bohemia Margaret, Duchess of Wroclaw Agnes, Duchess of Jawor
Dynasty	Přemyslid
Father	Ottokar II of Bohemia
Mother	Kunigunda of Slavonia

Wenceslaus II Přemyslid (Czech: Václav II.; Polish: Wacław II Czeski; 27 September 1271 – 21 June 1305) was King of Bohemia (1278–1305), Duke of Cracow (1291–1305), and King of Poland (1296–1305).

He was the only son of King Ottokar II of Bohemia and Ottokar's second wife Kunigunda. He was born in 1271, ten years after the marriage of his parents. Kunigunda was the daughter of Rostislav Mikhailovich, lord of Slavonia, son of a Grand Prince of Kiev, and Anna of Hungary, daughter of Béla IV of Hungary. His great-grandfather was the German king Philip of Swabia. Wenceslaus II was the grandfather of the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV. He was a member of the Přemyslid dynasty.

Early years

In 1276 Rudolf I, King of the Romans, placed Ottokar under the ban of the empire and besieged Vienna. This compelled Ottokar in November 1276 to sign a new treaty by which he gave up all claims to Austria and the neighbouring duchies, retaining for himself only Bohemia and Moravia. Wenceslaus was then betrothed to Rudolf's daughter Judith, creating an uneasy peace. Wenceslaus's father died on 26 August 1278 in the Battle on the Marchfeld shortly before Wenceslaus' seventh birthday.

Before Wenceslaus became of age, the government was handled by Otto V, Margrave of Brandenburg, who is said to have held Wenceslaus captive in several locations. He returned to Bohemia in 1283, at the age of twelve. His mother's second husband, Záviš of Falkenstein, ruled instead of him for a few years.

On 24 January 1285, Wenceslaus married Judith of Habsburg, daughter of Rudolf I, to whom he had been betrothed since 1276. In 1290, Wenceslaus had Záviš beheaded for alleged treason and began ruling independently.

Polish kingship

In 1291, High Duke Przemysł II of Poland ceded the sovereign Duchy of Kraków to Wenceslaus. Kraków was associated with the overlordship of Poland, but Przemysł held the other duchies and in 1295 was crowned king. After Przemysł's death in 1296, Wenceslaus became overlord of Poland and in 1300, and had himself crowned its king.

Silver in Kutná Hora

In 1298, silver was discovered at Kuttenberg (now Kutná Hora) in Central Bohemia. Wenceslaus took control of the mine by making silver production a royal monopoly and issued the Prague groschen, which became the most popular of the early Groschen-type coins. Kutná Hora was one of the richest European silver strikes ever: between 1300 and 1340 the mine may have produced as much as 20 tons of silver a year.

In 1300, Wenceslaus issued the new royal mining code Ius regale montanorum. This was a legal document that specified all administrative as well as technical terms and conditions necessary for the operation of mines.

The Crown of Hungary and death

Queen Judith died in 1297. Wenceslaus' second wife was Elisabeth Richeza, daughter of King Przemysl II of Poland (1295–1296).

In 1301, Wenceslaus' kinsman Andrew III of Hungary died and the Árpád dynasty became extinct in the male line. Wenceslaus was one of the relatives who claimed the throne, and he accepted it from a party of Hungarians on behalf of his young son, betrothed to Andrew's only child, Elizabeth. On 27 August 1301, his son was crowned in Székesfehérvár as king of Hungary.

At that time the Kingdom of Hungary was split into several de facto principalities, and young Wenceslaus was only accepted as the King of Hungary by the rulers in Upper Hungary (Matthew III Csák), West-Transdanubia(in modern-day Burgenland and West-Transdanubia(the Güssings and on territory around the capital, Buda. But the Abas and Matthew Csák switched sides in 1303 and started to support Wenceslaus' rival Charles Robert of Anjou. Consequently, the young Wenceslaus, in Ofen (Buda), became afraid and wrote to his father in Prague for help. His father took a large army and invaded Buda, but having considered the situation, he took his son and the Hungarian crown and returned to Bohemia (1304). Ivan Kőszegi was named to represent Wenceslaus III in Hungary.

Wenceslaus II died on 21 June 1305, at the age of 33, probably of tuberculosis. He was succeeded by his son, Wenceslaus III, the last of the Přemyslid kings.

Review of government of Wenceslaus II

Wenceslaus II is considered one of the most important Czech kings. He built a great empire stretching from the Baltic Sea to the Danube river and established numerous cities, such as Plzeň in 1295. He won for his family three royal crowns (Bohemia, Hungary and Poland). The Kingdom of Bohemia was the largest producer of silver in Europe in his time. He created Prague Groschen, which was an important European currency for centuries.

During his reign, there was great urban development. He planned to build the first university in Central Europe. The power and wealth of the Kingdom of Bohemia gave rise to great respect, but also to the hostility of European royal families. His son King Wenceslaus III was unable to maintain a mighty empire, and soon after the untimely death of Wenceslaus II, his empire began to crumble.

Family

In 1285 in Eger (Cheb), he married the German Princess Judith of Habsburg (1271–1297), daughter of King Rudolf I of Germany and his wife Gertrude of Hohenberg. She died shortly after their 10th child was born:

• Přemysl Otakar (6 May 1288 – 19 November 1288).
• Wenceslaus III (6 October 1289 – 4 August 1306); King of Bohemia, King of Hungary and King of Poland.
• Agnes (6 October 1289 – soon after 6 August 1296), twin of Wenceslaus; married in 1296 to Rupert, eldest surviving son of German King Adolf of Nassau.
• Anne (10 October 1290 – 3 September 1313), married in 1306 to Henry of Carinthia.
• Elisabeth (20 January 1292 – 28 September 1330), married in 1310 to John of Luxembourg.
• Judith (3 March 1293 – 3 August 1294).
• John (26 February 1294 – 1 March 1295).
• John (21 February 1295 – 6 December 1296).
• Margaret (21 February 1296 – 8 April 1322), married in 1308 to Bolesław III the Generous, Duke of Wrocław.
• Judith (born and died 21 May 1297).

In 1303, he married the Princess Elisabeth Richeza of Poland (1286–1335), daughter of Przemysł II, King of Poland. They had one child:

• Agnes (25 June 1305 – before 4 January 1337), married to Henry I, Duke of Jawor.

Wenceslaus has also numerous illegitimate children, including Jan Volek (?? – 27 September 1351), bishop of Olomouc

Gallery

• Seal of Wenceslaus II
• Coat of arms of Wenceslaus II (Kingdom of Bohemia)
• Coat of arms of Wenceslaus II (Margraviate of Moravia)
• WenceslausIIBohemia
• VáclavII

References

1. "The Royal Route". Královská cesta. Archived from the original on 24 September 2019. Retrieved 11 July 2013.
2. ^ K. Charvátová, Václav II. Král český a polský, Prague 2007, p. 18.
3. Sedlar 1994, p. 443.
4. Krofta 1957, p. 440.
5. "Town history". Retrieved 2007-03-07.
6. Jones 1995, p. 526.
7. "Václav II. český král".
8. Patrouch 2013, p. 30.
9. Davies 1982, p. 64.
10. Nodl 2022, p. 84.
11. Schmidt 2019, p. 27-28.

Sources

• Davies, Norman (1982). God's Playground: A History of Poland. Vol. I: The Origins to 1795. Columbia University Press.
• Jones, Michael (1995). The New Cambridge Medieval History: Volume 6, C.1300-c.1415. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521362900.
• Krofta, Kamil (1957). "Bohemia to the Extinction of the Premyslids". In Tanner, J.R.; Previt-Orton, C.W.; Brook, Z.N. (eds.). The Cambridge Medieval History. Vol. VI: Victory of the Papacy. Cambridge University Press.
• Nodl, Martin (2022). "Royal Weddings and Divorces". In Šmahel, František; Nodl, Martin; Žůrek, Václav (eds.). Festivities, Ceremonies, and Rituals in the Lands of the Bohemian Crown in Late Middle Ages. Brill.
• Patrouch, Joseph F. (2013). "Bella gerant alii" Laodamia's Sisters, Habsburg Brides: Leaving Home for the Sake of the House". In Cruz, Anne J.; Stampino, Maria Galli (eds.). Early Modern Habsburg Women: Transnational Contexts, Cultural Conflicts, Dynastic Continuities. Routledge.
• Sedlar, Jean W (1994). East Central Europe in the Middle Ages, 1000-1500. Vol. III. University of Washington Press.
• Schmidt, Ondřej (2019). John of Moravia between the Czech Lands and the Patriarchate of Aquileia (ca. 1345–1394). Brill.

v t e Monarchs of Bohemia
Přemyslid	Legendary Czech Krok Libuše Přemysl the Ploughman Valasca Nezamysl Mnata Vojen Vnislav Křesomysl Neklan Hostivít c. 870–1198 (Dukes) Bořivoj I Spytihněv I Vratislaus I Saint Wenceslaus Boleslaus I Boleslaus II Boleslaus III Vladivoj Boleslaus the Brave Jaromír Oldřich Bretislaus I Spytihněv II Vratislaus II (I) Conrad I Bretislaus II Bořivoj II Svatopluk the Lion Vladislaus I Sobeslaus I Vladislaus II (I) Frederick Sobeslaus II Frederick Conrad II Otto Wenceslaus II Ottokar I Henry Bretislaus Vladislaus III Henry 1198–1306 (Kings) Ottokar I Wenceslaus I Ottokar II Wenceslaus II Wenceslaus III
Non-dynastic	1306–1310 Henry the Carinthian Rudolph I
Luxembourg	1310–1437 John the Blind Charles IV (I) Wenceslaus IV Sigismund
Habsburg	1437–1457 Albert Interregnum Ladislaus the Posthumous
Non-dynastic	1457–1471 George Matthias I
Jagiellonian	1471–1526 Vladislaus II Louis
Habsburg	1526–1780 Ferdinand I Maximilian Rudolph II Matthias II Ferdinand II Frederick Ferdinand III Leopold I Joseph I Charles II Charles Albert (II) Maria Theresa
Habsburg-Lorraine	1780–1918 Joseph II Leopold II Francis II (I) Ferdinand V Francis Joseph Charles I (III)
Duke of Poland from the Piast dynasty During his reign obtained non-hereditary royal title Antiking Elector Palatine from the Wittelsbach dynasty Prince-elector of Bavaria from the Wittelsbach dynasty

• 1271 births
• 1305 deaths
• 13th-century Polish monarchs
• 14th-century Polish monarchs
• 13th-century people from Bohemia
• 14th-century people from Bohemia
• 13th-century monarchs of Bohemia
• 14th-century monarchs of Bohemia
• Medieval child monarchs
• 13th-century nobility from the Holy Roman Empire
• Kings of medieval Bohemia
• Kings of Poland
• Přemyslid dynasty
• Dukes of Sieradz-Łęczyca
• Dukes of Greater Poland
• Minnesingers
• Czech people of Russian descent
• Czech people of Hungarian descent
• 14th-century nobility from the Holy Roman Empire