Rudolf I of Habsburg was Duke of
AustriaThe Archduchy of Austria , one of the most important states within the Holy Roman Empire, was the nucleus of the Habsburg Monarchy and the predecessor of the Austrian Empire...
and
StyriaThe history of Styria concerns the region roughly corresponding to the modern Austrian state of Styria and the Slovene region of Styria from its settlement by Germans and Slavs in the Dark Ages until the present...
(as
Rudolph III) from 1298 and King of
BohemiaThe Kingdom of Bohemia was a country located in the region of Bohemia in Central Europe, most of whose territory is currently located in the modern-day Czech Republic. The King was Elector of Holy Roman Empire until its dissolution in 1806, whereupon it became part of the Austrian Empire, and...
and titular King of Poland from 1306 until his death. He was the eldest son of German king
Albert I of HabsburgAlbert I of Habsburg was King of the Romans and Duke of Austria, the eldest son of German King Rudolph I of Habsburg and his first wife Gertrude of Hohenburg.-Life:...
and Elisabeth of Gorizia-Tyrol.
Upon the election of his father as
King of the RomansKing of the Romans was the title used by the ruler of the Holy Roman Empire following his election to the office by the princes of the Kingdom of Germany...
, Rudolph was vested as a co-ruler with the Austrian and Styrian hereditary lands of the Habsburg dynasty. On May 25, 1300, King Albert I arranged his marriage with
BlancheBlanche of France was consort to Rudolph I of Habsburg, Duke of Austria and Styria and son of King Albert I of Germany.-Family:...
, daughter of King
Philip III of FrancePhilip III , called the Bold , was the King of France, succeeding his father, Louis IX, and reigning from 1270 to 1285. He was a member of the House of Capet.-Biography:...
by his second wife Marie of Brabant. The intended union with the French
House of CapetThe House of Capet, or The Direct Capetian Dynasty, , also called The House of France , or simply the Capets, which ruled the Kingdom of France from 987 to 1328, was the most senior line of the Capetian dynasty – itself a derivative dynasty from the Robertians. As rulers of France, the dynasty...
however failed as the couple's son and daughter died young and Blanche herself died in 1305.
Another opportunity for a Habsburg gain in power opened when in 1306 the last Bohemian ruler of the
Přemyslid dynastyThe Přemyslids , were a Czech royal dynasty which reigned in Bohemia and Moravia , and partly also in Hungary, Silesia, Austria and Poland.-Legendary rulers:...
, King
Wenceslaus IIIWenceslaus III Premyslid was the King of Hungary , King of Bohemia and the king of Poland ....
was killed and Albert I as
rex Romanorum was able to seize Bohemia as a reverted
ImperialThe Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
fief. Rudolph was presented as a claimant to the Bohemian throne, however contested by his uncle Henry of Gorizia-Tyrol, Duke of
CarinthiaThe Duchy of Carinthia was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, then the first newly created Imperial State beside the original German stem duchies....
and husband of Wenceslaus' sister Anne. To further legitimate the Habsburg claims to the Bohemian and the Polish throne, Albert had Rudolph married to
Elisabeth Richeza of PolandElisabeth Richenza of Poland was a daughter and the only surviving child of Przemysl II of Poland and his second wife Richenza of Sweden, herself a daughter of Valdemar I of Sweden and Sofia of Denmark.Her name at birth was Richeza; she adopted the name Elisabeth after her first marriage...
from the
Piast dynastyThe Piast dynasty was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. It began with the semi-legendary Piast Kołodziej . The first historical ruler was Duke Mieszko I . The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir the Great...
, widow of the predeceased King Wenceslaus II of Bohemia. In 1306 he occupied
PraguePrague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
and expelled Henry of Carinthia to place his son on the Bohemian throne.
Mocked as
král kaše ("king porridge"), Rudolph was rejected by several Bohemian nobles, who continued to hold out for Henry. The king besieged the rebel fortress of
HoražďoviceHoražďovice is a town in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It lies on the Otava River, some to the South-West from the region capital of Plzeň....
in
BohemiaBohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
, but fell ill of
dysenteryDysentery is an inflammatory disorder of the intestine, especially of the colon, that results in severe diarrhea containing mucus and/or blood in the faeces with fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, dysentery can be fatal.There are differences between dysentery and normal bloody diarrhoea...
and died there in 1307, leaving no children. The first grab of the Habsburgs for the
Crown of Saint WenceslasCrown of Saint Wenceslas is the part of Bohemian crown jewels made in 1347. The eleventh king of Bohemia from the House of Luxembourg, and Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV had it made for his coronation and forthwith he dedicated it to the first patron saint of the country St...
failed, as the nobles restored Henry as king in return for a charter of privileges, who in turn had to renounce the throne in favour of Count John of Luxembourg three years later. Instead Rudolph's enfeoffment intensified the inner Habsburg inheritance conflict, culminating in the assassination of King Albert I by his nephew
John ParricidaJohn Parricida, or John the Parricide or Johann Parricida , also called John of Swabia from the House of Habsburg was a son of Rudolf II, former Duke of Austria and Agnes, daughter of King Ottokar II Přemysl of Bohemia...
in 1308.
Rudolph is buried at the
St. Vitus CathedralSaint Vitus' Cathedral is as a Roman Catholic cathedral in Prague, and the seat of the Archbishop of Prague. The full name of the cathedral is St. Vitus, St. Wenceslas and St. Adalbert Cathedral...
in Prague.
Ancestry
See also