Individual

Go to List of Family Names Go to List of People    < Previous Next >

Birth:          1239 of Cumania
Death:          AFT 1290 

Notes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_the_Cuman
Elizabeth the Cuman was the Queen consort of Stephen V of Hungary. She was regent 
of Hungary during the minority of her son in 1272-1277.
Birth and family[edit]

Historians point out that a charter of her father-in-law, Béla IV refers to a Cuman 
chieftain Seyhan as his kinsman, implying that Seyhan was Elizabeth's father.[1][2] 
The Cumans were the western tribes of the Cuman-Kipchak confederation. Her people 
followed a shamanist religion and were considered pagans by contemporary Christians 
of Europe. She had an unidentified sister, who married Hungarian noble Gregory 
Monoszló.

In 1238, Khan Köten, her father according to other historians, led the Cumans and a 
number of other clans in invading the Kingdom of Hungary while fleeing from the 
advancing hordes of the Mongol Empire. In time, Béla IV of Hungary negotiated an 
alliance with Köten and his people, granting them asylum in exchange for their 
conversion to Roman Catholicism and loyalty to the King. The agreement was sealed 
with the betrothal of Elizabeth to Stephen, eldest son of Béla IV. The agreement 
seems to have occurred while Stephen was an infant. Elizabeth was unlikely to have 
been older than her future husband. In 1241, the Mongol invasion of Europe under the 
leadership of Batu Khan and Subutai began, with Hungary among its primary targets. 
Köten was assassinated by Hungarian nobles fearing he would lead a defection to the 
other side.

Queen[edit]

Béla IV returned from Austria following the Mongol evacuation. Upon his return to 
power, Béla began rebuilding his country, including a massive construction campaign 
which produced the system of castles as a defense against the threat of a Mongol 
return. Köten was deceased but the betrothal was still in effect. Elizabeth was 
converted to Roman Catholicism in preparation for her marriage. The marriage of 
Stephen and Elizabeth occurred in 1253. The groom was twelve-years-old and the 
bride close in age to him. She became queen of Hungary upon her father-in-law's 
death on 3 May 1270.

Regent[edit]

Stephen died on 6 August 1272. Elizabeth became regent for their ten-year-old son, 
Ladislaus IV. Her regency lasted until 1277 and saw palace revolutions and civil wars. 
Her upbringing of her son would cause further problems for his reign. Ladislaus 
favored the society of the "semi-pagan" Cumans, from whom he was descended 
through his mother. He wore Cuman dress as his court wear, surrounded himself with 
Cuman concubines and thus alienated the Hungarian nobility. His later attempts to 
regain Hungarian loyalty instead alienated parts of the Cumans. He was murdered in 
his tent by Cumans while camped in Bihar county on 10 July 1290. By that time 
Elizabeth herself seems to have also been deceased. There is no mention of her in the 
reign of his successor, Andrew III. There is a tradition that she died in the year 1290.

Children[edit]

Elizabeth and Stephen V of Hungary were parents to six known children:
Elizabeth (c. 1255 - 1313), married firstly to Zavis Vítkovci, Lord of Rosenberg, Skalitz 
and Falkenstein, and secondly to King Stefan Uroš II Milutin of Serbia
Catherine (c. 1257 - after 1314), married to King Stefan Dragutin of Serbia
Maria (c. 1258 - 25 March 1323), married to King Charles II of Naples
Anna (c. 1260 - 1281), married to the Byzantine emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos
Ladislaus IV (August, 1262 - 10 July 1290), married to Elizabeth of Sicily
Andrew (1268 – 1278), Duke of Slavonia

Parents
____ Kuthen (ABT 1210 - ABT 1241)
----- ----- ()

Siblings
OF BOSNIA Elizabeth (Erzsebet) (1239 - AFT 1290)

Marriage To ____ Stephen (Istvan) V (Dec 1239 - 6 Aug 1272)
    m. 1253 

Notes

Parents
____ Bela IV (Nov 1206 - 3 May 1270)
LASKARINA Maria (ABT 1206 - 1270)

Children by ____ Stephen (Istvan) V Dec 1239 - 6 Aug 1272
OF HUNGARY Maria (ABT 1257 - 25 Mar 1323)

Produced by Fzip 1.7 6/20/2017