Agnes of Germany
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Agnes of Germany (1072 – September 24, 1143), was the daughter of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor and Bertha of Savoy. Her maternal grandparents were Otto, Count of Savoy, Aosta and Moriana and Adelaide, Marchioness of Turin and Susa.
Agnes married firstly, in 1089, Frederick I, Duke of Swabia. They had several sons and daughters, amongst whom were Frederick II of Swabia (1090 - 1147) (the father of Frederick Barbarossa) and Conrad III of Germany (1093 - 1152).
Following Frederick's death in 1105, Agnes married secondly, Leopold III (born 1073; died 15 Nov. 1136), Margrave of Austria from 1095 to 1136. Leopold was the son of Margrave Leopold II and Ida of Formbach-Ratelnberg. According to legend, a veil lost by Agnes and found by Leopold years later while hunting instigated him to found the monastery of Klosterneuburg.
Their children were:
- Leopold IV
- Henry II Jasomirgott.
- Berta, m. Henry III, Burggraf of Regensburg.
- Agnes, m.1125 Władysław II, High Duke of Poland from 1138 to 1146. Agnes is said to have been "one of the most famous beauties of her time".
- Ernst.
- Otto of Freising, bishop and biographer of his nephew Frederick I "Barbarossa".
- Conrad, Bishop of Passau, and Archbishop of Salzburg.
- Elizabeth, m. Hermann II of Winzenburg.
- Judith, m. c. 1133 William V of Montferrat. Their children formed an important Crusading dynasty.
- Gertrude, m. King Vladislaus II of Bohemia.
According to the Continuation of the Chronicles of Klosterneuburg, there may have been up to seven others (possibly from multiple births) stillborn or died in infancy.
[edit] Sources and Further Reading
- Karl Lechner, Die Babenberger, 1992.
- Brigitte Vacha & Walter Pohl, Die Welt der Babenberger: Schleier, Kreuz und Schwert, Graz, 1995.
