Greek pedigree of Elizabeth of Bavaria

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Empress Elisabeth of Austria , the so-called fairy queen, wanted to be a Greek. Genealogists tributed a pedigree, showing her that she in fact is a descendant of Constantine XII, Byzantine Emperor. But here is a composition of what they actually provided about the Greek ancestry of Elisabeth of Bavaria, Sisi.

[edit] Elisabeth's life in Greece

Empress Elisabeth commissioned in Corfu the building of a castle which she called Achilleion and settled there for lengthy periods of her years, proclaiming the island the most beautiful spot on earth. She was particularly fascinated with Greek mythology. She also studied intensively both ancient and modern Greek culture. According to contemporary scholars, Elisabeth knew Greek language better than either of her contemporary Queens of Greece. "...I want to be a Greek...." she said once. The empress continued her travelling; her dearest destinations were Corfu and the Greek islands. (Elisabeth also recognized that the coasts of Greece were very well suitable for a refreshing bath. To confuse observers, her servants had to go into the water too, so that no one was able to recognize, who the empress is now. She also had long walking tours on the Greek islands. "On these islands, I can be finally an island myself. That is the only way to life for me." [1])

[edit] Descent from the Palaiologos dynasty

In this pedigree table, the next entry (= next line) gives firstly the parents of the first person mentioned in the previous entry (previous line). External links attached to some persons show that one's nearest ancestry in a genealogy database. Empress Sisi was a 16th-generation descendant of Manuel II Palaiologos, Emperor of the Byzantine Empire, father of the last ruling emperors.

• Empress Elisabeth (1837-98) [2]

• Max, Duke in Bavaria (1808-88), and his wife Princess Ludovika of Bavaria (1808-92), daughter of Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria and Caroline of Baden.

• princesse Amelie (Anne Louise) d'Arenberg (1789-1823), and her husband Pius, Duke in Bavaria (1786-1837), son of William, Duke in Bavaria and Marie Anne of Birkenfeld Palatine

• prince Louis Marie d'Arenberg (1757-1795) [3], and his wife princesse Anne de Mailly-Nesle d'Orange (1766-89), daughter of Louis Joseph de Mailly-Nesle, Prince of Orange and Neuchatel, and Adelaide Julie de Hautefort-Montignac

• prince Charles Marie Raymond, 5th Duke of Arenberg (1721-78), and his wife comtesse Louise Marguerite de Marck (1730-1820), daughter of comte Louis Engelbert de Marck des Vardes and Anne de Visdelou-Bienassis

• princess Maria Francesca Pignatelli (1696-1766), Duchess of Bisaccia, Countess of Egmond, and her husband prince Léopold Philippe, 4th Duke of Arenberg (1690-1754), son of prince Philippe Charles Francois, 3rd Duke of Arenberg, and Maria Enrichetta del Caretto di Savona

• Niccolo Pignatelli, Duke of Bisaccia (1658-1719) [4], and his wife Marie Claire Angelique d'Egmont (1661-1714), daughter of Philippe Louis, 9th comte d'Egmont and Marie Ferdinande de Croy de Havré

• Carlo Pignatelli, Duke of Bisaccia (d 1681), and his wife Claire della Giudice (b 1636)

• princess Vittoria di Capua (1587-1648), and her husband Francesco Pignatelli, Duke of Bisaccia (d 1645)

• prince Pietro Antonio di Capua, 5th Duke of Termoli (1569-?) [5], and his wife Bernardina della Tolfa (d 1594)

• Vittoria di Sanseverino, Princess of Bisignano, and her husband prince Ferrante di Capua, 4th Duke of Termoli (d 1614)

• despoina Eirene Skanderbegh Kastriote, 4th Duchess of San Pietro di Galatina (dc 1568), and her husband Pietro Antonio Sanseverino, 4th Prince of Bisignano

• despotes Ferrante Skanderbegh Kastriotis, 3rd Duke of San Pietro di Galatina [6], and his wife principessa Adriana Acquaviva d'Aragona, daughter of principe Belisarios Acquaviva d'Aragona, 1st Duke of Nardo and Sveva Sanseverino

• despoina Eirene Brankovici Palaiologina, and her husband despotes Ioannes Kastriotes, Lord of Kroia etc (b 1457), son of despotes Georgios Kastriotes the Skanderbegh, Lord Sovereign of Kroia and the whole Arberia (c 1403 - 1468]], and despoina Andronike Komnene Arianite

• despoina Helene Palaiologina (d 1473), and her husband despotes Lazaros Brankovici Kantakouzenos, Sovereign Prince of Rascia (1421-58), son of despotes Georgios Vukovic Brankovic, Sovereign Prince of Rascia, and despoina Eirene Kantakouzene

• despotes Thomas Palaiologos, Prince of Peloponnese, claimant to Imperial Throne (1409-65) [7], and his wife despoina Aikaterini Zakhariaina (d 1462)

• Emperor Manuel II Palaiologos (1350-1425), and his wife despoina Helena Komnene Dragases (1398-1450), daughter of despotes Konstantinos Dragases, Lord of Velebusdos, Serres and the Strymon Valley

• Emperor John V Palaiologos (1332-91), and his wife despoina basilissa Helene Kantakouzene (1333-96), daughter of Emperor John VI Kantakouzenos (1295-1383) and despoina Eirene Asanina of the Bulgarian-Vlach realm

• Emperor Andronikos III Palaiologos (1296-1341) [8], and his wife Anna of Savoy (1306-c 1360), daughter of Amadeus V, Count of Savoy and Maria of Brabant, herself descendant of Emperor Isaakios II Angelos

• co-emperor Michael IX Palaiologos (1277-1320), and his wife Rita of Armenia (d 1333), daughter of King Leon III of Armenia and despoina Kyranna of Lampron

• Emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos (1259-1332), and his wife Anna of Hungary (dc 1281), daughter of King Stephen V of Hungary and Elisabeth of Cumans

• Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos (1224-82) [9], and his wife despoina Theodora Doukaina Komnene Batatzaina (1240-1303) [10]