- Matilda of Holstein
-
Matilda of Holstein 
Queen consort of Denmark Tenure 1250–1252 Coronation 1 November 1250 Spouse Abel of Denmark
Birger JarlIssue Valdemar III, Duke of Schleswig
Eric I, Duke of Schleswig
Abel, Lord of LangelandFather Adolf IV, Count of Holstein Mother Hedwig of Lippe Born 1220/25 Died 1288
KielBurial Varnhem Abbey Religion Roman Catholicism Matilda of Holstein or Mechthild (1220 or 1225 – 1288 in Kiel) was a Danish queen consort, married to King Abel of Denmark and then to Birger Jarl, Regent of Sweden.
Contents
Biography
Matilda was the child of Adolf IV, Count of Holstein, and Hedwig of Lippe. In 25 April 1237 she was married to Abel of Denmark in Schleswig. When Abel became king in 1250, she was crowned with him in Roskilde on 1 November.
When Abel died in 1252, she was forced to leave Denmark and enter a convent. She managed to get her son Valdemar released from the captivity of the archbishop of Cologne and fought for the inheritance of her children in the Duchy of Schleswig. In 1260, she pawned the areas Eider and Schlei in southern Denmark to her brothers. She made a pact with Jacob Erlandsen, archbishop of Lund, and then broke her vows of the convent by marrying the Swedish regent Birger Jarl in 1261. After the death of Birger in 1266, she moved to Kiel.
In 1288, shortly before her death, she gave up Eider and Schlei to her brothers. She was unpopular in Denmark, where she was called the daughter of the Devil and accused of destroying letters from the Pope and emperor to King Valdemar II.
Issue
Queen Matilda bore her first husband three sons and a daughter:
- Valdemar III (1238–1257); Duke of Schleswig 1254–1257
- Sophie (born 1240, date of death unknown)
- Eric I (c. 1241 – 27 May 1272); Duke of Schleswig 1260–1272
- Abel (1252–1279)
Ancestry
Ancestors of Matilda of Holstein 16. Adolf I, Count of Holstein 8. Adolf II, Count of Holstein 17. Hildewa 4. Adolf III, Count of Holstein 18. Sizzo III, Count of Schwarzburg-Käfernburg 9. Mechthild of Schwarzburg 18. Gisela of Berg 2. Adolf IV, Count of Holstein 20. Burchard I of Querfurt, Burgrave of Magdeburg 10. Burchard II of Querfurt, Burgrave of Magdeburg 5. Adelheid of Querfurt 22. Lambert I, Count of Tonna 11. Mathilde of Gleichen 1. Matilda of Holstein 24. Hermann I, Lord of Lippe 12. Bernhard II, Lord of Lippe 6. Hermann II, Lord of Lippe 26. Otto, Count of Are-Hostaden 13. Heilwig of Are-Hostaden 27. Adelheid of Hostaden 3. Hedwig of Lippe 28. Henry, Count of Tecklenburg 14. Simon, Count of Tecklenburg 29. Eilika of Oldenburg 7. Oda of Tecklenburg 30. Eberhard I, Count of Berg-Altena 15. Oda of Berg-Altena 31. Adelheid of Arnsberg References
- Dansk Biografisk Lexikon, volume 11, pp. 205–206, Copenhagen 1897
- Annales Stadenses 1237–1241, MGH SS XVI, sida 363–367
Matilda of HolsteinHouse of SchaumburgBorn: 1220s Died: 1288Danish royalty Preceded by
Jutta of SaxonyQueen consort of Denmark
1250–1252Succeeded by
Margaret SambiriaDanish Royal Consorts Henri de Laborde de Monpezat (1972–present) · Ingrid of Sweden (1947–1972) · Alexandrine of Mecklenburg-Schwerin (1912–1947) · Louise of Sweden (1906–1912) · Louise of Hesse-Kassel (1863–1898) · Caroline Amalie of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Augustenburg (1839–1848) · Marie Sophie of Hesse-Kassel† (1808–1839) · Caroline Matilda of Great Britain† (1766–1775) · Juliana Maria of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel† (1752–1766) · Louise of Great Britain† (1746–1751) · Sophia Magdalene of Brandenburg-Kulmbach† (1730–1746) · Anne Sophie Reventlow† (1721–1730) · Louise of Mecklenburg-Güstrow† (1699–1721) · Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel† (1670–1699) · Sophie Amalie of Brunswick-Lüneburg (1648–1670) · Anne Catherine of Brandenburg† (1597–1612) · Sophie of Mecklenburg-Güstrow† (1572–1588) · Dorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg† (1534–1559) · Sophie of Pomerania†‡ (1523–1533) · Isabella of Austria†‡ (1515–1523) · Christina of Saxony†‡ (1481–1513) · Dorothea of Brandenburg†‡ (1445–1448 & 1449–1481) · Philippa of England†‡ (1406–1430) · Helvig of Schleswig (1340–1374) · Euphemia of Pomerania (1326–1330) · Ingeborg Magnusdotter of Sweden (1296–1319) · Agnes of Brandenburg (1273–1286) · Margaret Sambiria (1252–1259) · Matilda of Holstein (1250–1252) · Jutta of Saxony (1239–1250) · Eleanor of Portugal (1229–1231) · Berengaria of Portugal (1214–1221) · Dagmar of Bohemia (1205–1213) · Gertrude of Bavaria (1182–1197) · Sophia of Minsk (1157–1182) · Helena of Sweden (1156–1157) · Adela of Meissen (1152–1157) · Lutgard of Salzwedel (1144–1146) · Malmfred of Kiev† (1134–1137) · Ulvhild Håkansdotter‡ (1130–1134) · Margaret Fredkulla† (1104–1130) · Boedil Thurgotsdatter (1095–1103) · Ingegerd of Norway‡ (1086–1095) · Adela of Flanders (1080–1086) · Margareta Hasbjörnsdatter (1076–1080) · Gunnhildr Sveinsdóttir‡ (1050–1052) · Gyda of Sweden (1048–1049) · Emma of Normandy† (1017–1035) · Sigrid the Haughty†‡ · Gunhild of Wenden† · Tove of the Obotrites† (970–986) · Gyrid of Sweden (952–970) · Thyra (900–935)† also Queen of Norway · ‡ also Queen of SwedenCategories:- 1220s births
- 1288 deaths
- Danish royal consorts
- Women of medieval Sweden
- House of Schauenburg
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
