Emeric I. (
Hungarian:
I. Imre,
Croatian:
Mirko/Emerik,
Slovak:
Imrich I.), (1174 – 30 September/30 November 1204),
King of Hungary[Emeric. (2009). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 11 May 2009, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/185757/Emeric] (1182-1204). He was crowned during his father's lifetime, but after his father's death he had to fight against his brother,
Andrew, who forced Emeric to assign the government of Croatia and Dalmatia to him. Emeric intervened in the internal struggles of the neighbouring countries and assisted the missionary work of the papal legates among the
Bogumils of
Bosnia. During his reign, the
Doge of Venice,
Enrico Dandolo, managed to persuade the leaders of the
Fourth Crusade to occupy and take
Zára from Hungary.
Crown prince
Emeric was the eldest son of King
Béla III of Hungary and his first wife,
Agnes of Antioch. His father had Emeric crowned on 16 May 1182 in order to ensure his succession. Emeric was betrothed to Agnes, the daughter of
Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor, but her premature death in 1184 prevented their marriage.
Emeric was crowned again in 1194, and his father appointed him as
Duke of Croatia and
Dalmatia. In his last will, King Béla III left his kingdom undivided to Emeric, while his younger son,
Andrew, inherited a large amount of money in order to fulfill his father's
Crusader oath.
Struggles with his brother
On 23 April 1196, King Béla III died and Emeric ascended the throne. Shortly afterwards, Emeric and his brother
Andrew began to quarrel, because the latter used the money he had inherited from his father to recruit followers among the barons. Duke Andrew also sought the assistance of
Leopold V, Duke of Austria, and they defeated Emeric in the Battle of
Mecsek in December 1197. Following the battle, Emeric had to transfer the government of the Duchies of Croatia and Dalmatia to his brother. Emeric married Infanta
Constance of Aragon probably in 1198.
However, Duke Andrew continued his conspiracies against Emeric. The king could count on the support of
Pope Innocent III who continuously tried to persuade the duke to fulfill his father's last will and organize a
Crusade. The discordance in the royal family forced both the king and his brother to grant significant donations from the royal estates and revenues. For example, Emeric granted a tithe of the royal revenues to the
Archbishop of Esztergom and he also transferred the royal palace in
Esztergom to him.
In the beginning of 1199, Emeric was informed that
Bishop Boleszlo of Vác had been conspiring with Duke Andrew against him; therefore he went to Vác and personally arrested the bishop on 10 March. Afterwards, he deprived his brother's partisans (
e.g. Palatine Mog) of their dignities. In the summer of 1199, in the
Battle of Rád, Emeric would defeat his brother, who had to flee to Austria. The two brothers made peace with the mediation of the Papal Legate Gregory, and Duke Andrew was granted the government of
Croatia and
Dalmatia again.
Wars in the Balkans
Persuaded by Pope Innocent III, who wanted to suppress
Bogomilism in the
Balkans, Emeric, in 1201, made a campaign against Grand Prince
Stefan II of Serbia whom he expelled from his country where the Serb ruler's brother
Vukan Nemanjić acquired power under the overlordship of Emeric, who took the title "King of Serbia" after his success. Emeric also defeated
Ban Kulin of
Bosnia who had been supporting the
Bogumils in his province. In 1202, Emeric launched a campaign against
Kaloyan of Bulgaria, who was supporting Stefan II of Serbia to reconquer his country, but the Bulgarian troops avoided any battle and Emeric could not defeat them.
In the meantime, a new conflict was emerging, when the city of
Zára in
Dalmatia, formerly under the protection of the
Republic of Venice, recognised Emeric as overlord in 1201. Doge
Enrico Dandolo managed to persuade the leaders of the
Fourth Crusade to take the city on behalf of the
Serenìssima on 24 November 1202, despite the prohibition of Pope Innocent III. At Emeric's request the pope excommunicated the Venetians and the Crusaders, but the Hungarian troops could not reoccupy the city.
On 8 April 1203, Ban Kulin of Bosnia declared solemnly his allegiance to the
Roman Catholic Church and confirmed his fidelity to the King of Hungary. In 1203, Emeric hindered Cardinal Leo, who was carrying the royal crown Pope Innocent III had bestowed on Kaloyan of Bulgaria, in Hungary.
Last years
In 1203, Duke Andrew began to conspire against Emeric again; therefore the king lead his armies to his brother's duchies. Emeric, when he realised that the duke's troops outnumbered his armies, went unarmed, wearing only the
crown and the
sceptre, to his brother's camp near
Varasd and the duke surrendered voluntarily on the spur of the scene. Emeric had his brother arrested, but Duke Andrew managed to escape shortly afterwards.
Emeric, who had become more and more ill, had his young son,
Ladislaus crowned on 26 August 1204. Then, he reconciled with his brother whom he appointed to govern the kingdom during his son's minority.
Emeric was buried in the Cathedral of
Eger.
Marriage and child
# c. 1198: Infanta
Constance of Aragon (c. 1179 – 23 June 1222), daughter of King
Alfonso II of Aragon and his wife, Infanta
Sancha of CastileAncestors
Ancestors of Emeric of Hungary
Legacy
When Emeric died, his infant son briefly became king but died in 1205. Emeric's brother
Andrew became king. Constance, meanwhile, fled to
Vienna and eventually married the
Emperor Frederick II.
Titles
HAM King of Hungary
HRH Crown Prince of Hungary
HRH Prince of Hungary
HRH Duke of Croatia and Dalmatia (1194-1196) King of Croatia
Sources
- Kristó Gyula - Makk Ferenc: Az Árpád-ház uralkodói (IPC Könyvek, 1996)
- Korai Magyar Történeti Lexikon (9-14. század), főszerkesztő: Kristó Gyula, szerkesztők: Engel Pál és Makk Ferenc (Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1994)
- Magyarország Történeti Kronológiája I. – A kezdetektől 1526-ig, főszerkesztő: Benda Kálmán (Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, 1981)
