Aldona of Lithuania

Anna of Lithuania (Polish Aldona Anna Giedyminówna, Lithuanian Aldona; * 1309, † May 26, 1339 in Kraków ) was a Lithuanian princess and by marriage to Casimir the Great in 1333 from Queen of Poland.

Life

Anna was the daughter of Gediminas, Grand Duke of Lithuania, and the Jewna.

She came to Poland in 1325 and took after her baptism ( on 30 April), the name of Anna. On October 16, she married the Polish Crown Prince Casimir, who was from 1333 King of Poland. The marriage was a purely political maneuver to strengthen the Polish-Lithuanian alliance against the Teutonic Knights. This marriage was already a sign on the Union of Krewo ( 1385 ) and the Union of Lublin ( 1569 ), which was finally completed in the Polish- Lithuanian confederation.

The marriage contract stipulated that Gediminas ordered all 25,000 Polish prisoners. The coalition was still not very strong and broke up already in 1330, but it is recorded that during the lifetime of Anna, there were no military hostilities between Poles and Lithuanians.

Anna was deeply religious and loved the music, they always had their court musicians with him. Kasimir was, however, for his numerous love affairs known after Anna's death he married three more times.

Queen Anne died in 1339 and was buried in Wawel Cathedral in Krakow.

Progeny

The couple had two daughters:

• Elisabeth (about 1326/1361 ), Polish princess, married in 1343 with the Duke of Pomerania - Wolgast Bogislaus V. - Stolp
• Cunegonde (ca. 1328/1357 ), Polish princess, married in 1352 with Duke Louis VI. of Upper Bavaria, a son of Emperor Louis IV