Kdo se je poročil s Sigismund II Augustus?

Sigismund II Augustus (Polish: Zygmunt II August, Lithuanian: Žygimantas Augustas; 1 August 1520 – 7 July 1572) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548. He was the first ruler of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the last male monarch from the Jagiellonian dynasty.

Sigismund was elder of two sons of Italian-born Bona Sforza and Sigismund the Old, and the only one to survive infancy. From the beginning, he was groomed and extensively educated as a successor. In 1529, he was chosen as king in vivente rege election while his father was still alive. Sigismund Augustus continued a tolerance policy towards minorities and maintained peaceful relations with neighbouring countries, with the exception of the Northern Seven Years' War which aimed to secure Baltic trade. Under his patronage, culture flourished in Poland; he was a collector of tapestries from the Low Countries and collected military memorabilia as well as swords, armours and jewellery. Sigismund Augustus' rule is widely considered as the apex of the Polish Golden Age; he established the first regular Polish navy and the first regular postal service in Poland, known today as Poczta Polska. In 1569, he oversaw the signing of the Union of Lublin between Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which formed the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and introduced an elective monarchy.

Sigismund Augustus married three times; his first wife, Elizabeth of Austria, died in 1545 at just 18. He was then involved in several relationships with mistresses, the most famous being Barbara Radziwiłł, who became Sigismund's second wife and Queen of Poland in spite of his mother's disapproval. The marriage was deemed scandalous and was fiercely opposed by the royal court and the nobility. Barbara died five months after her coronation, due to heavy illness. Sigismund finally married Catherine of Austria. Neither marriage resulted in living children.

Sigismund Augustus was the last male member of the Jagiellonian dynasty. Following the death of his sister Anna in 1596, the Jagiellonian dynasty came to an end.

Élisabeth d'Autriche, née le 9 juillet 1526 à Linz et morte le 15 juin 1545 à Vilna, est une princesse de la maison de Habsbourg, fille de l'empereur Ferdinand I^er et d'Anne Jagellon. Archiduchesse d'Autriche par naissance, elle est devenue reine consort de Pologne et grande-duchesse consort de Lituanie par son mariage avec Sigismond II Auguste en 1543.

Barbara Radziwiłł (Polish: Barbara Radziwiłłówna, Lithuanian: Barbora Radvilaitė; 6 December 1520/23 – 8 May 1551) was Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania as the second wife of Sigismund II Augustus, the last male monarch of the Jagiellon dynasty. Barbara, already widowed and considered a great beauty, became a royal mistress most likely in 1543 and married Sigismund in secret in July or August 1547. The marriage caused a scandal and was vehemently opposed by Polish nobles, including the queen mother, Bona Sforza.

Sigismund Augustus, with the support of Barbara's cousin Mikołaj Radziwiłł the Black and her brother Mikołaj Radziwiłł the Red, worked tirelessly to gain recognition for their marriage and to crown Barbara as Queen of Poland. Their efforts succeeded, and her coronation was held on 7 December 1550 at Wawel Cathedral. However, her health was already deteriorating, and she died just five months later. Despite the brevity of her reign, Barbara's marriage propelled the Radziwiłł family to new heights of political power and influence.

Contemporaries of the time generally viewed Barbara in a negative light, accusing her of promiscuity and witchcraft. Her life became surrounded by rumors and legends, and she emerged as a heroine in many literary works. From the 18th century onward, Barbara's life was romanticized as a great tragic love story, often portraying Bona Sforza as the chief antagonist. This narrative captured the public imagination and inspired numerous poems, plays, films, and other works, making Barbara Radziwiłł one of the best-known and most recognized women in the history of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland.

Catherine of Austria (Polish: Katarzyna Habsburżanka; Lithuanian: Kotryna Habsburgaitė; 15 September 1533 – 28 February 1572) was one of the fifteen children of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor and Anna of Bohemia and Hungary. In 1553, she married Polish King and Lithuanian Grand Duke Sigismund II Augustus and became Queen consort of Poland and Grand Duchess consort of Lithuania. Their marriage was not happy and they had no children together. After a likely miscarriage in 1554 and a bout of illness in 1558, Sigismund became increasingly distant. He tried but failed to obtain a divorce from the pope. In 1565, Catherine returned to Austria and lived in Linz until her death. Sigismund died just a few months after her, bringing the male line of the Jagiellon dynasty to its end. The dynasty would continue, strictly speaking, for one more reign—that of Sigismund Augustus’ sister, Anna Jagiellon, who was crowned with the male title of Rex Poloniae.