Elizabeth of Austria (1526–1545)
| Elizabeth of Austria | |
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Portrait by Lucas Cranach the Younger
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Queen consort of Poland Grand Duchess of Lithuania |
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| Tenure | 5 May 1543 – 15 June 1545 |
| Coronation | 8 May 1543 |
| Born | 9 July 1526 Linz |
| Died | 15 June 1545 (aged 18) Vilnius |
| Burial | 24 July 1545 Vilnius Cathedral |
| Spouse | Sigismund II Augustus |
| House | House of Habsburg |
| Father | Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor |
| Mother | Anna of Bohemia and Hungary |
Elizabeth of Austria (Polish: Elżbieta Habsburżanka; 9 July 1526 – 15 June 1545) was the eldest of fifteen children of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor, and his wife Anna of Bohemia and Hungary. A member of the House of Habsburg, she was married off to Sigismund II Augustus, who was already crowned as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania even though both of his parents were still alive and well. The marriage was short and unhappy. Elizabeth was of frail health, suffering from epileptic seizures, and died at age 18.
Elizabeth spent most of her childhood in the Hofburg, Innsbruck. She was raised with strict discipline and received a good education from humanist Kaspar Ursinus Velius, but was not taught Polish language despite her early arranged marriage to Sigismund II Augustus. The marriage plan was first discussed when Elizabeth was just one year old. Louis, King of Hungary and Bohemia, died in August 1526 without leaving an heir. The Hungarian throne was contested between Louis' brother-in-law Ferdinand I and John Zápolya. Louis' uncle Sigismund I the Old and Hungarian nobility supported Zápolya. The marriage of Elizabeth to Sigismund's son was proposed as means to discontinue Polish support to Zápolya. Polish Queen Bona Sforza opposed the wedding as she opposed the growing influence of the Habsburgs.
In February 1530, ten-year-old Sigismund II Augustus was crowned as King of Poland (his father was still alive and of strong health) to secure his inheritance in Poland which had elective monarchy. Envoys of George, Duke of Saxony, attended the coronation ceremony and negotiated the marriage between Elizabeth and Sigismund August on behalf of Ferdinand.Great Chancellor of the Crown Krzysztof Szydłowiecki supported the wedding and organized a preliminary marriage treaty, signed on 10–11 November 1530 in Poznań. According to the treaty, the marriage was to take place in 1533 when Elizabeth reached the age of 7. Her dowry was 100,000 ducats. In exchange, the Poles would grant her the cities of Nowy Sącz, Sanok, Przemyśl, Biecz.
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