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Ladislaus the Posthumous

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Ladislaus V
Anonymous painting, 1457
Duke of Austria
Reign22 February 1440 –23 November 1457
PredecessorAlbert V
SuccessorFrederick V
RegentFrederick V(1440–1452)
King of HungaryandCroatia
contested byVladislaus I,1440–1444
Reign15 May 1440 –23 November 1457
Coronation15 May 1440
PredecessorAlbert
SuccessorMatthias I
Regents
King of Bohemia
Reign28 October 1453 –23 November 1457
Coronation28 October 1453
PredecessorAlbert
SuccessorGeorge
RegentGeorge of Poděbrady(1453–1457)
Born22 February 1440
Komárom,Kingdom of Hungary
Died23 November 1457(1457-11-23)(aged 17)
Prague,Kingdom of Bohemia
Burial
HouseHabsburg
FatherAlbert II of Germany
MotherElizabeth of Luxembourg

Ladislaus V,more commonly known asLadislausthe Posthumous(Hungarian:Utószülött László;Croatian:Ladislav Posmrtni;Czech:Ladislav Pohrobek;German:Ladislaus Postumus;22 February 1440 – 23 November 1457), wasDuke of AustriaandKing of Hungary,CroatiaandBohemia.He was theposthumousson ofAlbert of HabsburgwithElizabeth of Luxembourg.Albert had bequeathed all his realms to his future son on his deathbed, but only theestatesof Austria accepted hislast will.Fearing anOttomaninvasion, the majority of the Hungarian lords andprelatesoffered the crown toVladislaus III of Poland.TheHussitenoblemen and towns of Bohemia did not acknowledge the hereditary right of Albert's descendants to the throne, but also did not elect a new king.

After Ladislaus's birth, his mother seized theHoly Crown of Hungaryand had Ladislaus crowned king inSzékesfehérváron 15 May 1440. However, theDiet of Hungarydeclared Ladislaus's coronation invalid and elected Vladislaus king. A civil war broke out which lasted for years. Elizabeth appointed her late husband's distant cousin, Albert VI to her child's guardian. However, as a representative of the interests of the Austrian and Hungarian estates, he could not defend himself against his rival, Frederick III, King of the Romans, who in turn took over his role as guardian of Ladislaus. Albert had to renounce his guardianship and in return received the mighty Hungarian border castle Forchtenstein, including a principality in the Hungarian-Styrian-Carinthian area.[1]Ladislaus lived at Frederick's court (mainly in Wiener Neustadt), where Aeneas Silvius Piccolomini (laterPope Pius II) wrote a treatise on his upbringing.

After his mother died in late 1442, Ladislaus' interests were represented by aCzechcondottiere,John Jiskra of Brandýs,in Hungary, and by the Czech Catholic lord,Ulrich II of Rosenberg,in Bohemia. Ladislaus' rival in Hungary, Vladislaus, fell in theBattle of Varnain November 1444. The next year, the Diet of Hungary offered to acknowledge Ladislaus as king if Frederick III renounced his guardianship. After Frederick III rejected the offer, the Diet of Hungary electedJohn Hunyadiregent in 1446. In Bohemia, the head of the moderate Hussites (orUtraquists),George of Poděbrady,took control ofPraguein 1448. The Estates of Austria forced Frederick III to resign the guardianship and hand over Ladislaus to them in September 1452. Royal administration was formally restored in Hungary after Hunyadi resigned the regency in early 1453, but he continued to control most royal castles and revenues.

Ulrich II, Count of Celje(his mother's cousin) became Ladislaus' main advisor, but an Austrian baron,Ulrich von Eytzinger,forced Ladislaus to expel Celje from his court. Although Ladislaus was crowned king of Bohemia on 28 October 1453, Poděbrady remained in full control of the government. During the following years, Eytzinger, Hunyadi and Poděbrady closely cooperated to mutually secure their positions. Ladislaus was reconciled with Ulrich II in early 1455. With the support of the leading Hungarian barons, Ladislaus persuaded Hunyadi to withdraw his troops from most royal castles and renounce the administration of part of the royal revenues.

After theOttoman SultanMehmed IIdecided to invade Hungary, Ladislaus and Ulrich II left the kingdom. The sultanlaid siege to Belgrade.Hunyadi relieved the fortress on 22 July 1456, but he died two weeks later. Ladislaus and Ulrich II returned to Hungary and tried to force Hunyadi's son, also namedLadislaus,to renounce all royal castles and revenues, but Ladislaus Hunyadi murdered Ulrich II on 9 November, forcing Ladislaus to grant an amnesty to him. However, most Hungarian barons were hostile towards Ladislaus Hunyadi. With their support, Ladislaus captured him and his brother,Matthias.After Ladislaus Hunyadi was executed in March 1457, his relatives stirred up a rebellion against Ladislaus, forcing him to flee from Hungary. Ladislaus died unexpectedly in Prague. He was the last male member of theAlbertinian Lineof theHouse of Habsburg.

Life[edit]

Parentage and birth[edit]

Ladislaus was the posthumous son ofAlbert II of GermanyandElizabeth of Luxembourg.[2][3]Albert was the hereditaryduke of Austria,[4]while Elizabeth was the only child ofEmperor Sigismund,who was alsoking of BohemiaandHungary.[5]Sigismund had mortgaged theDuchy of Luxembourgto his niece,Elizabeth of Goerlitz.[6]He wanted to secure his realms for both his daughter and her husband, but theEstatesof Bohemia and Hungary did not acknowledge the couple's hereditary right to rule.[5]After Sigismund died in December 1437, Albert was elected the sole king of Hungary.[5][7]In Bohemia, Albert was unanimously elected king only after he defeatedCasimir– the younger brother ofVladislaus III of Poland– who was supported by a group ofHussitelords and burghers.[8]

Albert was planning to launch a military expedition against theOttoman Turks,who had been making plundering raids in the southern regions of Hungary, but fell seriously ill during the preparations.[9][10]The dying king, who knew that his wife was pregnant, willed Austria, Bohemia and Hungary to his posthumous child if his wife gave birth to a son.[2]He also put the potential heir under the guardianship of his widow and his cousin,Frederick of Austria.[2][10]Albert died on 27 October 1439.[9][10]

Fearing a new Ottoman invasion of Hungary, the majority of the Hungarian lords and prelates refused to accept the deceased king's last will.[11][12]They offered the crown to Vladislaus III of Poland and wanted to persuade the pregnantqueen dowagerto marry the new king.[11][12]In Bohemia, the assembly of the Estates passed decrees in January 1440 to avoid having a new civil war break out between the Hussites and the Catholics before a new king was elected.[13]The Estates of Moravia passed a similar decree.[13]

Although the 31-year-old Elizabeth seemingly agreed to marry Vladislaus, who was only 16, she made preparations for the coronation of her son after her physicians predicted that she would have a son.[14]She ordered her chambermaid,Helene Kottanner,to steal theHoly Crown of Hungaryfrom the castle ofVisegrád.[15][16]Before long, Helene Kottanner and her accomplice seized the crown.[15]They handed it to the queen on the very day she went intolabour,which was considered a miracle by both the queen and her courtiers.[15]Elizabeth gave birth to Ladislaus inKomárom(nowKomárnoinSlovakia) on 21 February 1440, almost four months after his father's death.[17][3]He was named for KingSt Ladislaus.[15]Dénes Szécsi,Archbishop of Esztergom,baptised him.[15]

Inheritance and civil war[edit]

The Estates of theDuchy of Austriaacknowledged Ladislaus' right to rule and made Frederick of Austria, who had been electedKing of the Romans,regent in accordance with the last will of Ladislaus' father.[10][18]In Bohemia, only the Catholic lords, who were under the leadership ofUlrich II of Rosenberg,[13]were willing to accept Ladislaus' hereditary right to rule.[18]Soon after the birth of her son, Queen Elizabeth sent envoys to Poland to persuade the delegates of the Hungarian Estates to break off their negotiations with Vladislaus III of Poland.[18]However, the Hungarian lords refused and elected Vladislaus king on 8 March 1440.[7][19]Before his election, Vladislaus had pledged that he would marry Queen Elizabeth and protect her infant son's interests in Austria and Bohemia.[7]

The queen refused to give her consent to the project and decided to have her son crowned king before Vladislaus came to Hungary.[20]She hastily took Ladislaus from Komárom toSzékesfehérvár,which was the traditional place of theroyal coronations in Hungary.[20]After a young lord,Nicholas Újlaki,symbolically knighted the infant Ladislaus, Archbishop Dénes Szécsianointedand crowned him king on 15 May.[20]During the lengthy ceremonies, his mother's cousin,Ulrich II, Count of Celje,held the crown over the head of Ladislaus who burst into tears while the coronation oath was being read out on his behalf.[20]Six days later Vladislaus III enteredBuda.[21]Queen Elizabeth fled first toGyőr,and from there toSopron,taking the infant king with her.[22]

The most powerful lords – includingLadislaus Garai,Đurađ Branković,Frederick IIand Ulrich II of Celje – and most towns remained faithful to the child-king, but most noblemen preferred Vladislaus' rule in the hope that he would be able to lead the defence of the kingdom against the Ottomans.[23][24]A civil war broke out between the partisans of the two kings which would last for years.[21]TheDietdeclared Ladislaus' coronation invalid on 29 June 1440, stating that "the crowning of kings is always dependent on the will of the kingdom's inhabitants, in whose consent both the effectiveness and the force of the crown reside".[11][24]On 17 July, Archbishop Dénes Szécsi crowned Vladislaus king with a crown taken from the tomb ofKing Saint Stephen,the first king of Hungary.[11][19]

In need of financial resources to continue the war against Vladislaus, Queen Elizabeth signed a treaty with Frederick III, King of the Romans, inWiener Neustadton 22 November.[25][21]She not only mortgaged Sopron to Frederick III, but also appointed him as her son's guardian and gave the Holy Crown of Hungary to him.[26]Thereafter Ladislaus lived in Frederick III's court, mainly in Wiener Neustatdt.[3]

Queen Elizabeth hired a Czechcondottiere,John Jiskra of Brandýs,who took control ofKassa(now Košice in Slovakia) and a dozen other towns inUpper Hungaryduring the next months.[25][27]However, Vladislaus' two military commanders, Nicholas Újlaki andJohn Hunyadi,defeated the united army of the child Ladislaus's supporters from the central and southern parts of Hungary in theBattle of Bátaszékin early 1441.[21][28][25]During the next months, Vladislaus and his commanders took control of the western and eastern territories of Hungary, but Jiskra and Queen Elizabeth's other supporters continued to control Upper Hungary, along withEsztergom,Győr,Pressburg(now Bratislava in Slovakia) and other important towns.[29]Negotiations began and Queen Elizabeth and Vladislaus signed a peace treaty in Győr on 13 December 1442.[30][31]The queen recognized Vladislaus as king, but preserved her son's claim to the throne.[30][31]Three or four days later the queen suddenly died and Ladislaus became an orphan before his third birthday.[18][30][32]

Wardship[edit]

After the death of Ladislaus' mother, his claim to rule in Hungary and Bohemia was primarily protected by Jan Jiskra and Ulrich of Rosenberg, respectively.[18]Most parts of Hungary remained under the rule of Ladislaus's rival, Vladislaus.[18]In Bohemia, themoderate Hussitelord,Hynce Ptáček of Pirkstein,administered the eastern territories, and the towns dominated by the radicalTaboriteswere united in a league.[13]The HussiteCtibor Tovačovský of Cimburk,who had assumed the title governor after Albert's death, continued to administer Moravia, closely cooperating with the towns and the CatholicBishop of Olomouc.[13]Philip the Good,Duke of Burgundy,whom Elizabeth of Goerlitz made her heir, invaded Luxemburg on her behalf in 1443.[6]Frederick III authorized the Estates of Luxemburg to pay homage to Philip the Good, but he also stipulated that Ladislaus could buy back the duchy after Elizabeth of Goerlitz's death.[6]During Ladislaus's lifetime, the Luxembourgeoise Estates did not recognize Philip the Good as their legitimate sovereign.[33]

Ladislaus Posthumous

Ladislaus' rival, Vladislaus, died fighting against the Ottomans in theBattle of Varnaon 10 November 1444.[34][35]At the Diet of next year, the Hungarian Estates agreed that they would acknowledge the child Ladislaus as king if Vladislaus, whose fate was still uncertain, did not come back to Hungary before 1 June 1445.[36]However, they stipulated that they would elect a new king if the child king's guardian, Frederick III, did not release both the king and the Holy Crown of Hungary.[37]The Estates also elected seven "Captains in Chief"– John Hunyadi, Nicholas Újlaki,George Rozgonyi,Emeric Bebek,Michael Ország,Pancrace Szentmiklósi, and Jan Jiskra – to administer the kingdom.[38][39]Frederick III stormed into Hungary, and captured a dozen fortresses along the western frontiers of Hungary, includingKőszeg,by the end of July.[38][39]The Counts of Celje, who were related to Ladislaus through his mother, invadedSlavoniaand took control of the province before the end of the year.[38][40]As Frederick III refused to release Ladislaus, the Diet of Hungary elected John Hunyadi regent for the period of Ladislaus' minority on 6 June 1446.[39]John Hunyadi, who adopted the title governor, ruled most part of Hungary, but could not expand his authority over the regions under the rule of Frederick III, Jan Jiskra and the Counts of Celje.[37]The envoys of the Hungarian Estates and Frederick III signed a truce on 1 June 1446, which confirmed Frederick III's guardianship over Ladislaus.[41]

In Bohemia,George of Poděbradytook up the leadership of the moderate Hussite lords after the death of Hynce Ptáček.[13]He captured Prague on 3 September 1448 and imprisonedMeinhard of Neuhauswho had started negotiations of the moderate Hussites' union with the Catholic Church.[13][42]Early the next year, Ulrich of Rosenberg and other Catholic lords entered into a formal league against Poděbrady.[13]

Ladislaus had a good education in Frederick III's court.[18]A Latin grammar was completed especially for him.[3]Aeneas Silvius Piccolomini(the future Pope Pius II) summarized his advice on education in a letter that he addressed to the ten-year-old Ladislaus in 1450.[18][43]Piccolomini suggested that Ladislaus should read both classical authors (includingArchimedes,Cicero,LivyandVergil) and the Bible.[18][43]He also emphasized the importance ofphysical training,stating that "both mind andbody...must be developed side by side ".[18][43]

As regards a boy's physical training, we must bear in mind that we aim at implanting habits which will prove beneficial through life. So let him cultivate a certain hardness which rejects excess of sleep and idleness in all its forms. Habits of indulgence – such as the luxury of soft beds, or the wearing of silk instead of linen next the skin – tend to enervate both body andmind....Childish habits of playing with the lips and features should be early controlled. A boy should be taught to hold his head erect, to look straight and fearlessly before him and to bear himself with dignity whether walking, standing, orsitting....Every youth destined to exalted position should further be trained in military exercises. It will be your destiny to defend Christendom against the Turk. It will thus be an essential part of Your education that you be early taught the use of thebow,of thesling,and of thespear;that you drive, ride, leap and swine. These are honourable accomplishments in everyone, and therefore not unworthy of the educator'scare....Games, too, should be encouraged for young children – the ball, the hoop – but these must not be rough and coarse, but have in them an element ofskill....In respect of eating and drinking the rule of moderation consists in rejecting everything which needlessly taxes digestion and so impairs mental activity. At the same time fastidiousness must not be humoured. A boy, for instance, whose lot it may be to face life in the camp, or in the forest, should so discipline his appetite that he may eat even beef. The aim of eating is to strengthen the frame; so let vigorous health reject cakes or sweets, elaborate dishes of small birds oreels,which are for the delicate and the weakly.... As regards the use of wine, remember that we drink to quench thirst, and that the limit of moderation is reached when the edge of the intellect is dulled. A boy should be brought up to avoid wine; for he possesses a store of natural moisture in the blood and so rarely experiences thirst.

— Aeneas Silvius Piccolomini:On the Education of Children[43]

John Hunyadi signed a peace treaty with Frederick III on 22 October 1450.[44][45]They agreed that Ladislaus would remain under Frederick III's guardianship until his eighteenth birthday, and during Ladislaus' minority Hunyadi would administer Hungary.[44][45]Their agreement stirred up discontent among the Austrian Estates, because theage of majoritywas twelve or sixteen, according to local customs.[18][46]The Austrian lords tried to prevent Ladislaus from accompanying his guardian toItalyin late 1451.[47][44]However, Frederick took Ladislaus with him toRomewhere Frederick was crownedHoly Roman Emperor.[44]After their return from Italy, Emperor Frederick again refused to renounce the guardianship of Ladislaus, provoking the Austrian Estates to rise up in open rebellion in early 1452.[44]The representatives of the Austrian and Hungarian Estates, and the Bohemian Catholic lords, signed a treaty in Vienna on 5 March against Emperor Frederick, but he refused to hand over Ladislaus to them.[48]On the other hand, the emperor assisted George of Poděbrady in gaining the newly established office of governor in Bohemia in April.[13]The rebellious Austrian lords laid siege toWiener Neustadt,forcing Emperor Frederick III to hand over Ladislaus to Ulrich of Celje on 4 September.[18][49]

Reign[edit]

A seal depicting three coat of arms held by two armored men
The seal ofUlrich II, Count of Celje,who was Ladislaus's kisman and close advisor

CountUlrich von Cilliaccompanied Ladislaus to Vienna but only after "washing theStyrianfilth off him "to symbolize the liberation of Ladislaus from the" Styrian "Frederick III's influence.[47]Ladislaus Garai and Nicholas Újlaki visited Ladislaus in Vienna in October, and John Hunyadi also joined them before the end of the year.[50]Hunyadi resigned from the governorship early the next year.[50]Ladislaus made Hunyadi "captain general of the kingdom", authorizing him to retain all royal castles that were in his possession at the time of his resignation, and to continue administering royal revenues.[51][52]Hunyadi was only to pay 24,000 goldflorinsto the sovereign in each year.[52]During a debate between the representatives of the Austrian and Hungarian Estates about his future seat, Ladislaus declared that he was Hungarian and wanted to live in Hungary, according to Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini.[53]

On 29 January 1453 in Pressburg, the Diet of Hungary acknowledged Ladislaus' position as the lawful king without a formal election or a new coronation.[50][37]He declared an amnesty for those who had supported Vladislaus against him.[52]Although all grants that Queen Elizabeth and King Vladislaus had made were annulled, Ladislaus issued new charters of grant for the grantees to confirm their proprietary rights.[52]The greater chancellery and the secret chancellery (two important offices of central administration, which had not functioned for a decade) were restored under the direction of Archbishop Dénes Szécsi andJohn Vitéz,Bishop of Várad(nowOradeain Romania).[52]The central courts of justice (theCourt of Royal Special Presenceand theCourt of Personal Presence) also started functioning again.[52]

A man with a shaven face wearing a cap
John Vitéz,Bishop of Várad(nowOradeain Romania), who was Ladislaus's secret chancellor in Hungary
19th-century depiction of Ladislaus's 1453 entry into Prague, by Czech history painterAdolf Liebscher

Ladislaus returned to Vienna shortly after the Diet was closed.[53]During the next months, Ulrich of Celje was Ladislaus' most influential advisor.[53]Celje signed a treaty with George of Poděbrady on 16 April and persuaded Ladislaus to confirm Poděbrady's position as governor in Bohemia.[50][53]Ulrich of Celje also signed a treaty with Archbishop Dénes Szécsi, Ladislaus Garai, Nicholas Újlaki, and other Hungarian lords on 13 September, who promised to support him against his opponents.[50][54]Their league was implicitly formed against John Hunyadi and Ulrich Eytzinger, the head of the Estates in Austria, who had for long been hostile towards Ulrich of Celje.[53][55]Fifteen days later, Ulrich Eytzinger persuaded Ladislaus to expel Ulrich of Celje from his court at an assembly of the Estates of Austria.[53][50]

Ladislaus was crowned king of Bohemia in Prague on 28 October 1453, which put an end to the long interregnum.[13][56]Ulrich Eytzinger, John Hunyadi, and George Poděbrady, who all were present at Ladislaus' coronation, signed a treaty.[57]Ladislaus stayed in Prague during the next twelve months.[57]George Poděbrady hindered him from consulting with his Austrian and Hungarian advisors, and even the royal seal was taken from Ladislaus.[57]At the next Diet of Hungary, Bishop John Vitéz submitted a proposal on the king's behalf to the Estates, demanding the centralization of the administration of royal revenues, but the Diet refused the proposal, which would have limited John Hunyadi's authority.[55]According to the document prepared by the bishop on this occasion, Ladislaus' cash revenues amounted to 216,000 florins.[58]Historian János M. Bak writes that that amount would have only covered about 85% of the expenses of a military expedition against the Ottoman Turks, who hadcaptured Constantinopleand planned to invade Hungary.[59]

Ladislaus left Prague in late November 1454.[57]He visitedSilesiaand Moravia where the local Estates paid homage to him.[57][60]After Ladislaus arrived in Moravia, Ctibor Tovačovský himself appointed Czech Catholic noblemen as royal officials, ensuring their loyalty towards him.[60]Ladislaus returned to Vienna on 16 February 1455.[61]Taking advantage of Ulrich Eytzinger's growing unpopularity among the Austrian noblemen, Ulrich of Celje persuaded Ladislaus to restore him in his court.[57]On 20 February, Ulrich triumphally returned to Vienna and vigorously reasserted his role as the young king's main advisor for Austrian affairs.[62]Ladislaus visited Buda and persuaded Hunyadi to resign a part of the royal revenues and withdraw his garrisons from Buda, Diósgyőr and other royal castles.[63]Ulrich of Celje also renewed his alliance with Ladislaus Garai and Nicholas Újlaki on 7 April.[64]

The newly electedPope Callixtus IIIdeclared a crusade against the Ottoman Turks, who had occupied the greater part of Serbia.[65][66]News of SultanMehmed II's preparations for invasion reached Hungary in autumn 1455.[67]Ladislaus came to Hungary in February 1456.[64]He held a Diet in March that proclaimed general mobilization and consented to an extraordinary tax to cover the expenditures of the defense of the country.[64][68]In April, Ladislaus borrowed 8,000 florins from Hunyadi, because the king had to pay off half of his former debt to Ulrich of Celje.[69]Before the sultan's army reached the southern border of Hungary, Ladislaus left Hungary and returned to Vienna.[70]

Sultan Mehmed IIlaid siege to Belgradein early July 1456.[51]With the assistance of thousands of commoners whomJohn of Capistrano,aFranciscanfriar, had stirred up to join the crusade against the Ottomans, John Hunyadi prevented the besiegers from completing the blockade and relieved Belgrade on 22 July.[59]Two weeks later, Hunyadi died of an epidemic that broke out in Belgrade.[59][71]

A blond boy lying on the bed takes the hands of an older man
On his deathbed, Ladislaus the Posthumous offers his thanks to George of Poděbrady,painting byJan Škramlík,late 19th or early 20th century

Ladislaus returned to Hungary in September.[64]Ulrich of Celje accompanied him at the head of an army of German crusaders who had assembled near Vienna.[70]Ladislaus made Ulrich of Celje "captain general".[70]They also decided to reclaim all royal castles and revenues that Hunyadi had held from his son,Ladislaus Hunyadi.[72]The young Hunyadi seemingly yielded to the king at their meeting inFutak(now Futog in Serbia) and invited Ladislaus and Ulrich of Celje to Belgrade,[73]but after the king and the Count of Celje entered the fortress, Hunyadi's soldiers attacked and murdered the count on 9 November.[73]The royal army soon disbanded, and the king found himself captive.[74]He accompanied Hunyadi toTemesvár(now Timișoara in Romania), which was an important center of the Hunyadi domains.[74][73]Hunyadi only allowed the king to leave Temesvár after Ladislaus made him captain general and pledged that he would not take revenge for Ulrich of Celje's murder.[73][75]

From Temesvár, Ladislaus went to Buda.[74]He soon realized that the majority of the Hungarian barons were hostile towards Ladislaus Hunyadi.[74][70]Upon the advice of Ladislaus Garai, the king convinced Ladislaus Hunyadi, who had also arrived in the capital, to persuade his younger brother, the fourteen-year-oldMatthias,to join him in Buda.[76]As soon as Matthias arrived on 14 March 1457, Ladislaus had the two Hunyadis imprisoned.[70][73]Sitting in the royal council, the barons of the realm condemned the Hunyadi brothers to death forhigh treason,and Ladislaus Hunyadi was beheaded on 16 March.[73][76]The Hunyadi brothers' mother,Elizabeth Szilágyi,and her brother,Michael Szilágyi,rebelled against the king, which caused a civil war between the lords loyal to the king and the supporters of the Hunyadi family.[77]Ladislaus appointed John Jiskra to be the commander of the royal army and left Hungary for Vienna, dragging the captive Matthias Hunyadi with him in early June.[70][75]

From Vienna, Ladislaus went to Prague where he unexpectedly died on 23 November 1457.[76][56]Although his contemporaries suspected that the young king was poisoned,[56]the examination of his skeleton suggests that he fell victim either tobubonic plague[76][56]or toleukemia.[78]He was buried in theSt. Vitus Cathedralin Prague.[56]

Family[edit]

Betrothal portrait of Ladislaus and Magdalena of France,c. 1457

Ladislaus never married.[78]After his arrival in Prague in autumn 1457, he asked for the hand ofMagdalena,daughter ofCharles VII of France.[78][56]Charles VII accepted that proposal but Ladislaus had died by the time the marriage contract was signed by his envoys inParis.[78]With Ladislaus's death, the "Albertinian Line"of theHouse of Habsburgbecame extinct.[56]Emperor Frederick III and his brother,Albert VI,jointly succeeded him in Austria.[56]In Hungary, Matthias Hunyadi was elected king two months after Ladislaus' death.[56][75]George of Poděbrady was elected king of Bohemia on 3 March 1458.[79]

Ancestry[edit]

Male-line family tree[edit]

See also[edit]

Citations[edit]

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External links[edit]

Ladislaus the Posthumous
Born:22 February 1440Died:23 November 1457
Regnal titles
Vacant
Title last held by
Albert (V)
Archduke of Austria
1440–1457
Succeeded by
King of HungaryandCroatia
1440–1457
withVladislaus Ias contender(1440–1444)
Vacant
Title next held by
Matthias I
King of Bohemia
1453–1457
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George