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Isabella Jagiellon

Type Figure Region Hungary Time 1519–1559 Also known as Queen Isabella of Hungary

Daughter of Sigismund I of Poland, she married John Zápolya in 1539 to become Queen of Hungary, then ruled as regent for her infant son John Sigismun…

Timeline

  1. 1519–1539Kraków · PolandDaughter of Sigismund I and Bona Sforza, she grew up in the Polish court with a humanist education; her marriage was used as a pawn in Poland's diplomatic game in Eastern Europe.
  2. 1539–1540Buda · HungaryShe married John Zápolya in 1539, becoming his second queen; at the time Hungary was caught in a succession struggle between the Habsburg Ferdinand I and the Zápolya faction.
  3. 1540–1559Alba Iulia · RomaniaAfter John Zápolya's death in 1540 she ruled as regent for her infant son John Sigismund, sustaining the eastern territories under Ottoman protection; conflict with the Habsburgs intensified around 1551, forcing a brief exile to Poland; after abdicating in 1556 she still influenced Transylvanian affairs until her death in 1559.

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