| Sarolt of Hungary | |
|---|---|
| Grand Princess consort of the Magyars | |
| Tenure | before 972 – c. 997 |
| Spouse | Géza of Hungary |
| Issue | |
| Judith of Hungary Margareth, Tsaritsa of Bulgaria Saint Stephen Maria, Dogaressa of Venice Gizella, Queen of Hungary |
|
| Father | Gyula of Transylvania |
| Born | c. 950 |
| Died | after 997 |
Sarolt (c. 950 – after 997) was wife of Géza, Grand Prince of the Magyars.
She was a daughter of Gyula of Transylvania and was probably educated in the Eastern Orthodox faith. She was married to Géza, the son of Taksony, High Prince of the Magyars, who succeeded his father before 972.
Sarolt exerted a powerful influence on her husband which allowed her to also influence his government.[1] She was watched suspiciously by Catholic missionaries.[2] The chronicles accused her of drinking insatiably and even committing manslaughter.
After her husband's death in 997, one of his distant cousins Koppány, who declared his claim to the leadership of the Magyars against her son, Stephen (Vajk), wanted to marry Sarolt, referring to the Hungarian tradition. Koppány, nevertheless, was defeated, and shortly afterward Sarolt's son was crowned as the first King of Hungary.
Her name (Šar-oldu) is of Turkic origin and means "white weasel".[3] She was also called "Beleknegini" by her Slavic subjects that means "white queen".[4]
# before 972: Géza, High Prince of the Magyars (c. 945 – 997)