Judith of Bavaria, Duchess of Swabia

For other people named Judith of Bavaria, see Judith of Bavaria (disambiguation).

Judith of Bavaria
Duchess of Swabia

Tenure	1119/1121 – 22 February 1131
Spouse	Frederick II, Duke of Swabia
Issue	Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor Bertha, Duchess of Lorraine
House	House of Welf
Father	Henry IX of Bavaria
Mother	Wulfhilde of Saxony
Born	1103
Died	22 February 1131
Burial	Waldburg in Heiligen Forst, Alsace

Judith of Bavaria, Duchess of Swabia (1103 – 22 February 1131^[1]) was a member of the powerful German House of Welf, being the eldest daughter of Henry IX of Bavaria and Wulfhilde of Saxony. Sometime between 1119 and 1121, she married Frederick II, Duke of Swabia. She was the mother of Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor, known to history as Barbarossa.

Family

Judith was born in 1103, the eldest daughter of Henry IX, Duke of Bavaria and Wulfhilde of Saxony, daughter of Magnus, Duke of Saxony and Sophia of Hungary. She had three brothers Henry X, Duke of Bavaria, Conrad, and Welf; and three sisters, Sophia, Matilda, and Wulfhild. The Historia Welforum names in order Iuditham, Mahtildem, Sophium, and Wulfildem as the four daughters of Henricus dux ex Wulfilde.^[2] This is evidence that Judith was the eldest daughter. She had in addition to her seven legitimate siblings, one half-brother, Adalbert, born of her father's relationship with an unnamed mistress.

Marriage and issue

On an unknown date between 1119 and 1121, she married as his first wife, Frederick II, Duke of Swabia (1090 – 6 April 1147); this dynastic marriage united the House of Welf and the House of Hohenstaufen, the two most powerful and influential families in Germany. The Historia Welforum specified that Judith married Friderico Suevorum duci,^[3] but did not mention the date.

Together they had two children:^[4]

Frederick I Barbarossa, Holy Roman Emperor (1122 – 10 June 1190), married on 9 June 1156 Beatrice I, Countess of Burgundy, by whom he had 12 children.
Bertha (Judith) of Swabia (1123 – 18 October 1194/25 March 1195), married in 1138^[5] Matthias I, Duke of Lorraine, by whom she had seven children.

In 1125, her father initially supported the candidacy of her husband to succeed Emperor Henry V as King of Germany, however he eventually switched his support to Lothar III, Holy Roman Emperor. The defection of Judith's father created an enmity between the Welfs and the Swabians that would have far-reaching consequences in Germany which would last throughout the 12th century.^[6] It is not known how this affected relations between Judith and her husband. It is curious to note that no further children were born to the couple after the birth of their daughter Bertha in 1123.

Death

She died on 22 February 1131 and was buried at Waldburg in Heiligen Forst, Alsace.^[7] Shortly after Judith's death Frederick married as his second wife, Agnes of Saarbrücken.