Jaromír, Duke of Bohemia

Bust of Jaromír on Jaromírova Street in Jaroměř.

Jaromír (c. 975 - 4 November 1035) was the second son of Boleslaus II the Pious and Emma of Mělník. In 1003, he rebelled against his elder brother Boleslaus III, who had him castrated,^[1] but was unable to secure the throne, which was subsequently taken by Bolesław the Brave, King of Poland. Jaromír and his brother Oldřich then sought military backing from the German King Henry II. At Merseburg, Jaromír promised to hold Bohemia as a vassal of Henry. This action definitively placed Bohemia within the jurisdiction of the Holy Roman Empire.

In 1004, Jaromír occupied Prague with a German army and made himself Duke. The state he regained was a small one, as Polish forces still held Moravia, Silesia, and Lusatia. Jaromír's reign—like so many of the other early Czech rulers—was a struggle to regain lost lands. In 1012, Jaromír was dethroned by Oldřich (who had him blinded^[1]) and forced once again into exile. In a surprise campaign, Jaromír in turn managed to depose Oldřich (1033), but his second reign was short-lived. A year later Oldřich was restored by his son Bretislaus I. Jaromír was imprisoned at Lysá nad Labem and died (assassinated by one of the Vršovci) in 1035, a year after the death of his brother.

Ancestry

Monarchs of Bohemia Přemyslid c. 870–1198 (Dukes) Bořivoj I Spytihněv I Vratislaus I Saint Wenceslaus Boleslaus I Boleslaus II Boleslaus III Vladivoj Boleslaus the Brave1 Jaromír Oldřich Bretislaus I Spytihněv II Vratislaus II (I)2 Conrad I Bretislaus II Bořivoj II Svatopluk the Lion Vladislaus I Sobeslaus I Vladislaus II (I)2 Frederick Sobeslaus II Frederick Conrad II Otto Wenceslaus II Ottokar I Henry Bretislaus Vladislaus III Henry 1198–1306 (Kings) Ottokar I Wenceslaus I Ottokar II Wenceslaus II Wenceslaus III Non-dynastic 1306–1310 Henry the Carinthian Rudolph I Luxembourg 1310–1437 John the Blind Charles IV (I) Wenceslaus IV Sigismund Habsburg 1437–1457 Albert Interregnum Ladislaus the Posthumous Non-dynastic 1457–1471 George Matthias Corvinus3 Jagiellonian 1471–1526 Vladislaus II Louis Habsburg 1526–1780 Ferdinand I Maximilian Rudolph II Matthias Ferdinand II Frederick4 Ferdinand III Leopold I Joseph I Charles II Charles Albert (II)3, 5 Maria Theresa Habsburg-Lorraine 1780–1918 Joseph II Leopold II Francis II (I) Ferdinand V Francis Joseph Charles I (III) 1 Duke of Poland from the Piast dynasty 2 During his reign obtained non-hereditary royal title 3 Antiking 4 Elector Palatine from the Wittelsbach dynasty 5 Prince-elector of Bavaria from the Wittelsbach dynasty

References

1. 1 2 Czech radio