When Kazimierz Wielki died in 1370 without a male heir to his throne, it was the Angeven king, Ludwik Węgierski (Louis of Hungary) who was crowned King of Poland. He was the son of Elżbieta, Kazimierz Wielki’s  (Casimir the Great’s) sister. The Polish nobility welcomed him for they believed that his being the king of Hungary would leave him with little time to reign in Poland. What followed, though, was that Louis sent his mother to govern Poland and she did just that till she was almost 80!

Ludwik Węgierski was not always remembered as a very good monarch in Polish history (he visited Poland only three times during his reign), but one thing remains a fact – he maintained the unity of the Polish kingdom. What made Ludwik Węgierski memorable, though, was the fact that just as his predecessor, he did not have a son to inherit his crown, but he did have three daughters. To ensure that one of them would have the right to the crown, he negotiated with the Polish nobility. In 1374 he signed, what was called, the Privilege of Koszyce, a document that reduced the taxes that the nobility had to pay to the king by about 84% and promised rewards to those lords who took part in the king’s wars. In exchange, the lords promised to make one of Ludwik’s daughters the Queen of Poland. Thus Ludwik Węgierski strengthened the position of Polish nobility in Poland and is remembered as the father of Jadwiga, the first Queen, a woman, to inherit the Polish crown!

Monika Sarul, Ludwik Węgierski, 2024

Unknown author, Louis of Poland and Hungary, 1370

Marcello Bacarelli, Ludwik Węgierski, between 1768 and 1771

Jan Matejko, Ludwik Węgierski, circa 1893

János Thuróczy, Louis I of Hungary, 1488

Kálti Márk, Miniatures of Louis I (Chronicon Pictum), 14^th century

Jimmy44, Blason (Coat of Arms) Louis Ier de Hongrie.svg

Medieval Master, Polish Angevin coat of arms, 1340-1380(?)