Who was crowned King of Poland in 1384?

Jadwiga was the daughter of Louis I the Great, who reigned simultaneously as king of Hungary and Poland. When Louis died, his eldest daughter, Mary, inherited the throne of Hungary. The Polish nobility, however, instead chose the younger daughter Jadwiga to be it monarch.

On October 16, 1384, Jadwiga, a woman, was crowned King of Poland. To make it clear that she was not a mere queen consort, but a ruler in her own right, Jadwiga was crowned as king rather than “queen”. She was only one of five such women monarchs in all known western history to take a masculine royal title, rather than a feminine royal title. Moreover, she received this lofty title while still a girl (Jadwiga was born in 1373 or 1374 and became “king” in 1384).

Despite being a child ruler, Jadwiga was a very smart and clever person. She could speak German, Hungarian, Latin, Polish, and Serbian, among other languages. She personally funded the building of hospitals and provided scholarships for academic studies to students. Her charitable nature combined with various legends eventually resulted in her canonization as a patrons saint of queens. Among the miracles attributed to her was the claim that she revived a boy who had drowned in a river.

King Jadwiga died at the age of 25 in 1399 after giving birth to a daughter who died within days of her mother. Saint Jadwiga was one of Poland’s most celebrated kings.