Adelheid/Adela of Meissen
Overview
Biography
(See also Genealogical Table(s): 2.2.)Adelheid/Adela of Meissen, queen of Bohemia, was a member of the Wettin dynasty, a daughter of Otto II, Margrave of Meissen, who became the first wife of Ottokar I, king of Bohemia. Married in 1178, Adelheid and Ottokar had four children: Vratislav, Dagmar (married Valdemar II, king of Denmark), Bozislava, Hedvika. Adelheid married Ottokar during his exile in Germany, returned to Bohemia with him shortly thereafter, and went into exile with him once again in 1193 when he was deposed as duke of Bohemia, taking refuge with Adelheid’s brother Dietrich (Theodore) I, margrave of Meissen. During the exile, Ottokar served as mercenary of German princes. After he resumed his position in Bohemia in 1197, and declared himself king, he repudiated Adelheid, and divorced her in 1199 on grounds of consanguinity. Ottokar then married Constance of Hungary, though Adelheid did not accept the divorce but fought it until 1210 when the pope finally declared it valid. She died the following year.