Cymburgis of Masovia (Polish: Cymbarka mazowiecka; German: Cimburgis von Masowien; 1394 or 1397 – 28 September 1429), also spelled Zimburgis or Cimburga, was a Princess of Masovia of the Polish Piast dynasty and a Duchess of Austria from 1412 until 1424, by her marriage with the Habsburg duke Ernest the Iron. As the mother of later Emperor Frederick III, Cymburgis, after Gertrude of Hohenberg, became the second female ancestor of all later Habsburgs, as only her husband's Ernestine branch of the family survived in the male line.
Though his elder brother William's engagement with the Polish princess Jadwiga had mortifyingly failed, Duke Ernest the Iron, after the death of his first wife Margaret of Pomerania, proceeded to Kraków in disguise to court Cymburgis. According to legend, he won her love when he participated in a royal hunt and saved the princess from an attacking bear. Actually, her uncle King Władysław II, stuck in the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War and struggling with the Luxembourg king Sigismund of Hungary took the occasion to strengthen ties with the Habsburg dynasty and gave his consent.
The wedding took place on 25 January 1412 in Buda (German: Ofen), the residence of King Sigismund, in connection with Sigismunde hosti the peace negotiations between Poland and the Teutonic Order.[1] after the Peace of Thorn (1411). where lavish feasts, tournaments, and hunts were organized.[1] Present at the wedding were not only Cymburgis parents Siemowit and Alexandra, but also other notable guests like the bride's maternal uncle Władysław II Jagiełło, with Anna of Cilli, but also Vytautas, Grand Duke of Lithuania, Barbara of Cilli and Sigismund Korybut.[1]
Though not approved by the Habsburg family, the marriage turned out to be a happy one. Upon the death of his brothers William and Leopold IV, Ernest became the sole ruler of the Inner Austrian territories, while his cousin Albert V ruled over the Duchy of Austria proper.
Although controversial, it has been claimed (since at least by Robert Burton in 1621[2]) that she brought the distinctive protruding lower lip (prognathism) into the family, a particular physical characteristic of most members of the family for many generations until the 18th century.[3] It can even be recognized in some of her distant descendants (though not as markedly) as King Alfonso XIII of Spain (1886–1941).[4]
Tradition has it that she was also known for her exceptional strength, which, for example, she showed by driving nails into the wall with her bare hands and cracking nuts between her fingers.[5] Cymburgis outlived her husband and died on a pilgrimage to Mariazell while staying at Türnitz (in present-day Lower Austria). She is buried at Lilienfeld Abbey.
Issue
Cymburgis was constantly pregnant during her marriage to Ernest, giving birth to nine children in just nine years, of whom only four survived childhood:[6][7][8]