EUPHROSYNIA MSTISLAVNA (born in 1123-1130 - † 1193 (?) in Jerusalem, the queen of Hungary, wife of the Hungarian king Géza II of the Arpad dynasty (1145/1146)

• Mstislav Vladimirovich (Harold) the Great was the Prince of Novgorod (1088–1094), the Prince of Rostov (1094–1095) and the Grand Prince of Kiev (1125–1132)

• Lyubava* Dmitrievna was the daughter of Dmitry Zavidovich, the posadnik (mayor) of Novgorod, and the second wife of Mstislav (Harold) Vladimirovich * The name of the second wife of Mstislav Harold Vladimirovich, the daughter of the posadnik Dmitry Zavidovich, is not indicated in the chronicles. It is attested only in the works of V.N. Tatishchev and N.M. Karamzin. Most researchers prefer not to call this princess by her first name, because there is no reliable evidence on the exact name of Dmitrievna [6, p. 107; 10, p. 345].

Euphrosynia was the daughter of Mstislav (Harold) Vladimirovich and his second wife Lyubava (?). She  was born after 1123, possibly in 1130. Most researchers believe that she was the same age as her husband, the Hungarian king Géza II Arpad, who was born in 1130. [1, p. 463; 14, Tabl. V; 15, Tabl. 27; 17, 205 o.; 25, 312 o.]. D. Dombrovsky proposes that not a certain date, but only the period in which Euphrosynia could be born can be reliably established. Since the second marriage of Mstislav was concluded in 1122, the possible time of the birth of Euphrosynia is the period between 1122/1123 and 1130. [3, p. 169]. Euphrosynia was the eldest among the three children of Mstislav from his second marriage and the twelfth among all the children of the prince [ibid.].

Thanks to indirect references in Russian chronicles, the filiation of Géza II's wife, the Hungarian queen as the daughter of Mstislav is beyond doubt [2, p. 77; 3, c. 167; 6, p. 144; 9, 319-320; 11, p. 168; 12, c. 34–35; 15, Tabl. 27]. Chronicles reffer to as Géza II "son-in-law" (in this context - "sister's husband") [I, stb. 407, 450, 451] and "brother-in-law" [ibid, stb. 384, 405, 406, 408, 420, 434, 482–483], to Izyaslav Mstislavich as "father" and "brother" [ibid, stb. 407], and to the mother of Vladimir Mstislavich as “mother-in-law” of the king [ibid, stb. 482-483].

At the same time, Hungarian or other European sources do not describe the origin of the Hungarian queen (with the exception of the “Genealogy of Danish Kings” by Abbot Wilhelm, written for the Danish court during the scandalous divorce of the French king Philip Augustus and Ingeborga, daughter of Valdemar I and Sophia of Russia) [VIII, p. 182, 183].

Approximately in 1145-1146 Euphrosynia was married to the Hungarian king Géza II. The opinions on the timing of this marriage differ insignificantly. A. V. Longinov suggests the latest date - 1148 [9, p. 319-320]. The majority of scientists is inclined either to 1145 [18, Tafl. VIII; 3, c. 175; 7, p. ten; 8, p. 75], or to 1146 [5, p. 59; 13, c. 35; 16, 205 p .; 17, 162 p .; 19, s. 68; 20 p. 41; 23, 269 o.]. Basing on the data on the baptism of the children of Géza by Louis VII and on the birth and marriage of the children of the daughter of Euphrosynia and Géza Elizabeth, K. Groth was the first historian to point to this period of time. He also drew attention to the fact that the marriage between Izyaslav's sister and the king of Hungary, as well as the appearance of Boris Kolmanovich (a claimant to the Hungarian throne) in the West a little later, may be related [2, p. 95-100]. M. Font explains the Hungarian marriage of Mstislavna by the search for allies against the German king Konrad III and the Margrave of Austria Heinrich Yasomirgott  [16, s. 35–37; 17, L. 162-164].

Researchers emphasize the influence which most likely enjoyed the Russian princess at court [3, p. 175; 12, c. 34]. Indeed, this marriage largely contributed to the strengthening of Russian-Hungarian relations: Géza II helped Izyaslav in his struggle against the Olgovichs and Davydovichs, accepted Vladimir Mstislavich, Euphrosynia's brother, after he was expelled by his nephew, Mstislav Izyaslavich, from Vladimir-Volynsky [II , c. 64; III, stb. 224; IV, c. 118] etc.

In marriage Euphrosynia gave birth to seven (according to other researchers eight) children. According to the Hungarian Chronicle, King Louis XVII of France, who stayed at the Hungarian court during the Crusade to the Holy Land in 1147 [VI, 458 о.], became the godfather of her eldest son István. After the death of Izyaslav in 1154 the ties between Hungary and Russia weakened.

Euphrosynia's marriage lasted about 10 years. After the death of her husband, Euphrosynia became regent under her son King István III [12, p. 34]. At this time a fierce struggle flared up between the supporters of the young king and his opponents, relying on the support of the Byzantine emperor Manuel I. Two months after the coronation István was overthrown by his own uncle, László II, and fled to Austria with his mother and retinue. With the help of the Czech King Vladislav II and the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa, István regained the throne. The king's younger sisters were married off to the sons of Vladislav in order to strengthen allied relations. In 1172 István died (it is suggested that he might have been poisoned) and the youngest son of Euphrosynia, Béla III, ascended the throne. He was sent by his brother to Byzantium as a hostage and spent 8 years at the court of the Byzantine emperor Manuel I. Béla III adopted many of the Byzantine customs and was focused on strengthening ties with the Byzantine Empire, which, according to his opponents, threatened the integrity of Hungary. The divergence of views caused an acute conflict with his mother. Euphrosynia tried to plant her other son Géza on the Hungarian throne, but she did not succeed [20, s. 107-124; 24, s. 93-123]. As a result, in 1186 Béla imprisoned his mother in the Branichevo fortress, and then sent her to Greece [V, 127 p .; 11, p. 179, annex. 66; 21, p. 91; 22, p. 305-313] The mention of this event in the Chronicals allowed some researchers to claim that the Queen Dowager died around 1186 [4, p. 77; 15, Tabl. 27]. N. Baumgarten, without any explanation suggests 1175 as the date of death of Euphrosynia [14, Tabl. V],   to the same date adheres L. Voitovich [1, p. 463]. Based on a document dated 1193, in which Béla III confirms the mother's gift to the church of St. Stephen in Royal Belgorod [VII, 283 o.], a number of modern historians suggest the date of death of Euphrosynia to be after 1193 [3, p. 171; 17, 205 p.]. Euphrosynia was buried in the church of St. Stefan, which she gave during her lifetime [3, p. 172]. In some works it is suggested that Euphrosynia died in Jerusalem and her remains were buried in the Church of Theotokos (Mother of God) in the Lavra of St. Feodosia and later transferred to Russia [22, s. 91]. However, this point of view is erroneous, since the widow of Géza II was confused with Euphrosynia of Polotsk, a revered Russian saint [3, p. 172, approx. 684; 10, c. 395].

• István (Stephen) III, King of Hungary (1162-1172)
• Béla III, King of Hungary (1172-1196)
• Géza
• Árpád
• Elizabeth, Princess of Bohemia
• Odola, Princess of Bohemia
• Ilona (Elena), Duchess of Austria and Styria
• Margaret, wife of the Byzantine aristocrat Isaac Doucas ** **D. Dombrovsky doubts whether Margarita was actually the daughter of Géza II [3, p. 175].

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