Stephen II of Hungary
| Stephen II | |
|---|---|
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Stephen II depicted in János Thuróczy's Chronicle of the Hungarians
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| King of Hungary and Croatia | |
| Reign | 1116–1131 |
| Coronation |
c. 1105 1116 |
| Predecessor | Coloman |
| Successor | Béla II |
| Born | 1101 |
| Died | 1131 (aged 29–30) |
| Burial | Várad Cathedral (Oradea, Romania) |
| Spouse | A daughter of Robert I of Capua |
| Dynasty | Árpád dynasty |
| Father | Coloman, King of Hungary |
| Mother | Felicia of Sicily |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Stephen II (Hungarian: II István; Croatian: Stjepan II; Slovak: Štefan II; 1101 – early 1131), King of Hungary and Croatia, ruled from 1116 until 1131. His father, King Coloman, had him crowned as a child, thus denying the crown to his uncle Álmos. In the first year of his reign, Venice occupied Dalmatia and Stephen never restored his rule in that province. His reign was characterized by frequent wars with neighbouring countries.
Stephen and his twin brother, Ladislaus, were sons of the Hungarian king Coloman by his wife, Felicia of Sicily. According to the Illuminated Chronicle, they were born "... in the year of our Lord 1101." Stephen was named after the first king of Hungary, who had been canonized in 1083, implying that he was his father's heir from birth. A document written in Zadar in approximately 1105 AD makes mention of "Stephen, our most renowned king" along with Coloman, proving that the latter had his four-year-old son crowned king.
By the time of Stephen's coronation, Coloman had demonstrated his intention to secure the succession for his son. Coloman's ambitious brother, Álmos — who had already rebelled against the king in 1098 — opposed this plan and left Hungary. He first sought the assistance of Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor, followed by an appeal to Duke Boleslaw III of Poland. When all of his efforts ended in failure, Álmos submitted to Coloman and returned to Hungary, although he made several abortive attempts to dethrone Coloman in the following decade. In order to bring an end to the menace these plots presented to Stephen's succession, Coloman had Álmos and Álmos's little son, Béla, blinded.
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