Urszula Mayerin (1570–1635) was
mistress to King
Sigismund III of Poland and a politically influential woman. Her real name might have been
Gienger, but it is still a matter of dispute among historians;
Władysław Czapliński,
Władysław IV i jego czasy (Władysław IV and His Times). PW "Wiedza Poweszechna". Warszawa 1976, p. 18 she signed all her letters as
Urszula Meyerin. In
German, her last name means
chamberlain (
meierin).
Early life
Urszula was most likely born near
Munich in
Bavaria,
Germany in a poor
noble family. She came to
Graz as a child in the 1580s. Mayerin was pretty in her youth, and some time later was chosen by
Maria Anna of Bavaria to become
mistress to King
Sigismund III of Poland. Maria Anna's own daughter (
Anna of Habsburg) was fiancée to the
Polish King, but was unattractive, and the
Habsburgs had bad experiences with two marriages of King
Sigismund Augustus of Poland. The girl joined the Anne's
court in Poland as a chamberlain in 1592.
Chamberlain
Urszula had a great influence on the King and Queen. She was a strict religious person. Shortly after her arrival in the
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, she acquired knowledge of the
Polish. Despite that she was very unpopular in the Commonwealth, because she was involved in affairs of state. She used her influence on the King to appoint her favourites to state positions. She was contemptuously...
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