Ladislaus II of Hungary
Ladislaus II or
László II (
Hungarian:
II. László), (
1131–
January 14,
1163), king of
Hungary from
1162 to
1163.
Ladislaus was the second son of King
Béla II of Hungary by Jelena of
Serbia. In
1137 his father named him duke of
Bosnia, but Ladislaus quarreled with his brother
Géza II and was forced to go into exile. Like his younger brother
Stephen, Ladislaus sought the support of the Byzantine Emperor
Manuel I Komnenos.
After the death of Géza II in May
1162, the throne passed to his young son
Stephen III, but the Byzantine Emperor threatened the Hungarian nobility, forcing it to accept Ladislaus as king. The reign of Ladislaus lasted for about half a year, from
July 15 1162 to his death on
January 14,
1163. Almost nothing is known about his short reign. Already recognized his brother's heir,
Stephen IV succeeded to the throne. By a wife whose name is unknown, Ladislaus had a daughter, Mária.
In medieval times he was not counted as a king (being only an anti-king). So Ladislaus III counted as Ladislaus II and Ladislaus IV. counted as Ladislaus III.
* G. Vég,
Magyarország királyai és királynői, Maecenas, 1990.
* (primary source)
The Hungarian Illuminated Chronicle, A. West, trans., Corvina, 1969.
* (primary source) John Kinnamos,
Deeds of John and Manuel Comnenus, C.M. Brand, trans., Columbia University Press, 1976.
