John and Jenny Fulton

Real International Princesses: Lithuanian Princess Aldona

By Jenny Fulton

Introduction

My book, An International Princess Alphabet Primer, features princesses from countries and cultures around the world. Each character is named after a real person. These are their stories.

Because the alphabet book was written for young kids, the biographies I’m sharing are short, child-friendly, often rose-tinted summaries.

Lithuanian Princess Aldona

Map Image by Gordon Johnson from Pixabay; Flag Image by jorono from Pixabay

Lithuanian Princess Aldona is named for Queen Aldona-Anna, the musical, Lithuania Queen of Poland.

Some people think Aldona-Anna was one of the most interesting Polish queens. 

We don’t know exactly when Aldona was born, but historians think it was around 1309 B.C. She was born in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and her dad was the country’s leader. He was known as the Grand Duke. At that time, the Lithuanians believed in many gods. But Aldona and her four sisters became Christians when they married the princes of Christian countries.

When Aldona was in her early teens, a large army of knights tried to invade Lithuania. They also threatened Poland. So, the Grand Duke of Lithuania and the King of Poland decided to work together to protect their countries. They sealed their deal by arranging for Aldona to marry Casimir, the prince of Poland. Aldona and Casimir were only 15 or 16 years old. Before their wedding in 1325, Aldona moved to Poland, got baptized into the Catholic church, and changed her name to Anna. For her dowry, or wedding gift, she asked her dad to free 25,000 Polish prisoners who were being held captive in Lithuania.

On March 2, 1333, Casimir’s dad died. The young couple became the king and queen of Poland when they were only 24 years old. Casimir eventually became known as King Casimir the Great.

Aldona-Anna was known for how energetic, strong, cheerful, and kind she was. She liked riding horses, playing games, and dancing. She especially enjoyed music. In fact, Aldona loved music so much that she often brought a group of musicians with her when she went somewhere. She even introduced new music to the Polish royal court.

Although Aldona-Anna wasn’t interested in helping rule the country, her marriage brought Lithuania and Poland together, so they didn’t fight each other anymore. About 60 years after her wedding, Lithuania accepted Christianity.

In 2018, a Polish TV series called “The Crown of the Kings” included Queen Aldona-Anna as one of its main characters.        

Trakai Castle Image by Wolfgang Eckert from Pixabay; Church Image by ValeraRychman from Pixabay

Other Princess Bios

Works Cited

CaraBeth. “Aldona Anna of Lithuania – the Pagan-born Queen of Poland.” History of Royal Women; March 21, 2019. https://www.historyofroyalwomen.com/aldona-of-lithuania/aldona-anna-of-lithuania-the-pagan-born-queen-of-poland/

“The Lithuanian Woman in Legend and History.” Draugas; July 15, 1997. https://www.draugas.org/news/lithuanian-history-highlights-the-lithuanian-women-in-legend-and-history/

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