Gertrude of Austria - Early Years

Early Years

Gertrude was the only child of Henry of Austria, Duke of Mödling, by his wife Agnes, daughter of Hermann I, Landgrave of Thuringia. Henry, in turn, was the second son of Duke Leopold VI of Austria. In 1216, after the death of his older brother Leopold, Henry became his father's heir.

Henry died on 26 September 1228, only twenty years old and without male issue. Two years later, on 28 July 1230, Henry's father Duke Leopold VI also died and was succeeded by Frederick II, Leopold's third son. Because Babenberg Austria was inheritable by females according to the provisions of Privilegium Minus, Gertrude disputed Frederick's ascension, claiming Austria as her inheritance as the only child of Leopold VI's eldest son. Even so, Gertrude's claim was eventually bypassed in her uncle's favor.

Despite this negative turn of events, Gertrude inherited her father's Duchy of Mödling and was placed under the guardianship of her uncle, Frederick II, who, after two unhappy marriages, remained childless. This made Gertrude the primogenitural heiress of the entire Babenberg line of Dukes of Austria and Styria.