Catherine of Bosnia, Countess of Cilli

Catherine of Bosnia (Bosnian: Katarina Kotromanić, Slovene: Katarina Celjska - Kotromanićka)^[1] was a Bosnian noblewoman. She was Countess of Cilli by her marriage to Hermann I, Count of Cilli, and a member of the House of Kotromanić by birth.

Family

It is known that Catherine was of Bosnian origin, but her parentage is disputed. Some ^[2] believe that Catherine was the daughter of Vladislav Kotromanić and his wife Jelena Šubić. Others ^[3] believe she was the second daughter of Stephen II, Ban of Bosnia, and his third wife Elizabeth of Kuyavia. If Catherine was a daughter of Stephen, she is the sister of Queen Elizabeth of Hungary; if she was a daughter of Vladislav, she was sister of King Tvrtko I of Bosnia.

Catherine's parentage is not clear because there is no evidence to link Catherine to either of the couples.^[4]

Marriage

Catherine was married in 1361 (or 1362) to Hermann I, Count of Cilli (Celje). The couple were married for twenty-three years and had at least two children:

1. Hans of Cilli, died young
2. Hermann II, Count of Cilli, married Countess Anna of Schaunberg and became father of Holy Roman Empress Barbara.

References

1. Voje, Ignacij (1981). "Katarina Celjska - Kotromanićka in njen pečat" [Catherine of Cilli – Kotromanić and her Seal]. Celjski zbornik (in Slovenian). 18. Kulturna skupnost občine. pp. 287–292. ISSN 0576-9760. COBISS 8072192.
2. Katarina of Bosnia, Genealogics - Leo van de Pas
3. Marek, Miroslav. "Balkan 2". Genealogy.EU.
4. Cawley, Charles, BOSNIA, Medieval Lands, Medieval Lands database, Foundation for Medieval Genealogy,