Genealogy of the Order of the Dragon
the Order of the Dragon
Reconstruction of the emblem based on the sketches in Austrian Museum custody
The Order of the Dragon was a monarchical chivalric order only for selected higher aristocracy and monarchs, founded in 1408 by Sigismund of Luxembourg, who was then King of Hungary and later became Holy Roman Emperor. In 1396, Sigismund led the combined armies of Christendom against the advancing Ottomans. This crusade, preached by Pope Boniface IX, was very popular in Hungary. The nobles flocked in their thousands to the join, and were reinforced by volunteers from nearly every part of Europe. The most important contingent being that of the French led by John the Fearless, father of Philip the Good, founder of the Order of the Golden Fleece. In 1396, Sigismund led the Crusade of Nicopolis, but was decisively defeated by the Ottoman Empire. Afterwards, he founded the Order of the Dragon to fight the Turks and secured the thrones of Croatia, Germany and Bohemia. Mary of Burgundy, the daughter of John the Fearless, married Adolph I, of the House of Cleves, who was raised to the status of a duke and a Prince of the Holy Roman Empire in 1417 by Sigismund.
Sigismund's order was particularly inspired from the Order of Saint George, founded in 1326, by Charles I of Hungary, who was the grandfather of Sigismund’s first wife, Mary of Hungary. Charles I was the great-grandson of Charles of Anjou, and grandson of Charles II of Naples who claimed to have discovered remains of Mary Magdalene at Saint-Maximin. Charles I was the sister of Eleanor of Anjou who married Frederick III of Sicily, who hired services of Templar Roger “Jolly Roger” de Flor. Frederick III was the grandson of James I of Aragon who was raised by Templars, the son of Peter II of Aragon, who was killed at the Battle of Muret supporting Cathars. Peter II was also founder of the Order of Saint George of Alfama. Frederick III’s brother was James II of Aragon, founder of the Order of Montesa, a successor order of the Templars. Their sister Elizabeth, who was also associated with the Miracle of the Roses, was married to Denis I of Portugal, the founder of the Order of Christ. Frederick III’s daughter Constance married Henry II of Lusignan, who transferred the properties of the Templars to his own Knights Hospitaller after the order for their arrest in 1312 by order of Philip IV “le Bel” of France, the son of Frederick III’s sister Isabella of Aragon and Louis IX of France. Nevertheless, Philip IV’s daughter Isabella married Edward II of England, and became the mother of Edward III of England, who founded the Order of the Garter.
The Order of the Dragon adopted the Gnostic symbol of the Ouroboros, of the serpent biting its tail, which became a popular alchemical symbol. The dragon was also related to the legend of Saint George, which was derived ultimately from the ancient myth of the dying-god against the dragon of chaos, as in the case of Marduk (or Bel) against Tiamat in Babylonian mythology. There is a tradition in the Holy Land of Christians and Muslims going to an Eastern Orthodox shrine of Saint George at Beith Jala, with Jews also attending the site in the belief that the prophet Elijah was buried there. These Muslims worshipped this same Saint George or Elijah as the Sufi figure of al Khidr, a tradition which was found throughout the Middle East, from Egypt to Asia Minor.
The House of Savoy, like the houses of Gonzaga, Cleves, Lorraine, Wettin and Montferrat all began their ascent after they were recognized by Emperor Sigismund. Sigismund raised Adolph I, Duke of Cleves (1373 – 1448) to the status of a duke and a Prince of the Holy Roman Empire in 1417. Adolph I married Mary of Burgundy, Duchess of Cleves, sister of John the Fearless. John Jacob of Montferrat (1395 – 1445) received the investiture as Marquis by Emperor Sigismund. Gianfrancesco I Gonzaga, Marquess of Mantua (1395 – 1444), the son of the son of Francesco I Gonzaga, became a famous general and was rewarded for his services to Sigismund with the title of marquess of Mantua for himself and his descendants in 1432, an investiture that legitimatized the usurpations of the House of Gonzaga. Amadeus VIII of Savoy, known as Antipope Felix V, was elevated Duke of Savoy by Sigismund. Amadeus was the son of Amadeus VII, Count of Savoy and Bonne of Berry, the daughter of Sigismund’s cousin and John the Fearless’ uncle, John, Duke of Berry, who requested that Jean d’Arras write the Roman de Mélusine or the Chronique de Melusine part of Le Noble Hystoire de Lusignan. Amadeus VIII married John the Fearless’s sister, Mary of Burgundy.
Sigismund’s daughter Elizabeth of Luxembourg married Albert II of Germany (1397 – 1439), who was King of Hungary and Croatia from 1437 until his death and member of the House of Habsburg. Their daughter Elizabeth of Austria married Casimir IV, King of Poland. Their son, Sigismund I the Old, a knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece, married Bona Sforza, great-great-granddaughtter of Amadeus VIII of Saovy. Their son Sigismund II Augustus married Barbara Radziwiłł who was accused of promiscuity and witchcraft. Their daughter Anna Jagiellon married Stephen Báthory, a sponsor of John Dee and uncle of Elizabeth Báthory, the “Blood Countess,” know as the worst female serial killer in history. Elizabeth has been compared with Vlad III the Impaler (1431 – 1476/77), who inspired the name of the vampire “Count Dracula” in Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula. Emperor Sigismund bestowed upon Vlad III’s father, Vlad II, prince of Wallachia official membership in the prestigious Inner Court of the Dragon Order.
Vladislaus II’s sister Barbara Jagiellon was the mother of Christine of Saxony, who married Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse (1504 – 1567), who was closely allied with the Electors of Saxony in the defence of the Protestant Reformation. Frederick I, Elector of Saxony (1370 – 1428), a member of the House of Wettin, received the Saxon Electorate from Emperor Sigismund. His son, Frederick II, Elector of Saxony (1412 – 1464), a knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece, married Margaret of Austria, daughter of Ernest, Duke of Austria (1377 – 1424) of the House of Habsburg, a member of the Order of the Dragon, and father of Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor. Frederick II’s grandson was Frederick III the Wise, Elector of Saxony (1463 – 1525), one of the most powerful early defenders of Martin Luther, hiding him at Wartburg Castle. Frederick III’s brother was Elector John (1468 – 1532), was known for organizing the Lutheran Church in the Electorate of Saxony. It was Elector John’s son John Frederick I of Saxony (1503 – 1554) who commissioned the creation of the Luther Rose, a widely recognized symbol for Lutheranism, featuring the White Rose of York, superimposed by a cross within a heart.
John Frederick would go on to later head the Schmalkaldic League, a military alliance of Lutheran princes within the Holy Roman Empire, with Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, whose descendants would found the Rosicrucian movement. Philip I of Hesse’s granddaughter Anna of Saxony would marry the famous William the Silent, Prince of Orange (1533 – 1584). Philip’s grandson, Maurice, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel, known as “the Learned,” was a close friend of the grandson of William the Silent, Frederick V of the Palatinate (1596 – 1632), whose marriage to Elizabeth Stuart, daughter of King James, was celebrated in the Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz, by Johann Valentin Andreae, which followed the Rosicrucian manifestos. The invitation to the royal wedding includes John Dee’s symbol of Monas Hieroglyphica, representing the Great Conjuction of Saturn and Jupiter in 1623, around which the advent of the Rosicrucian movement was timed.
Vladislaus II’s daughter Anna Jagellonica married Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor, who like his son and successor Maximilian II was Grand Master of the Order of the Golden Fleece. Maximilian II was succeeded by Rudolf II, who maintained an occult-oriented court in Prague which attracted John Dee, resulting, according to Frances Yates, in the Rosicrucian movement. Maximilian II’s sister, Eleanor, Duchess of Mantua, was the mother of Vincenzo Ι Gonzaga, also a knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece, and nephew of Louis Gonzaga, Grand Master of the Priory of Sion. Maximilian II’s other sister Joanna, Grand Duchess of Tuscany married Francesco I de' Medici who fathered Marie de Medici, grandmother of Louis XIV, King of France who married Madame de Montespan, a practitioner of the Black Mass involved in the Affair of the Poisons, and Philippe I, Duke of Orleans, whose son Philip II was a friend of Chevalier Michael Ramsay, who was responsible for the Templar legend of Freemasonry. Philippe II was also the grandfather of Louis Philippe, Duke of Orleans, known as Philippe Égalité, the famous leader of the French Revolution, who was Grand Master of the Grand Orient of France, a member of the Illuminati, associate of Rabbi Samuel Jacob Falk, the “hidden superior” of Enlightenment Freemasonry.
Béla III of Hungary + Agnes of Antioch (closely associated with Pontigny Abbey. Ancestress of all subsequent Kings of Hungary, as well as the Hungarian princesses, and by marriage of the Piast Duchesses St. Kinga and Bl. Jolenta of Poland. In addition, from her descended the Kings of Bohemia from the Přemyslid, Luxembourg, Jagiellon and Habsburg families)
Andrew II of Hungary + Gertrude of Merani
Béla IV of Hungary + Maria Laskarina
Yolanda of Poland
Stephen V of Hungary + Elizabeth the Cuman
Mary of Hungary + Charles II, King of Naples (discovered remains of Mary Madgalene at Saint-Maximin. See Genealogy of the Kingdom of Naples)
Blanche of Anjou + James II of Aragon (see below)
Eleanor of Anjou + Frederick III of Sicily (see below)
Charles Martel, Prince of Salermo
Charles I of Hungary (founder of the Order of Saint George) + Elizabeth of Poland
Louis I of Hungary + Margaret of Bohemia (Sigismund’s half-sister)
Louis I of Hungary + Elizabeth of Bosnia
Mary, Queen of Hungary + SIGISMUND, HOLY ROMAN EMPEROR, founder of the ORDER OF THE DRAGON
Saint Elizabeth (of the MIRACLE OF THE ROSES)
James I of Aragon (raised by Templars) + Violant of Hungary (see Genealogy of the Order of Santiago)
Violant + Alfonso X of Castile, el Astrologo
Sancho IV of Castile (had affair with Rachel the Beautiful, Jewess of Toledo)
Beatrice of Castile + Afonso III of Portugal
Denis I of Portugal (founder of the ORDER OF CHRIST) + (see below)
Peter III of Aragon + Constance, Queen of Sicily (g-d. of Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor)
James II of Aragon (founder of the ORDER OF MONTESA) + Blanche of Anjou
Elizabeth, Queen of Portugal + Denis I of Portugal (founder of the ORDER OF CHRIST)
Constança, Queen of Castile + Ferdinand IV, King of Castile
Afonso IV, King of Portugal
Maria of Portugal + Alfonso XI of Castile
Peter of Castile
Peter I of Portugal + Teresa Lourenço
John I of Portugal + Philippa of Lancaster (see below)
Frederick III of Sicily (hired Templar Roger de Flor) + Eleanor of Anjou (sister of Charles I of Hungary, founder of the ORDER OF SAINT GEORGE)
Constance of Sicily, Queen of Cyprus + Henry II of Lusignan (transferred property of Templars to Hospitallers. In contact with Ramon Llull)
Peter II of Sicily + Elisabeth of Carinthia
Eleanor + Peter IV of Aragon
John I of Aragon + Yolande of Bar (see below)
Martin, King of Aragon
Eleanor, Queen of Castile + John I of Castile
Alfonso V, King of Aragon (Order of the Dragon) + Maria of Castile
John II, King of Aragon
Eleanor of Aragon + Edward I of Portugal (see below)
James II of Majorca (student of Raymond Llull) + Esclaramunda of Foix (her grandfather was a cousin of Raymond-Roger Trencavel, identified with Perceval)
Isabella + Louis IX of France (b. of Charles of Anjou)
Philip IV “le Bel” of France (ordered arrest of Templars in 1312) + Joan I of Navarre (see above)
Isabella of France + Edward II of England
Edward III, King of England (founder of the Order of the Garter) + Philippa of Hainault (see Genealogy of the Order of the Garter)
Philippa of Lancaster + John I of Portugal (see above)
Prince Henry the Navigator (Grand Master of the Order of Christ)
Edward I of Portugal + Eleanor of Aragon (see above)
Afonso V of Portugal (Knight of the Garter)
Eleanor of Portugal + Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor (son of Ernest the Iron, member of the Order of the Dragon)
Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor + Mary of Burgundy (see below)
John, Constable of Portugal + Isabella of Barcelos
Isabella of Portugal, Queen of Castile + John II of Castile
Isabella of Portugal + Philip the Good (founder of the ORDER OF THE GOLDEN FLEECE)
Charles the Bold + Isabella of Bourbon
Mary of Burgundy + Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (see above)
Philip I of Castile + Joanna of Castile (d. of Ferdinand and Isabella)
Eleanor + Manuel I of Portugal (Order of the Golden Fleece, Grand Master of the Order of Christ)
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (Grand Master of the Order of the Golden Fleece) + Isabella of Portugal (d. of Manuel I, King of Portugal, Grand Master of the Order of Christ)
Philip II of Spain (Grand Master of the orders of Santiago, Montesa and Calatrava, and a member of the Order of the Garter. Philip II’s second wife was Mary I of England, “Bloody Mary”)
Maria of Austria, Holy Roman Empress + Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor (see below)
Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor (Grand Master of the Order of the Golden Fleece) + Anna Jagellonica (see below)
Mary of Austria + Louis II of Hungary (see below)
Henry IV, King of England
Catherine, Queen of Castile + Henry III of Castile
Maria of Castile + Alfonso V of Aragon
Joan, Queen of Scots + David II of Scotland
Constance of Hungary + Ottokar I of Bohemia
Wenceslaus I of Bohemia + Kunigunde of Hohenstaufen
Ottokar II, King of Bohemia + Kunigunda of Slavonia
Wenceslaus II of Bohemia + Judith of Habsburg
Elisabeth of Bohemia + John the Blind, King of Bohemia (son of Henry VII, Holy Roman Emperor, son of Henry V, Count of Luxembourg + Margaret of Bar, aunt of EDWARD I, COUNT OF BAR, Grand Master of the Priory of Sion. See Genealogy of the House of Luxembourg)
Bonne of Luxembourg + John II the Blind
Charles V of France + Joanna of Bourbon
Charles VI of France + Isabeau of Bavaria
Catherine of Valois + Henry V of England
Charles VII of France
Louis I, Duke of Orléans + Valentina Visconti (see below)
Louis I, Duke of Anjou + Marie of Blois
Louis II of Anjou + (see below)
JEAN DUKE OF BERRY (requested that Jean d’Arras write the Roman de Mélusine, dedicated to Marie of Valois) + Joanna of Armagnac
Bonne of Berry + Amadeus VII, Count of Savoy
PHILIP THE BOLD + Margaret III, Countess of Flanders
John the Fearless + Margaret of Bavaria
Agnes of Burgundy + Charles I, Duke of Bourbon
Isabella of Bourbon + Charles the Bold (see below)
Margaret of Bourbon + Philip II, Duke of Savoy (see below)
Catharine of Bourbon + Adolf II, Duke of Guelders (see below)
PHILIP THE GOOD (founder of the Order of the Golden Fleece) + (see below)
Charles the Bold + Isabella of Bourbon
Mary, Duchess of Burgundy + Maximilian I
Mary of Burgundy, Duchess of Cleves + Adolph I, Duke of Cleves
Catherine of Cleves + Arnold, Duke of Gelderland
Mary of Guelders + James II of Scotland
James III of Scotland + Margaret of Denmark
James IV of Scotland + Margaret Tudor (d. Of Henry VII, Golden Fleece + Elizabeth of York, daughter of Elizabeth Woodville)
James V of Scotland (Order of the Golden Fleece) + MARIE DE GUISE (see below)
Adolf II, Duke of Guelders + Catharine of Bourbon (see above)
Philippa of Guelders + René II, Duke of Lorraine (see below)
John I, Duke of Cleves + Elizabeth of Nevers (great-granddaughter of Philip the Good, founder of the Order of the Golden Fleece)
Engelbert, Count of Nevers + Charlotte de Bourbone-Vendome
Charles II, Count of Nevers + Marie d'Albret, Countess of Rethel
Francis I, Duke of Nevers +
Henriette of Cleves + Louis Gonzaga, Duke of Nevers (Grand Master of the Priory of Sion)
Catherine of Cleves + Henri de Lorraine, Duke of Guise
Charles, Duke of Guise (Grand Master of the Order of the Fleur de Lys)
Marie of Cleves + Charles, Duke of Orléans
Mary of Burgundy + Amadeus VIII, Duke of Savoy (Antipope Felix V, elevated Duke of Savoy by Sigismund of Luxembourg, founder of the Order of the Dragon)
Louis, Duke of Savoy + Anne of Cyprus
Philip II, Duke of Savoy + Margaret of Bourbon (see above)
Louise + Charles d'Orléans, Count of Angoulême,
Francis I of France + Claude of France (see below)
Charlotte of Savoy + Louis XI of France (see below)
Bona + Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan
Gian Galeazzo Sforza + Isabella of Naples
Bona Sforza + Sigismund I the Old of Poland (Order of the Golden Fleece, see below)
Bianca Maria Sforza
Anna Sforza + Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara
MARIE OF VALOIS + Robert I, Duke of Bar (see above)
Henry of Bar + Marie de Coucy, Countess of Soissons (d. of Enguerrand VII de Coucy, possible author of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight)
Yolande of Bar + John I of Aragon (see above)
Yolande of Aragon + Louis II of Anjou (see above)
Louis III of Anjou
Marie of Anjou + Charles VII of France (see above)
Louis XI of France + Charlotte of Savoy
RENE OF ANJOU (Grand Master of PRIORY OF SION) + Isabella of Lorraine
Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor + Elizabeth of Pomerania
SIGISMUND OF LUXEMBOURG, HOLY ROMAN EMPEROR (founder of the ORDER OF THE DRAGON) + Barbara of Celje
Elizabeth of Luxembourg + Albert II of Germany (see Genealogy of the House of Habsburg)
Elizabeth of Austria + Casimir IV, King of Poland
Vladislaus II of Hungary (Order of the Dragon) + Anne of Foix-Candale
Anna Jagellonica + Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor (Grand Master of the Order of the Golden Fleece)
Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor (Grand Master of the Order of the Golden Fleece) + Maria of Austria, Holy Roman Empress
Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor (Order of the Garter, Order of the Golden Fleece, sponsor of John Dee)
Eleanor, Duchess of Mantua + William I, Duke of Mantua
Margherita, Duchess consort of Ferrara + Alfonso II d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio (ally of Rudolf II)
Vincenzo I Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua (Order of the Golden Fleece) + Eleonora de' Medici
Margherita Gonzaga + Henry II, Duke of Lorraine
Charles II, Archduke of Austria + Maria Anna of Bavaria
Anne of Austria + Sigismund III Vasa (see below)
Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor + Maria Anna of Bavaria
Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor + Eleanor Gonzaga
Eleonora Maria of Austria + Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (see below)
Margaret of Austria, Queen of Spain + Philip III of Spain
Anne of Austria + Louis XIII of France (see below)
Philip IV of Spain (Grand Master of the Order of the Golden Fleece) + Elisabeth of France (see below)
Maria Christina, Princess of Transylvania + Sigismund Báthory (nephew of Elizabeth Bathory)
Joanna, Grand Duchess of Tuscany + Francesco I de Medici (son of Cosimo I de Medici, knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece, and Eleanor of Toledo, brought up in Naples at the household of Don Samuel Abarbanel, son of Jacob Abarbanel)
MARIE DE MEDICI + Henry IV of France
Eleanor de Medici + Vincenzo I Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua (Order of the Golden Fleece, nephew of Louis Gonzaga, Grand Master of the Priory of Sion)
Louis II of Hungary + Mary of Austria (see above)
Barbara Jagiellon + George, Duke of Saxony
Christine of Saxony + PHILIP, LANDGRAVE OF HESSE (supporter of Marin Luther, founded the Schmalkaldic League with John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony, who commissioned Luther Rose. See Genealogy of the Dukes of Saxony)
Agnes + Elector Maurice of Saxony
Anna of Saxony + WILLIAM THE SILENT (see above)
Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange (Order of the Golden Fleece)
William IV, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel + Sabine of Württemberg
Maurice, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel + Agnes of Solms-Laubach
William V, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel
William VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (See Genealogy of the House of Hesse-Kassel)
Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel + Christian V of Denmark
William VII, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel
Charles, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel
Frederick I of Sweden + Maria Amalia of Courland
William VIII, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel + Dorothea Wilhelmina of Saxe-Zeitz
Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel + Princess Mary of Great Britain (see below)
Marie Louise of Hesse-Kassel + John William Friso, Prince of Orange
William IV, Prince of Orange
Philipp, Landgrave of Hesse-Philippsthal + Katharina Amalia Gräfin von Solms-Laubach
Elisabeth Henriëtte + Frederick I of Prussia
Frederick William I of Prussia (1720 – 1785) + Sophia Dorothea of Hanover (see below)
Charlotte, Electress Palatine + Charles Louis, Elector Palatine (see below)
Elisabeth of Hesse + Louis VI, Elector Palatine
Anna Marie + Charles IX of Sweden
Frederick IV, Elector Palatine + Louise Juliana of Nassau (see above)
ALCHEMICAL WEDDING: Frederick V of the Palatinate + Elizabeth Stuartm (See Genealogy of the Alchemical Wedding)
Christine of Hesse + Adolf, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp
Catherine Jagiellon + Charles IX of Sweden (brother of John III of Sweden of the House of Vasa)
Gustavus Adolphus + Maria Eleonora of Brandenburg
Queen Christina
Sophia of Poland + Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach (see above)
George, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach
Albert, Duke of Prussia (Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, founder of the Duchy of Prussia) + Dorothea (daughter of Frederick I of Denmark)
Albert, Duke of Prussia + Anna Maria
Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia + Marie Eleonore of Cleves (see above)
Anna of Prussia + John Sigismund, Elector of Brandenburg (after Albert Frederick’s death in 1603, the Sigismund III Vasa permitted John Sigismund to succeed him in 1611, thereafter ruling Brandenburg, and Duchy of Prussia in personal union)
George William, Elector of Brandenburg + Elisabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate (see below)
Magdalene Sibylle of Prussia + John George I, Elector of Saxony (see below)
Johann of Brandenburg-Ansbach (Order of the Golden Fleece)
Sigismund I the Old (Order of the Golden Fleece) + Bona Sforza (see above)
Sigismund II Augustus + Barbara Radziwiłł (accused of promiscuity and witchcraft)
Sigismund II Augustus
Anna Jagiellon + Stephen Báthory (sponsor of John Dee and uncle of Elizabeth Báthory, the “Blood Countess”)
Catherine Jagiellon + John III of Sweden (brother of Charles IX of Sweden, whose son Gustavus Adolphus was the father of Queen Christina)
Sigismund III Vasa (from whom the Vasa kings of Poland were descended. Raised by Jesuits, sponsored alchemist Sendivogius) + Anne of Austria (see above)
Władysław IV Vasa (Abraham von Franckenberg presented to his court a list the great Christian Kabbalists of history appended to Guillaume Postel’s Absconditomm a Constitutione Mundi Clavis)