Origin

Sophia was the daughter of Richeza of Poland, Dowager Queen of Sweden, from her second marriage to a man called "Valador", King in Poloni Land. The identity of her father is uncertain, it was either Volodar of Minsk^[1] or Vladimir Vsevolodich, Prince of Novgorod and son of Vsevolod of Pskov. Both of them are members of the Iziaslavichi of Polotsk. The latter version would mean Valdemar was married to his first cousin once removed, as Sophia's possible father Volodar was a nephew of Valdemar's mother Ingeborg of Kiev.^[2]

Childhood

Sophia spent a part of her childhood in Denmark, where her mother had been married to a Danish prince in her first marriage, and returned with her daughter when her second marriage was terminated. Sophia was the half sister of Canute V of Denmark, the son of her mother by her first marriage: after her half brother became king of Denmark in 1146, her mother returned to Denmark with her daughter Sophia, who thus spent part of her childhood in Denmark at the court of her half brother the king.

In circa 1149, her mother married Sverker I of Sweden, in her third marriage. She took her daughter with her to Sweden, where Sophia subsequently spent the rest of her childhood at the Swedish royal court.

Queen

In 1154, at the age of circa fourteen, Sophia was betrothed to Valdemar as a symbol of alliance between Sweden and Denmark: she was at this time described as a pretty girl with promise of becoming a beauty.^[3] In the marriage contract, she was secured an eighth of her half brother King Canute V's estates in Denmark.^[3]

1157 bracteate commemorating the wedding of Valdemar and Sophia of Minsk

Sophia departed Sweden for Denmark after the conclusion of the engagement in 1154, but as she was not yet regarded old enough to marry by Nordic standards, she was sent to reside with a foster mother named Bodil until she was old enough to live with Valdemar.^[3]

The wedding between Sophia and Valdemar was conducted in Viborg in 1157, three years later.

Queen Sophia was described as beautiful, dominant and cruel. According to traditional myth, she murdered Valdemar's mistress Tove and injured his sister Kirsten, but this is not confirmed.^[4]

She was widowed in 1182.

Later life

As queen dowager, Sophia received a proposal from, and married, Louis III, Landgrave of Thuringia in about 1184, and was escorted to the border by her son and a grand entourage.

She was repudiated in 1190, and returned to Denmark.