Wladyslaw III
Wladyslaw III was king of Poland, Hungary, and Croatia. In Hungary he is known as Wladyslaw I.
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History
Wladyslaw III was the son of Wladyslaw II.
When Wladyslaw succeeded the throne in 1434, at the age of 10, he also inherited the Polish-Teutonic War and the Lithuanian Civil War. The latter was triggered by a coup against Švitrigaila, co-ruler of Wladyslaw II, that was organized by Sigismund Kęstutaitis. The two wars merged when Švitrigaila sought the aid of the Teutons. Therefore they were both largely settled by the Battle of Wiłkomierz. This decisive defeat for the Livonion Order, and the subsequently negotiated Peace of Brześć Kujawski, permanently ended their interventions into Polish geopolitics.
The situation in Lithuania continued to be complicated, as following Sigismund's death in 1440, Wladyslaw's brother Casimir IV proclaimed himself grand duke.
Also in 1440, at the death of Albert II, the Habsburg dynasty of Hungary was reduced to the unborn Ladislaus V. Local nobility instead elected Wladyslaw as king. Securing his reign in Hungary diverted his attention away from Lithuania, enabling Casimir to consolidate power there.
Wladyslaw led the Crusade of Varna against the Ottoman Empire in 1444. He was however killed in the Battle of Varna.