Ottokar II (1230-1278), King of Bohemia (1253-1278) and ruler of several provinces in what is now Austria, who unsuccessfully challenged Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf I of Habsburg and the kings of Hungary for supremacy in Central Europe. Ottokar became Duke of Austria in 1251 by marrying the previous duke's sister, Margarete, and succeeded his father Vaclav I as King of Bohemia in 1253. He continued Vaclav's policies, allying himself with the towns against the Bohemian nobles and bringing in German farmers, miners, and merchants
