Borivoj II (c. 1064 – 2 February 1124) was the duke of Bohemia from 25 December 1100 until May 1107 and from December 1117 until 16 August 1120. He was the younger half-brother and successor of Bretislaus II.

He was originally opposed by the Duke Oldrich of Brno, his cousin, who had recovered the stronghold originally confiscated from his father. A civil war ensued. Oldrich intended to recognise the suzerainty of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor

Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor

Henry IV was King of the Romans from 1056 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 until his forced abdication in 1105. He was the third emperor of the Salian dynasty and one of the most powerful and important figures of the 11th century...

, and thereby gain his support, but Borivoj had already been confirmed by the emperor. Oldrich was eventually forced to flee to Moravia

Moravia

Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...

.

In 1102, Ladislaus I Herman, duke of Poland, died. A quarrel broke out in Poland over the succession, with Borivoj and his cousin Svatopluk

Svatopluk of Bohemia

Svatopluk the Lion was the duke of Bohemia from 1107 to his assassination. He was a son of Otto I of Olomouc and Euphemia of Hungary and grandson of Bretislaus I of Bohemia....

 supporting Zbigniew

Zbigniew

Zbigniew is a Polish masculine given name, originally Zbygniew . This Slavic name is derived from the Polish elements Zby- and gniew, meaning "anger"...

 against the legitimate heir Boleslaus III of Poland. Boleslaus, however, paid Borivoj off and the latter withdrew from the conflict. Svatopluk, furious, defected and led a number of Bohemian grandees with him. He sought to induce Coloman of Hungary to go to war with Borivoj, but was unsuccessful until 1107. In that year, Borivoj's younger brother, Vladislaus

Vladislaus I of Bohemia

Vladislaus I , duke of Bohemia from 1109 to 1117 and from 1120 to April 12, 1125.Vladislav I was a son of Duke, later King, Vratislav II of Bohemia by his second wife Swatawa, a daughter of Casimir I of Poland. Together with his cousin Svatopluk, Vladislav expelled his brother Bořivoj II from...

, rebelled and, with Coloman's help, took Prague

Prague

Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

. Svatopluk, who had recently captured and been forced to release Borivoj by the Emperor Henry V, was proclaimed king.

Borivoj attacked in 1108 with the aid of Boleslaus in alliance with Coloman, whom Svatopluk and Henry were jointly attacking in Hungary

Hungary

Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

. Svatopluk was recalled to fight him off and soon the emperor was invading Poland. Svatopluk was murdered on this campaign by supporters of Borivoj, but he could not regain the throne, which went to Vladislaus. In 1117, the brothers were reconciled and they ruled the duchy jointly (though divided) until 1120, when a new disagreement led Borivoj to self-exile in Hungary, where he died on 2 February 1124.