Leszek I the White
Encyclopedia
Leszek I the White (c. 1186–1227), also listed by some sources as Leszek II the White, was Prince of Sandomierz
and High Duke of Poland from 1194 until his death, except for the short periods following when he was deposed as Polish ruler. Both his uncle Duke Mieszko III the Old
and his cousin Władysław III Spindleshanks from the Greater Polish branch of the royal Piast dynasty
constested Leszek's right to be senior duke during this era. Leszek was actually crowned in 1202.
Other sources give a complicated picture of Leszek's rule, where between 1198 and 1210 there were three points of Leszek's removal from the throne. He is considered in this plan to have been ousted in 1198, restored in 1199, ousted in 1202 and restored again in 1206 and then ousted a third time in 1210 and restored in 1211. The third ousting involved putting Duke Mieszko IV Tanglefoot
of the Silesian Piasts
in as the chief ruler of Poland.
and his wife Helen of Znojmo
. Still a minor upon his father's death in 1194, he and his younger brother Konrad
made claims to the territories of Sandomierz
and Masovia
ruled by their mother as regent
, while Leszek as the first-born son also succeeded his father in the Seniorate Province
at Kraków
.
In 1205 Leszek defeated the Rus' army of Prince Roman the Great
at the Battle of Zawichost
in Lesser Poland
.
In 1207 Leszek placed Poland under the vasselage of the Pope, at that point Innocent III. This put Poland clearly in the camp of pro-Papal territories in opposition to the power of the Holy Roman Emperor
.
After that Leszek cooperated closely with Archbishop Henry Kietlicz in implementing the reforms of Innocent III.
Leszek fought with Hungary
over control of Halich Rus but was not able to extend his rule into that land. Leszek did come to an agreement on eastern expansion with Hungary by which a Hungarian prince would marry one of Leszek's daughters and be set up as a vassal of Hungary with obvious benefits to Poland as well. However Daniel of Galicia, the son of the late Roman the Great, was able to come to power in Galicia in 1214 and Polish designs in those areas, that were closely connected with attempts to spread Catholicism eastward, were thwarted.
In a rather famous anecdote, Leszek once explained to the Pope
that Polish knights could not participate in his Crusade because there was no mead
/beer
to be had in Palestine
.
in 1207. She was the daughter of Grand Prince Ingvar of Kiev
, the ruler of Lutsk
and its vicinity, a part of Galicia. Thus this marriage was part of Leszek's policy of eastward exponsion.
Leszek's and Grzymislawa's daughter Salomea
was born in 1211. She married King Coloman of Galicia-Lodomeria, the son of King Andrew II of Hungary
. The marriage occurred in about 1215 when Salome was 4 and Kaloman was 7. They were the intended rulers of Galicia–Volhynia, but as noted above these plans failed and they never took up rule in that area.
Leszek and Grzymislawa were also the parents of Bolesław V the Chaste, who assumed the Polish throne at Kraków in 1243, and Helen, who married Vasylko Romanovich of Halych, son of Roman the Great
.
, he was assassinated, probably on orders from Duke Swietopelk II of Pomerelia. This was the result of Leszek having attempted to force the Pomeranian duke to submit to his authority. Swietopelk upon Leszek's death declared himself independent from Polish vassalship.
His son Bolesław V was still a minor upon his father's death and the rule over Poland remained contested between Leszek's brother Konrad and his Greater Polish cousin Władysław III, until in 1232 Duke Henry I the Bearded
of Silesia finally prevailed.
.
Sandomierz
Sandomierz is a city in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants . Situated in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship , previously in Tarnobrzeg Voivodeship . It is the capital of Sandomierz County . Sandomierz is known for its Old Town, a major tourist attraction...
and High Duke of Poland from 1194 until his death, except for the short periods following when he was deposed as Polish ruler. Both his uncle Duke Mieszko III the Old
Mieszko III the Old
Mieszko III the Old , of the royal Piast dynasty, was Duke of Greater Poland from 1138 and High Duke of Poland, with interruptions, from 1173 until his death....
and his cousin Władysław III Spindleshanks from the Greater Polish branch of the royal Piast dynasty
Piast dynasty
The Piast dynasty was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. It began with the semi-legendary Piast Kołodziej . The first historical ruler was Duke Mieszko I . The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir the Great...
constested Leszek's right to be senior duke during this era. Leszek was actually crowned in 1202.
Other sources give a complicated picture of Leszek's rule, where between 1198 and 1210 there were three points of Leszek's removal from the throne. He is considered in this plan to have been ousted in 1198, restored in 1199, ousted in 1202 and restored again in 1206 and then ousted a third time in 1210 and restored in 1211. The third ousting involved putting Duke Mieszko IV Tanglefoot
Mieszko IV Tanglefoot
Mieszko IV Tanglefoot was a Duke of Silesia from 1163 to 1173 , Duke of Racibórz from 1173, Duke of Opole from 1202 and from 9 June 1210 until his death, Duke of Kraków and High Duke of Poland....
of the Silesian Piasts
Silesian Piasts
The Silesian Piasts were the oldest line of the Piast dynasty beginning with Władysław II the Exile, son of Bolesław III Wrymouth, Duke of Poland...
in as the chief ruler of Poland.
Life
Leszek was the eldest surviving son of Casimir II the JustCasimir II the Just
Casimir II the Just was a Lesser Polish duke at Wiślica during 1166–1173, and at Sandomierz since 1173. He became ruler over the Polish Seniorate Province at Kraków and thereby High Duke of Poland in 1177; a position he held until his death, interrupted once by his elder brother and predecessor...
and his wife Helen of Znojmo
Helen of Znojmo
Helena of Znojmo was a Bohemian princess, a member of the Přemyslid dynasty. She was the daughter of Duke Conrad II of Znojmo and his Serbian wife Maria of Rascia...
. Still a minor upon his father's death in 1194, he and his younger brother Konrad
Konrad I of Masovia
Konrad I of Masovia , from the Polish Piast dynasty, was the sixth Duke of Masovia from 1194 until his death and High Duke of Poland from 1229 to 1232.-Life:...
made claims to the territories of Sandomierz
Sandomierz
Sandomierz is a city in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants . Situated in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship , previously in Tarnobrzeg Voivodeship . It is the capital of Sandomierz County . Sandomierz is known for its Old Town, a major tourist attraction...
and Masovia
Duchy of Masovia
The Duchy of Masovia with its capital at Płock was a medieval duchy formed when the Polish Kingdom of the Piasts fragmented in 1138. It was located in the historic Masovian region of northeastern Poland...
ruled by their mother as regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
, while Leszek as the first-born son also succeeded his father in the Seniorate Province
Seniorate Province
Seniorate Province, also known as the Senioral Province , Duchy of Kraków , Duchy of Cracow, Principality of Cracow, Principality of Kraków, was the superior among the five provinces established in 1138 according to the Testament of Bolesław III Krzywousty...
at Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
.
In 1205 Leszek defeated the Rus' army of Prince Roman the Great
Roman the Great
Roman Mstislavich , also Roman Mstyslavych or Roman the Great, was a Rus’ prince, Grand Prince of Kiev ....
at the Battle of Zawichost
Battle of Zawichost
The Battle of Zawichost was a skirmish fought between Roman the Great of Galicia-Volhynia and Leszek I the White of Lesser Poland, along with his brother, Konrad I of Masovia. After declaring war and invading Lesser Poland, Roman and his forces were ambushed by the Poles in the vicinity of...
in Lesser Poland
Lesser Poland
Lesser Poland is one of the historical regions of Poland, with its capital in the city of Kraków. It forms the southeastern corner of the country, and should not be confused with the modern Lesser Poland Voivodeship, which covers only a small, southern part of Lesser Poland...
.
In 1207 Leszek placed Poland under the vasselage of the Pope, at that point Innocent III. This put Poland clearly in the camp of pro-Papal territories in opposition to the power of the Holy Roman Emperor
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
.
After that Leszek cooperated closely with Archbishop Henry Kietlicz in implementing the reforms of Innocent III.
Leszek fought with 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...
over control of Halich Rus but was not able to extend his rule into that land. Leszek did come to an agreement on eastern expansion with Hungary by which a Hungarian prince would marry one of Leszek's daughters and be set up as a vassal of Hungary with obvious benefits to Poland as well. However Daniel of Galicia, the son of the late Roman the Great, was able to come to power in Galicia in 1214 and Polish designs in those areas, that were closely connected with attempts to spread Catholicism eastward, were thwarted.
In a rather famous anecdote, Leszek once explained to the Pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
that Polish knights could not participate in his Crusade because there was no mead
Mead
Mead , also called honey wine, is an alcoholic beverage that is produced by fermenting a solution of honey and water. It may also be produced by fermenting a solution of water and honey with grain mash, which is strained immediately after fermentation...
/beer
Beer
Beer is the world's most widely consumed andprobably oldest alcoholic beverage; it is the third most popular drink overall, after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of sugars, mainly derived from malted cereal grains, most commonly malted barley and malted wheat...
to be had in Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
.
Marriage and children
Leszek married Grzymislawa of LuckGrzymislawa of Luck
Grzymisław Ingvarevna of Luck was a Princess of Krakow, daughter of Ingvar of Kiev, Grand Prince of Kiev and Prince of Lutsk from the Rurikid Dynasty.- Life :...
in 1207. She was the daughter of Grand Prince Ingvar of Kiev
Ingvar of Kiev
Ingvar Yaroslavich , Prince of Dorogobuzh, Prince of Lutsk, Grand Prince of Kiev , Prince of Volodymyr-Volynskyi . Son of Yaroslav Izyaslavich, great-grandson of Vladimir Monomakh....
, the ruler of Lutsk
Lutsk
Lutsk is a city located by the Styr River in northwestern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Volyn Oblast and the administrative center of the surrounding Lutskyi Raion within the oblast...
and its vicinity, a part of Galicia. Thus this marriage was part of Leszek's policy of eastward exponsion.
Leszek's and Grzymislawa's daughter Salomea
Salomea of Poland
Salome of Poland , also known as Salome of Cracow or Blessed Salome , was a Polish princess and from 1215 to 1219 the Queen of Halych by virtue of being the wife of Kálmán or Coloman of Lodomeria....
was born in 1211. She married King Coloman of Galicia-Lodomeria, the son of King Andrew II of Hungary
Andrew II of Hungary
Andrew II the Jerosolimitan was King of Hungary and Croatia . He was the younger son of King Béla III of Hungary, who invested him with the government of the Principality of Halych...
. The marriage occurred in about 1215 when Salome was 4 and Kaloman was 7. They were the intended rulers of Galicia–Volhynia, but as noted above these plans failed and they never took up rule in that area.
Leszek and Grzymislawa were also the parents of Bolesław V the Chaste, who assumed the Polish throne at Kraków in 1243, and Helen, who married Vasylko Romanovich of Halych, son of Roman the Great
Roman the Great
Roman Mstislavich , also Roman Mstyslavych or Roman the Great, was a Rus’ prince, Grand Prince of Kiev ....
.
Death
On 24 November 1227, during a diet of the Polish Piast dukes at GąsawaGasawa
thumb|left|100 px|Coat of arms of Gąsawa.thumb|left|St. Nicolas church in Gąsawa: main altarGąsawa called Gmina Gąsawa. It lies approximately south of Żnin and south-west of Bydgoszcz...
, he was assassinated, probably on orders from Duke Swietopelk II of Pomerelia. This was the result of Leszek having attempted to force the Pomeranian duke to submit to his authority. Swietopelk upon Leszek's death declared himself independent from Polish vassalship.
His son Bolesław V was still a minor upon his father's death and the rule over Poland remained contested between Leszek's brother Konrad and his Greater Polish cousin Władysław III, until in 1232 Duke Henry I the Bearded
Henry I the Bearded
Henry I the Bearded , of the Silesian line of the Piast dynasty, was Duke of Silesia at Wrocław from 1201 and Duke of Kraków and thus High Duke of all Poland - internally divided - from 1232 until his death.-Heir of Wroclaw:...
of Silesia finally prevailed.
Cultural Remembrance
An opera about him Leszek bialy was performed in 1809. It had been written by Józef ElsnerJózef Elsner
Józef Antoni Franciszek was a composer, music teacher and music theoretician, active mainly in Warsaw...
.