Piast the Wheelwright
Encyclopedia
Piast Kołodziej was a semi-legendary figure in prehistoric Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

 (9th cent. AD), the founder of the 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...

 that would rule the future Kingdom of Poland
Kingdom of Poland (1025–1138)
The Kingdom of Poland was the Polish state from the coronation of the first King Bolesław I the Brave in 1025 to the union with Lithuania and the rule of the Jagiellon dynasty in 1385.-Early Kingdom:The basis for the development of a Polish state was laid by the Piast, which were preeminent since...

.

Legend and aftermath

Piast makes an appearance in the Polish Chronicle
Cronicae et gesta ducum sive principum Polonorum
The Gesta principum Polonorum is a medieval gesta, or deeds narrative, concerned with Duke Boleslaw III Wrymouth, his ancestors, and the Polish principality during and before his reign. Probably completed between 1112 and 1118, the extant text is present in three manuscripts with two distinct...

 of Gallus Anonymus
Gallus Anonymus
Gallus Anonymus is the name traditionally given to the anonymous author of Gesta principum Polonorum , composed in Latin about 1115....

, along with his father, Chościsko
Choscisko
Chościsko is a legendary figure in a Polish prehistory, father of Piast the Wheelwright, the founder of the Piast dynasty. His name occurs in the first Polish chronicle, Cronicae et gesta ducum sive principum Polonorum by Gallus Anonymus, where the author refers three times to Piast as the son of...

 and Piast's wife Rzepka.

The chronicle tells the story of an unexpected visit paid to Piast by two strangers. They ask to join Piast's family in celebration of the 7th birthday of Piast’s son, Siemowit
Siemowit
Siemowit was, according to the chronicles of Gallus Anonymus, the son of Piast the Wheelwright and Rzepicha. He was considered one of the four legendary Piast princes, but is now considered as a ruler who existed as a historical person....

 (a pagan rite of passage for young boys). In return for the hospitality, the guests cast a spell making Piast's cellar ever full of plenty
Cornucopia
The cornucopia or horn of plenty is a symbol of abundance and nourishment, commonly a large horn-shaped container overflowing with produce, flowers, nuts, other edibles, or wealth in some form...

. Seeing this, Piast's compatriots declare him their new prince, to replace the late Prince Popiel
Popiel
Prince Popiel was a legendary 9th century ruler of the West Slavic tribe of Goplans and Polans, the last member of the pre-Piast dynasty, the Popielids...

.

If Piast really existed, he would have been the great-great-grandfather of Prince Mieszko I (ca. 930–92), the first historic ruler of Poland, and the great-great-great-grandfather of Bolesław Chrobry (967–1025), the first Polish king.

Two theories explain the etymology of the word Piast. The first gives the root as piasta (hub in Polish), a reference to his profession. The second relates Piast to piastun (custodian or keeper). This could hint at Piast's initial position as a maior domus (majordomo), or a "steward of the house", in the court of another ruler, and the subsequent takeover of power by Piast. This would parallel the development of the early medieval Frankish
Franks
The Franks were a confederation of Germanic tribes first attested in the third century AD as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River. From the third to fifth centuries some Franks raided Roman territory while other Franks joined the Roman troops in Gaul. Only the Salian Franks formed a...

 dynasties, when the majordomos of the Merovingian kings gradually usurped political control.

The term Piast dynasty, referring to the early rulers of the Polans
Polans (western)
The Polans were a West Slavic tribe, part of the Lechitic group, inhabiting the Warta river basin of the historic Greater Poland region in the 8th century.During the reign of King Svatopluk I of Great Moravia , who subdued the tribes of the Vistulans and Ślężanie...

 and Poland, was popularized by historian Adam Naruszewicz
Adam Naruszewicz
Adam Stanisław Naruszewicz was a Polish nobleman from an impoverished aristocratic family, poet, historian, dramatist, translator, publicist, Jesuit and titular Bishop of Smolensk and bishop of Łuck .His family had a small estate in Polesie and he was educated at Pinsk.As a senator he...

 (1733–96). However the Silesian line of 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...

, such as the last Piast George IV William, duke of Legnica and Brzeg (died in 1675), referred to themselves as Piasts before Naruszewicz.
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