Leo I of Galicia ( ua, Лев Дани́лович, translit=Lev Danylovych) (c. 1228 – c. 1301) was a king of Ruthenia, prince ( Kniaz) of

Belz Belz ( uk, Белз; pl, Bełz; yi, בעלז ') is a small city in Lviv Oblast of Western Ukraine, near the border with Poland, located between the Solokiya river (a tributary of the Bug River) and the Richytsia stream. Belz hosts the administ ...

(1245–1264), Peremyshl, Halych (1264–1269), and

grand prince of Kiev The Grand Prince of Kiev (sometimes grand duke) was the title of the ruler of Kiev and the ruler of Kievan Rus' from the 10th to 13th centuries. In the 13th century, Kiev became an appanage principality first of the grand prince of Vladimir and ...

(

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

, 1271–1301). He was a son of King

Daniel of Galicia Daniel of Galicia ( uk, Данило Романович (Галицький), Danylo Romanovych (Halytskyi); Old Ruthenian: Данило Романовичъ, ''Danylo Romanovyčъ''; pl, Daniel I Romanowicz Halicki; 1201 – 1264) was a King ...

and his first wife, Anna Mstislavna Smolenskaia (daughter of Mstislav Mstislavich the Bold). As his father, Lev was a member of the senior branch of

Vladimir II Monomakh Vladimir II Monomakh (Old East Slavic: Володимѣръ Мономахъ, ''Volodiměrŭ Monomakhŭ''; uk, Володимир Мономах, translit=Volodymyr Monomakh; russian: Владимир Мономах; Christian name: ''Vasiliy'' ...

descendants.

Reign

Leo (also known as Lev) moved his father's

capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...

from Halych to the newly founded city of

Lviv Lviv ( uk, Львів) is the largest city in western Ukraine, and the seventh-largest in Ukraine, with a population of . It serves as the administrative centre of Lviv Oblast and Lviv Raion, and is one of the main cultural centres of Ukraine ...

. This city was named after him by its founder, Lev's father, King

. In 1247, Leo married Constance, the daughter of Béla IV of Hungary. Unlike his father, who pursued a western political course, Leo worked closely with the

Mongol The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member of ...

s and together with them invaded Poland. However, although his troops plundered territory as far west as Racibórz in

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

, sending many captives and much booty back to Galicia, Leo did not ultimately gain much territory from Poland. He cultivated a particularly close alliance with the Tatar

Nogai Khan Nogai, or Noğay (; also spelled Nogay, Nogaj, Nohai, Nokhai, Noqai, Ngoche, Noche, Kara Nokhai, and Isa Nogai; died 1299/1300) was a general and kingmaker of the Golden Horde and a great-great-grandson of Genghis Khan. His grandfather was Bo'al/ ...

. He also attempted, unsuccessfully, to establish his family's rule over

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

. Soon after his younger brother

Shvarn Shvarn, Shvarno ( lt, Švarnas, uk, Шварно Данилович, translit=Shvarno Danylovych; c. 1230 – c. 1269), was the kniaz of western parts of Ruthenia (1264 – c. 1269) and Grand Duke of Lithuania (1267 – c. 1269). An influential l ...

ascended to the Lithuanian throne in 1267, Leo organized the murder of

Grand Duke of Lithuania The monarchy of Lithuania concerned the monarchical head of state of Lithuania, which was established as an absolute and hereditary monarchy. Throughout Lithuania's history there were three ducal dynasties that managed to stay in power—House ...

Vaišvilkas. Following Shvarn's loss of the throne in 1269, Leo entered into conflict with Lithuania. In 1274–1276, he fought a war with the new Lithuanian ruler — Traidenis — but was defeated. Lithuania annexed the territory of

Black Ruthenia Black Ruthenia ( la, Ruthenia Nigra), or Black Rus' ( be, Чорная Русь, translit=Čornaja Ruś; lt, Juodoji Rusia; pl, Ruś Czarna), is a historical region on the Upper Nemunas, including Novogrudok (Naugardukas), Grodno (Gardinas) a ...

with its city of

Navahrudak Novogrudok ( be, Навагрудак, Navahrudak; lt, Naugardukas; pl, Nowogródek; russian: Новогрудок, Novogrudok; yi, נאַוואַראַדאָק, Novhardok, Navaradok) is a town in the Grodno Region, Belarus. In the Middle A ...

. In 1279, Leo allied himself with King Wenceslaus II of Bohemia and invaded Poland. His attempt to capture

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

in 1280 ended in failure. That same year, however, Leo defeated the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...

and temporarily annexed part of Carpathian Ruthenia, including the town of Mukachevo. In 1292, he defeated Poland and added

Lublin Lublin is the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the center of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin is the largest Polish city east of t ...

with surrounding areas to the territory of Halych–Volhynia. At the time of Leo's death in 1301, the state of Galicia-Volhynia was at the height of its power.

Marriage and children

Lev I married

Constance of Hungary Constance of Hungary (c. 1180 – 6 December 1240) was the second Queen consort of Ottokar I of Bohemia. Family Constance was a daughter of Béla III of Hungary and his first wife Agnes of Antioch. Her older siblings included Emeric, King of Hun ...

, daughter of Béla IV of Hungary and Maria Laskarina. They had three children: * Yuri I of Halych–Volhynia (24 April 1252/1257 – 18 March 1308). *Svyatoslava Lvovna of Halych–Volhynia (died 1302), a nun *

Anastasia Lvovna of Halych–Volhynia Anastasia Lvovna of Halych–Volhynia ( uk, Анастасія Львівна) (?-1335), was a Duchess of Dobrzyń by marriage to Siemowit of Dobrzyń, (r. 1288–1293, 1295–1303 and 1305–1312). She served as Regent of Dobrzyń with her brot ...

(died 12 March 1335), who married

Siemowit of Dobrzyń Siemowit of Dobrzyń (pl: ''Siemowit dobrzyński''; c. 1262/67 – 1312), was a Polish prince member of the House of Piast, Duke of Brześć Kujawski during 1267–1288, Duke of Dobrzyń during 1288–1293, 1295–1303 and 1305–1312, during 1293� ...

External links

*
Lev Danylovych
at the Encyclopedia of Ukraine, vol. 3 (1993). {{DEFAULTSORT:Lev 01 of Galicia 1220s births 1300s deaths Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain Kings of Rus' Grand Princes of Kiev Romanovichi family Rostislavichi family (Smolensk) 13th-century princes in Kievan Rus' Eastern Orthodox monarchs

Reign

Marriage and children

See also

External links