Mieszko Kazimierzowic (''Kazimierzowic'' means ''son of Kazimierz'') (16 April 1045 – 28 January 1065) was a Polish prince member of the

House of Piast The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (c. 930–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir III the Great. Branc ...

. According to some scholars, he was probably Duke of

Kuyavia Kuyavia ( pl, Kujawy; german: Kujawien; la, Cuiavia), also referred to as Cuyavia, is a historical region in north-central Poland, situated on the left bank of Vistula, as well as east from Noteć River and Lake Gopło. It is divided into three ...

since 1058 until his death.

Life

He was the third son of

Casimir I the Restorer Casimir I the Restorer (; 25 July 1016 – 28 November 1058), a member of the Piast dynasty, was the duke of Poland from 1040 until his death. Casimir was the son of Mieszko II Lambert and Richeza of Lotharingia. He is known as the Restorer beca ...

by his wife Maria Dobroniega, daughter of

Vladimir the Great Vladimir I Sviatoslavich or Volodymyr I Sviatoslavych ( orv, Володимѣръ Свѧтославичь, ''Volodiměrъ Svętoslavičь'';, ''Uladzimir'', russian: Владимир, ''Vladimir'', uk, Володимир, ''Volodymyr''. Se ...

Grand Duke 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 ...

. He was named after his paternal grandfather,

Mieszko II Lambert Mieszko II Lambert (; c. 990 – 10/11 May 1034) was King of Poland from 1025 to 1031, and Duke from 1032 until his death. He was the second son of Bolesław I the Brave, but the eldest born from his third wife Emnilda of Lusatia. He was pro ...

. He had three brothers: Bolesław II Szczodry, Władysław Herman and Otto. His sister was

Świętosława Świętosława was a Polish princess, the daughter of Mieszko I of Poland and sister of Bolesław I of Poland. According to German chroniclers, this princess, whose name is not given, was married first to Eric the Victorious of Sweden and then ...

, later Queen Consort of Bohemia.Jasiński, p. 175.

Gallus Anonymus ''Gallus Anonymus'' ( Polonized variant: ''Gall '') is the name traditionally given to the anonymous author of ''Gesta principum Polonorum'' (Deeds of the Princes of the Poles), composed in Latin between 1112 and 1118. ''Gallus'' is generally rega ...

, an author of ''

Gesta principum Polonorum The ''Gesta principum Polonorum'' (; "''Deeds of the Princes of the Poles''") is the oldest known medieval chronicle documenting the history of Poland from the legendary times until 1113. Written in Latin by an anonymous author, it was most lik ...

'' written in the early 12th century, put Mieszko third in order, among his brother. Modern historian, Janusz Bieniak, has supposed that Mieszko was the second son of Casimir I and was older than Władysław Herman, but most scholars disagree with this hypothesis. The date of Mieszko's birth was given by '' Rocznik krakowski'' (Kraków Annals). This source omitted dates of birth of Mieszko's brothers.

Kazimierz Jasiński Kazimierz Jasiński (19 August 1946 – 25 January 2012) was a Polish cyclist. He competed in the Men's Road Race event at the 1968 Summer Olympics. In 1968 he was also part of the Polish team that won the Peace Race coming 11th individual ...

thought that ''Rocznik'' was started shortly before Mieszko's birth and this was the reason for absence of his older brothers. Przemysław Wiszewski supposed that Casimir I chose Mieszko as his successor and that this in turn was the real reason for absence of his older brothers in Annals. This conception was criticized by other scholars. Mieszko was 13 years old, when his father died. Some historians suppose that he had his own province. Józef Płocha stated that it was

Mazowsze Mazovia or Masovia ( pl, Mazowsze) is a historical region in mid-north-eastern Poland. It spans the North European Plain, roughly between Łódź and Białystok, with Warsaw being the unofficial capital and largest city. Throughout the centurie ...

. According to the theory of

Gerard Labuda Gerard Labuda ( csb, Gerard Labùda; 28 December 1916 – 1 October 2010) was a Polish historian whose main fields of interest were the Middle Ages and the Western Slavs. He was born in Kashubia. He lived and died in Poznań, Poland. Life La ...

and

Henryk Łowmiański Henryk Łowmiański (August 22, 1898 near Ukmergė - September 4, 1984 in Poznań) was a Polish historian and academic who was an authority on the early history of the Slavic and Baltic people. A researcher of the ancient history of Poland, Lithu ...

, Mieszko received

after his father's death in 1058.Benyskiewicz, p. 71. Łowmiański's argument is that knights from Kuyavia supported Zbigniew, son of Władysław Herman, in 1097. According to Łowmiański this probably meant that there was a tradition of semi-independence in the region. There is no mention of Mieszko's influence on Polish politics.Benyskiewicz, p. 72. Mieszko died on 28 January 1065. Year of death was noted by '' Rocznik kapituły krakowskiej'', while day by '' Necrologium monasterii superioris Ratisbonensis''. He died unmarried and childless.

Ancestry

Notes

References

* *Najdawniejsze roczniki krakowskie i kalendarz, ed. Zofia Kozłowska-Budkowa, in: Monumenta Poloniae Historica, N. s., vol. 5, Warszawa 1978. * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kazimierzowic, Mieszko 1045 births 1065 deaths Piast dynasty