Bolesław II of Cieszyn ( pl, Bolesław II cieszyński, cs, Boleslav II. (Těšín), german: Boleslaus II. (Teschen); c. 1425/28 – 4 October 1452), was a Duke of

Cieszyn Cieszyn ( , ; cs, Těšín ; german: Teschen; la, Tessin; szl, Ćeszyn) is a border town in southern Poland on the east bank of the Olza River, and the administrative seat of Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship. The town has 33,500 inhabitant ...

since 1431 (until 1442 with his brothers as co-rulers), ruler over half of

Bielsko Bielsko (german: Bielitz, cs, Bílsko) was until 1950 an independent town situated in Cieszyn Silesia, Poland. In 1951 it was joined with Biała Krakowska to form the new town of Bielsko-Biała. Bielsko constitutes the western part of that tow ...

and Frysztat (from 1442), and during 1452 sole ruler over one half of

Bytom Bytom (Polish pronunciation: ; Silesian: ''Bytōm, Bytōń'', german: Beuthen O.S.) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. Located in the Silesian Voivodeship of Poland, the city is 7 km northwest of Katowice, the regional capital ...

. He was the fourth and youngest son of Duke Bolesław I of

by his second wife

Euphemia Euphemia ( el, Εὐφημία; "well-spoken f), known as the All-praised in the Eastern Orthodox Church, was a virgin, who was martyred for her faith at Chalcedon in 303 AD. According to tradition, Euphemia was arrested for refusing to offer ...

, daughter of Duke

Siemowit IV of Masovia Siemowit IV (Ziemowit IV), also known as Siemowit IV the Younger (pl: ''Siemowit IV Młodszy''; ca. 1353/1356 – 21 January 1426), was a Polish prince member of the House of Piast from the Masovian branch, from 1373/74 Duke of Rawa, and aft ...

Life

After the death of his father in 1431, Bolesław II ruled over the duchy together with his brothers as co-rulers, but under the tutelage of their mother. After the division of the duchy on 29 November 1442, he still held the title of Duke of Cieszyn, but in practice ruled only over 16 towns and villages in Cieszyn; the most important of them was Frysztat, which was obtained by Bolesław II only after his mother's death in 1447 and shortly after, received broader city rights by Bolesław II. He left most of the control over the duchy to his brother Przemyslaus II. Just like his brothers and father, also Bolesław II tried to be active in the international politics. Unlike his brother Władysław, who was allied with

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

, Bolesław II maintained close ties mainly with the

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to: Historical political entities *Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031 *Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exist ...

. In 1443 he supported Poland in his conflicts with

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

, and in 1449 he was appointed judge in the disputes between King Casimir IV and the Bohemian nobility. However, Bolesław II's good relations with Poland didn't prevent the sale of the

Duchy of Siewierz The Duchy of Siewierz was a Silesian duchy with its capital in Siewierz. The area was part of the original Duchy of Silesia established after the death of Duke Bolesław III Wrymouth in 1138 during the times of the fragmentation of Poland. Si ...

to Zbigniew Oleśnicki,

Bishop of Kraków A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

, which resulted in a war at

Upper Silesia Upper Silesia ( pl, Górny Śląsk; szl, Gůrny Ślůnsk, Gōrny Ślōnsk; cs, Horní Slezsko; german: Oberschlesien; Silesian German: ; la, Silesia Superior) is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia, located ...

, who lasted until February 1447. Bolesław II sought to obtain independent sovereignty, and therefore in 1452 he swapped with his brother Wenceslaus I the district of

for one half of

, where he planned to settle. But his plans ended with his sudden death on 4 October 1452.

Marriage and issue

On 28 January 1448 Bolesław II married with

Anna Anna may refer to: People Surname and given name * Anna (name) Mononym * Anna the Prophetess, in the Gospel of Luke * Anna (wife of Artabasdos) (fl. 715–773) * Anna (daughter of Boris I) (9th–10th century) * Anna (Anisia) (fl. 1218 to 1221) ...

(d. aft. 12 February 1490), daughter of Ivan Vladimirovich, Prince of Bielsk (in turn grandson of

Algirdas Algirdas ( be, Альгерд, Alhierd, uk, Ольгерд, Ольґерд, Olherd, Olgerd, pl, Olgierd; – May 1377) was the Grand Duke of Lithuania. He ruled the Lithuanians and Ruthenians from 1345 to 1377. With the help of his bro ...

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 ...

) by his wife Vasilisa of Halshany (sister of Sophia, fourth and last wife of King

Władysław II Jagiełło Jogaila (; 1 June 1434), later Władysław II Jagiełło ()He is known under a number of names: lt, Jogaila Algirdaitis; pl, Władysław II Jagiełło; be, Jahajła (Ягайла). See also: Names and titles of Władysław II Jagiełło. w ...

). The union had the approval of Anna's cousin, King Casimir IV, who give to the newlyweds a magnificent wedding gift: 2,000

florin The Florentine florin was a gold coin struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard during that time. It had 54 grains (3.499 grams, 0.113 troy ounce) of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a purcha ...

s. They had three children:Genealogy of the House of Cieszyn
/ref> # Casimir II (b. ca. 1449 – d. 13 December 1528). #Sophia (b. ca. 1450/52 – d. 1479), married in 1474 to

Victor of Poděbrady The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

, Duke of Münsterberg and

Opava Opava (; german: Troppau, pl, Opawa) is a city in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 55,000 inhabitants. It lies on the river Opava (river), Opava. Opava is one of the historical centres of Silesia. It was a histori ...

. #Barbara (b. ca. 1452/53 – d. bef. 12 May 1507), married firstly on 11 September 1468 to Duke

Balthasar of Żagań Balthasar, Duke of Żagań ( pl, Baltazar żagański; – Przewóz, 15 July 1472), was a Duke of Żagań- Przewóz since 1439 (with his brothers as co-rulers until 1449), from 1449 Duke of Żagań. Deposed during 1461–1468, he recovered the Du ...

and secondly by 18 May 1477 to Duke

Jan V of Zator Jan V of Zator ( pl, Jan V zatorski; before 1455 – 17 September 1513), was a Duke of Zator during 1468–1474 (with his three brothers as co-rulers), ruler over the western half of Zator from 1474 to 1494 (with his brother Władysław as his co ...

. After the death of her husband, Anna cared about their son and daughters, and resided mainly in Frysztat.

Ancestry

Footnotes

References

* , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Boleslaw 02 1420s births 1452 deaths Dukes of Teschen Piast dynasty Polish people of Lithuanian descent