The Gryfit, also known as Świebodzic, was a medieval Polish knightly family. They occupied a dominant position among the

nobles Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

Lesser Poland Lesser Poland, often known by its Polish name ''Małopolska'' (; ), is a historical region situated in southern and south-eastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Kraków. Throughout centuries, Lesser Poland developed a separate cult ...

in the 12th and 13th century.

History

The family name comes from the emblem ''Gryf'' (a

Griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (; Classical Latin: ''gryps'' or ''grypus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a -4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk ...

) of their

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

. In particular for the period before the 14th century they are also called ''Świebodzice'', because of their

battle cry A battle cry or war cry is a yell or chant taken up in battle, usually by members of the same combatant group. Battle cries are not necessarily articulate (e.g. "Eulaliaaaa!", "Alala"..), although they often aim to invoke patriotic or religio ...

: ''Świeboda'', (freedom, liberty).

Jan Długosz Jan Długosz (; 1 December 1415 – 19 May 1480), also known in Latin as Johannes Longinus, was a Polish priest, chronicler, diplomat, soldier, and secretary to Bishop Zbigniew Oleśnicki of Kraków. He is considered Poland's first histo ...

connected the family with the

House of Griffins The House of Griffin or Griffin dynasty, (; , ; Latin: ''Gryphes''), or House of Pomerania (see ), was a dynasty ruling the Duchy of Pomerania from the 12th century until 1637. The name "Griffins" was used by the dynasty after the 15th century ...

. According to some historians, the Gryfici family, the House of Griffins and the House of Sobiesław are descendants of a branch of the

Piast dynasty The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented List of Polish monarchs, Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I of Poland, Mieszko I (–992). The Poland during the Piast dynasty, Piasts' royal rule in Pol ...

and their progenitor was one of the younger brothers of Bolesław the Brave - Świętopełk.

Notable members

* Jaksa z Miechowa (died 1176) – crusader, ''możnowładca'' ( magnate) in Lesser Poland (according to some historians he is the same person as Jaxa of Köpenick, Prince of the SprevaneCetwiński, Marek (1980). Rycerstwo Śląskie do końca XIII w. Pochodzenie. Gospodarka. Polityka. Wrocławskie Towarzystwo Naukowe. p. 70.), son-in-law of Piotr Włostowic * Janik (died after 1167) – Bishop of Gniezno * Mikołaj (died 1202) –

Voivode of Kraków Voivode ( ), also spelled voivod, voievod or voevod and also known as vaivode ( ), voivoda, vojvoda, vaivada or wojewoda, is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe in use since the Early Mid ...

, commander of the forces of Lesser Poland at the Battle of Mozgawa * (died 1230/1231) – Voivode of

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

* Teodor (died 1237) –

Voivode Voivode ( ), also spelled voivod, voievod or voevod and also known as vaivode ( ), voivoda, vojvoda, vaivada or wojewoda, is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe in use since the Early Mid ...

of Kraków * Klemens z Brzeźnicy (died 1241) –

castellan A castellan, or constable, was the governor of a castle in medieval Europe. Its surrounding territory was referred to as the castellany. The word stems from . A castellan was almost always male, but could occasionally be female, as when, in 1 ...

of Kraków, died at the Battle of Chmielnik * Jan Klimontowic (died after 1243) – castellan of

Cieszyn Cieszyn ( , ; ; ) 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 inhabitants ( and lies opposite Český Těšín in the Czech Repu ...

and Toszek * Andrzej z Brzeźnicy (died 1244) – Bishop of

Płock Płock (pronounced ), officially the Ducal Capital City of Płock, is a city in central Poland, on the Vistula river, in the Masovian Voivodeship. According to the data provided by Central Statistical Office (Poland), GUS on 31 December 2021, the ...

* Klemens z Ruszczy (died 1256) – castellan and Voivode of Kraków, closest associate of Bolesław V the Chaste * Wierzbięta z Ruszczy (died after 1310) – castellan and Voivode of Kraków * Wierzbięta z Branic (died 1424) –

Stolnik Stolnik (, , , , ) was a court office in Lithuania, Poland, Ukraine and Russia, responsible for serving the royal table, then an honorary court title and a district office. It approximately corresponds to English term wikt:pantler, "pantler". S ...

of Kraków

Branches

* House of Branicki * House of Mielecki

Bibliography

* A. Małecki, Studya heraldyczne, t. I, Lwów 1890, pp. 268-285, t. II, Lwów 1890, pp. 46-67 * L. M. Wójcik
Ród Gryfitów do końca XIII wieku. Pochodzenie — genealogia — rozsiedlenie
"Historia" CVII, Wrocław 1993.

References

{{Poland-noble-stub

History

Notable members

Branches

See also

Bibliography

References