The Miecław's State was a state located in

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

, in

Central Europe Central Europe is a geographical region of Europe between Eastern Europe, Eastern, Southern Europe, Southern, Western Europe, Western and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Central Europe is known for its cultural diversity; however, countries in ...

, with the capital in

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 ...

. It was formed around 1037 by

Miecław Miecław (10th/11th century – 1047) was a cup-bearer of king Mieszko II Lambert, who in c. 1038 had proclaimed independence of the state that he ruled, from the Duchy of Poland, beginning the rebellion that lasted until his death in 1047. ...

by breaking away from

Duchy of Poland Civitas Schinesghe (; ), also known as the Duchy of Poland or the Principality of Poland, is the historiographical name given to a polity in Central Europe, which existed during the medieval period and was the predecessor state of the Kingdom of ...

during the crisis inside the country. It existed until 1047, when

Casimir I the Restorer Casimir I the Restorer (; 25 July 1016 – 19 March 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 because ...

, duke of Poland, reconquered the state into Duchy of Poland.

History

Following the death of

Mieszko II Lambert Mieszko II Lambert (; c. 990 – 10/11 May 1034) was List of Polish monarchs, King of Kingdom of Poland (1025–1031), Poland from 1025 to 1031 and Duchy of Poland (c. 960–1025), Duke from 1032 until his death. He was the second son of Boles� ...

, king of Poland, in 1034, and the exile of his son,

, to

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

, the state had fallen into a period of destabilization within the

, that led to the start of the 1038 Peasant Uprising. Seizing the opportunity, around 1038, the

cup-bearer A cup-bearer was historically an officer of high rank in royal courts, whose duty was to pour and serve the drinks at the royal table. On account of the constant fear of plots and intrigues (such as poisoning), a person had to be regarded as thor ...

had formed the state in

, declaring its independence from Poland, and started his own royal dynasty.Ł. Piernikarczyk, ''Masław i jego państwo (1037–1047)'' Casimir I the Restorer, duke of Poland, had returned to the country from his exile in 1039. He had formed an alliance with

Yaroslav the Wise Yaroslav I Vladimirovich ( 978 – 20 February 1054), better known as Yaroslav the Wise, was Grand Prince of Kiev from 1019 until his death in 1054. He was also earlier Prince of Novgorod from 1010 to 1034 and Prince of Rostov from 987 to 1010, ...

, Grand Prince of Kiev, the leader of

Kievan Rus' Kievan Rus', also known as Kyivan Rus,. * was the first East Slavs, East Slavic state and later an amalgam of principalities in Eastern Europe from the late 9th to the mid-13th century.John Channon & Robert Hudson, ''Penguin Historical At ...

, via the marriage of Maria Dobroniega with Casimir. Expecting the attack from Rus', Miecław had formed an alliance with Pomeranian and

Yotvingian Sudovian (also known as Yotvingian, or Jatvingian) was a West Baltic language of Northeastern Europe. Sudovian was closely related to Old Prussian. It was formerly spoken southwest of the Neman river in what is now Lithuania, east of Galindia a ...

tribes. In the spring of 1041, he had begun the campaign against Polish forces.''Kazimierz Odnowiciel''. p. 112-118. Miecław's forces had fought with the army led by Casimir and Yaroslav, in the battle of Pobiedziska. The battle ended with a decisive Polish victory and destruction of Miecław's army and led to the signing of the

truce A ceasefire (also known as a truce), also spelled cease-fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions often due to mediation by a third party. Ceasefires may b ...

between both sides.A. Bielowski, ''Kronika śląsko-polska'', in ''Monumenta Poloniae Historica'', vol. 3. p. 622. The fighting had begun again in 1047, as Casimir I, together with Yaroslav, had organized the attack on Masovia, which led to the

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...

of their forces against the forces of Miecław and Pomerelia. Gallus Anonymu, '' Gesta principum Polonorum''

Nestor the Chronicler Nestor the Chronicler or Nestor the Hagiographer (; 1056 – 1114) was a monk from the Kievan Rus who is known to have written two saints' lives: the ''Life of the Venerable Theodosius of the Kiev Caves'' and the ''Account about the Life an ...

, ''

Primary Chronicle The ''Primary Chronicle'', shortened from the common ''Russian Primary Chronicle'' (, commonly transcribed ''Povest' vremennykh let'' (PVL), ), is a Rus' chronicle, chronicle of Kievan Rus' from about 850 to 1110. It is believed to have been or ...

'' The location of the battle remains unknown in modern times, though it was known to the 11th-century historian, Gallus Anonymus, according to whom, it took place near the river, with the bluff edge. According to him, Miecław forces had 30 divisions of

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

, while Casimir, 3 divisions. It is probable that he did not account for the forces of Yaroslav the Wise, and that both sides, in fact, had a similar number of forces. The battle was probably initiated by Casimir I, who hoped to win before the arrival of the Pomerelian army. The battle itself was fierce, with numerous casualties on Miecław's side. The battle ended with Polish victory, following which, Miecław's state was reincorporated into Poland. According to Gallus Anonymus, Miecław had died in the battle. However, according to

Wincenty Kadłubek Wincenty Kadłubek (; 1150 – 8 March 1223) was a Polish Catholic prelate and professed Cistercian who served as the Bishop of Kraków from 1208 until his resignation in 1218. His episcopal mission was to reform the diocesan priests to ens ...

in his ''

Chronica seu originale regum et principum Poloniae 200px, ''Historia Polonica'', Vincenti Kadłubkonis Episcopi Cracoviensis, 1612 ''Chronica seu originale regum et principum Poloniae'', short name ''Chronica Polonorum'', is a Latin history of Poland written by Wincenty Kadłubek between 1190 a ...

'', he had escaped to

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

, where he was murdered.

Citations

Notes

References

Bibliography

* '' Wielkopolska Chronicle'' * Ł. Piernikarczyk, ''Masław i jego państwo (1037–1047)''. * Tadeusz Łepkowski, ''Słownik historii Polski''. Warsaw. 1973, p. 363. * ''Kazimierz Odnowiciel'', Śląsk, 1979. * A. Bielowski, ''Kronika śląsko-polska'', in ''Monumenta Poloniae Historica'', vol. 3, Warsaw, 1961. {{DEFAULTSORT:Mieclaw's State History of Poland during the Piast dynasty History of Mazovia 11th century in Poland Former countries in Europe Former unrecognized countries States and territories established in the 1030s States and territories disestablished in 1047 1030s establishments in Europe Miecław's Rebellion

History

See also

Citations

Notes

References

Bibliography