Dytryk (''Dietrich'' or ''Theoderic'') (born after 992 - died after 1032) –
Polish duke in 1032.
Dytryk was a paternal grandson (''patruelus'') of
Mieszko I
Mieszko I (; – 25 May 992) was Duchy of Poland (966–1025), Duke of Poland from 960 until his death in 992 and the founder of the first unified History of Poland, Polish state, the Civitas Schinesghe. A member of the Piast dynasty, he was t ...
and his second (or third?) wife
Oda of Haldensleben, the daughter of
Dietrich of Haldensleben, the Margrave of the
Northern March
The Northern March or North March (, ) was created out of the division of the vast ''Marca Geronis'' in 965. It initially comprised the northern third of the ''Marca'' (roughly corresponding to the modern state of Brandenburg) and was part of the ...
. Dytryk was thus named after his maternal grandfather Dietrich of Haldensleben. The precise identity of Dytryk's father is uncertain. Mieszko had had three sons by Oda,
Mieszko
Mieszko is a Slavic given name of uncertain origin.
Onomastics
There are three major theories concerning the origin and meaning of the name of Duke Mieszko I of Poland. The most popular theory, proposed by Jan Długosz, explains that Mieszko is a ...
,
Świętopełk, and
Lambert. Of these, Świętopełk is suspected to have died before the composition of the ''
Dagome iudex'' in 991, probably young and without offspring. This leaves Mieszko and Lambert as the likely candidates for Dytryk's father, with Mieszko preferred, presumably for being the eldest.
In July 1032, following the murder of Duke
Bezprym
Bezprym (Old �bɛspʂɨm �vɛspreːm 986–1032) was the duke of Poland from 1031 until his death. He was the eldest son of the Polish king Bolesław the Brave, but was deprived of the succession by his father, who around 1001 sent him t ...
of Poland, Emperor
Konrad II brokered a partition of Poland at
Merseburg
Merseburg () is a town in central Germany in southern Saxony-Anhalt, situated on the river Saale, and approximately 14 km south of Halle (Saale) and 30 km west of Leipzig. It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese ...
, dividing it between Bezprym's brothers
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� ...
and
Otto
Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants '' Audo'', '' Odo'', '' Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity".
The name is recorded fr ...
and their nephew Dytryk. The partition proved short-lived, and Otto's death and Dytryk's exile allowed Mieszko II Lambert to briefly reunify the country in 1033. Dytryk's subsequent fate is unknown, and but he died after July 1032 or 1033.
[Jasiński 2004: 127.]
Bibliography
* Balzer O., Genealogia Piastów, Kraków 1895.
* Jasiński K., Rodowód pierwszych Piastów, Poznań 2004, s. 126–127.
* Labuda G., Pierwsze państwo polskie, Kraków 1989, , s. 54.
* Rymar E., Rodowód książąt pomorskich, Szczecin 2005, .
* Szczur S., Historia Polski. Średniowiecze, Kraków 2002, .
References
{{Poland-noble-stub
11th-century Polish monarchs
Piast dynasty
11th-century Christians
11th-century Polish people