Wincenty of Niałka (Vincent) was the

Archbishop of Gniezno This is a list of archbishops of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Gniezno, Archdiocese of Gniezno, who are simultaneously primate (bishop), primates of Poland since 1418.Czarnków Czarnków is a town in Poland in Czarnków-Trzcianka County in Greater Poland Voivodeship. As of December 2021, the town has 10,279 inhabitants. The town lies on the Noteć river. Because there are many hills around the town, the area is called ...

to a noble family, the Jeleniów-Niałków whose lands were located on the Obra river border between the

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

principalities of

Wielkopolska Greater Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska (; ), is a Polish Polish historical regions, historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief and largest city is Poznań followed by Kalisz, the oldest city in Poland. The bound ...

and

Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...

. He probably studied abroad, perhaps in Italy as he was well-educated, and well-versed in Roman politics. In his youth he had a wife, who bore him at least two children, Miroslaw and Boguchwała.(or possibly Vincent). At this time

Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in common English usage ''priest'' refe ...

s – especially those with lower ordination – were often married. It was only during the reign of his predecessor archbishop Henry Kietlicz that strict observance of

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

celibacy Celibacy (from Latin ''caelibatus'') is the state of voluntarily being unmarried, sexually abstinent, or both. It is often in association with the role of a religious official or devotee. In its narrow sense, the term ''celibacy'' is applied ...

was enforced. At any rate by 1211 he was a widower. From 1208 held the office of

chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

at the court of

Władysław III Spindleshanks Władysław III Spindleshanks (; b. 1161/67 – 3 November 1231), of the Piast dynasty, was Duke of Greater Poland (during 1194–1202 over all the land and during 1202–1229 only over the southern part), High Duke of Poland and Duke of Kraków d ...

the

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

and supported his policies. Against this background, he came into conflict with the conservative

Archbishop of Gniezno This is a list of archbishops of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Gniezno, Archdiocese of Gniezno, who are simultaneously primate (bishop), primates of Poland since 1418.Henryk Kietlicz Henryk Kietlicz (1150 – 22 March 1219) was Archbishop of Gniezno from 1199 to 1219 was the main architect of the changes that allowed the Polish church to gain independence from the secular authorities. Henryk was born in 1150 to a Czech family ...

, who

excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to deprive, suspend, or limit membership in a religious community or to restrict certain rights within it, in particular those of being in communion with other members of the con ...

him and his duke in 1210. In retaliation Archbishop Henryk was forced into exile, finding the protection of Wladyslaw's

rival A rivalry is the state of two people or Social group, groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each ...

Henry the Bearded Henry the Bearded (, ; c. 1165/70 – 19 March 1238) was a Polish duke from the Piast dynasty. He was Duke of Silesia at Wrocław from 1201, Duke of Kraków and High Duke of all Poland – internally divided – from 1232 until his death. Li ...

. The archbishop and duke were, however, reconciled in 1213, with part of the settlement including Wincenty becoming a

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

Gniezno Cathedral The Royal Gniezno Cathedral (The Primatial Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Shrine of St. Adalbert, ) is a Brick Gothic cathedral located in the historic city of Gniezno that served as the coronation place for ...

. In 1216 or 1217 Archbishop Kietlicz raised him to the position of

provost Provost may refer to: Officials Ecclesiastic * Provost (religion), a high-ranking church official * Prince-provost, a high-ranking church official Government * Provost (civil), an officer of local government, including the equivalent ...

as a gesture in the "cease-fire".

Election to Bishop

Henry Kietlicz died on 22 March 1219 and two contenders emerged for the Bishops role, Hugo and Boguchwała.

Pope Honorius III Pope Honorius III (c. 1150 – 18 March 1227), born Cencio Savelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 18 July 1216 to his death. A canon at the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, he came to hold a number of importa ...

rejected both and suggested

Iwo Odrowąż Iwo Odrowąż (died 21 August 1229) was a medieval Polish humanist, statesman, and bishop. Life Iwo was very probably born in Końskie, son of Szaweł Odrowąż and a member of the noble family of Odrowąż. He studied in Bologna and Paris, main ...

, the

Archbishop of Kraków The archbishop of Kraków is the head of the archdiocese of Kraków. A bishop of Kraków first came into existence when the diocese was created in 1000; it was promoted to an archdiocese on 28 October 1925. Due to Kraków's role as Poland's politic ...

. However, he held office for about a year.Metropolitan Archdiocese of Gniezno
at GCatholic.org Support of Wawrzyniec/Lawrence, Bishop of Wrocław, two

papal legate 300px, A woodcut showing Henry II of England greeting the Pope's legate. A papal legate or apostolic legate (from the ancient Roman title '' legatus'') is a personal representative of the Pope to foreign nations, to some other part of the Catho ...

s, and dukes

and Wladyslaw Laskonogiego caused the pope on 5 October 1220 to select Wincenty as archbishop. However, as he had only been a secular cleric, he was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

and

consecrated Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

before taking the office of archbishop.

Works as Archbishop

During the famine of 1222–1224 gave food to the needy and in 1223 he received

Cardinal Gregorio Crescenzi. In 1226 he chaired a synod to settle a dispute between the

and Wawrzyniec, Bishop of Wrocław. He also participated in the convention in

Gąsawa Gąsawa is a town in Żnin County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, in north-central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Gąsawa. It lies approximately south of Żnin and south-west of Bydgoszcz. It is sit ...

following the death of

Leszek the White Leszek the White (; c. 1184/85 – 24 November 1227) was Prince of Sandomierz and High Duke of Poland in the years 1194–1198, 1199, 1206–1210, and 1211–1227. During the early stages of his reign, his uncle Duke Mieszko III the Old and ...

in 1227. Wincenty of Niałka died in early 1232 after a long and serious illness.

References

External links

Virtual tour Gniezno Cathedral
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nialek, Wincenty 1220 births 1232 deaths Archbishops of Gniezno