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Battle of Zawichost

The Battle of Zawichost (1205) was fought between Roman the Great of Galicia-Volhynia and Leszek the White of Sandomierz (in Lesser Poland), along with his brother Konrad I of Masovia. After declaring war and invading Lesser Poland, Roman and his forces (druzhina) were ambushed by the Poles in the vicinity of Zawichost by the river Vistula (Wisła). In the tumult that followed, Roman was killed and the Polish victory would lead to growing power for Leszek and Konrad, while triggering a war of succession in Galicia–Volhynia. The battle is considered one of the greatest victories of medieval Poland.[7]

Battle of Zawichost
Part of the German throne dispute (1198–1215)[2]
Date19 June[3] or 14 October 1205
Location
Zawichost, Vistula River, Seniorate Province, Duchy of Sandomierz
Result Polish victory[1]
Belligerents
Duchy of Sandomierz
Duchy of Masovia
Supported by:
House of Welf[1]		 Principality of Galicia–Volhynia
Supported by:
House of Honenstaufen[1]
Commanders and leaders
Leszek I the White
Konrad I of Masovia		 Roman the Great † [2]
Strength
2,000—2,500[4] 5,000—7,500[a]
Casualties and losses
Light[6] Almost all killed[6]

Background

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Roman of Halych receives an ambassador from Pope Innocent III, painting by Nikolai Nevrev (1875)

In the 11th century, there were some border disputes between Polish duchies and Rus' principalities, with the lands of Lesser Poland and Galicia-Volhynia (called Ruthenia in Latin) changing hands several times. In the early Middle Ages, the area of what later would become Galicia was scarcely populated, as the region was settled by Rus' peoples from the east and by Poles from the west. Border clashes took place in the lands of Przemyśl, Sanok, Drohiczyn and Volodimer' in Volhynia. In 1199, an armed campaign led by Leszek the White helped to install Roman the Great on the throne in Volodimer' in Volhynia. In 1205, however, Roman marched into Lesser Poland. Polish chronicler Jan Długosz (1480) tried to give reasons for Roman's incursion:[citation needed]

There are several reasons for his action: the huge wealth taken from Ruthenia in the years when almost the whole of the country was conquered; the disbandment and dispersion of his forces, cavalry and infantry, among many of the Polish duchies; the quarrels of the magnates; and, finally, the immaturity [referring to their young age] of Leszek and Konrad. Also the harsh reply they gave his emmissaries when he asked for all the land of Lublin and compensation for the losses and costs he had incurred at the Battle of River Mozgawa and was told that, having quit the field of battle, he was not entitled to anything.[3]

Długosz further explains that before crossing the Polish frontier, Roman sent emissaries to the Bishop of Volodimer' and asked for his blessing, as he intended to campaign in Poland for three years.[3] The Bishop declined Roman's gifts and denied him any blessing, explaining that "he cannot bless Roman or his enterprise, since he has previously started unjust and wicked wars and is again embarking on one that is quite unjustified, considering that the Poles have so often exposed their bodies to danger and death to defend the Ruthenians against the barbarians." Roman responded by telling the bishop that he will cut his head off when he returns from his victory.[3]

Modern scholar George Perfecky (1973) provided a very different context for the conflict, linking it primarily to the German throne dispute (1198–1215): '[Roman] tried to colonize the Lithuanian and Jatvingian lands and participated in the struggle between two German princely houses, the Welfs, who were the dukes of Saxony and Bavaria, and the Hohenstaufens, then the ruling house of the Holy Roman Empire. In this struggle Roman sided with the Hohenstaufens and undertook a campaign against the Little Polish Prince Leszek of Cracow (in GVC Lestko), an ally of the Welfs. Roman planned to crush him and then to strike deep into Saxony against the Welfs. However, Roman was defeated by the Poles and died at Zavixvost on the Vistula in 1205.'[2]

Battle

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Earliest accounts

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Leszek the White (Jan Matejko 1893).

French chronicler Alberic of Trois-Fontaines (1251) wrote that Roman moved through Poland to Saxony in order to assist Philip of Swabia, the son of Frederick I Barbarossa, in the fight for the Imperial crown.[8] This explanation was later accepted by Vladimir Pashuto (1968),[9][8] Perfecky (1973),[9] and Yanin, Popova and Shchaveleva (1987).[8]

The Suzdalian Chronicle of the Laurentian Codex (compiled in 1377) mentions that "Roman of Halych took on Poles and conquered cities. And stopped at the Vistula River with his small druzhina. Poles then attacked and killed him with the druzhina. And people from Halych came, took their dead prince and carried him to Halych and buried him in a church."[b] Perfecky (1973) interpreted the Suzdalian account as saying that 'Roman died while out on patrol and not in battle.'[1]

According to the later Chronica Poloniae Maioris (c. 1290), Roman "refuses to pay the tribute to Leszek, bravely challenges him and with amassing the large force unexpectedly invades into the Polish lands. As Leszek found that out, he assembled a small troop rushed to meet him in Zawichost, fiercely attacks him, captures and defeats. Of the Ruthenians, that initially came arrogantly, many were wounded, very many killed with prince Roman, and the others, seeing [that] tried to find the rescue escaping, and many pathetically ended their lives in the Vistula [...] And so happened in 1205 AD."[8] Yanin et al. (1987) found it improbable 'that one of the powerful princes of Rus', Roman, was in vassal dependence on the prince of Lesser Poland, and paid him tribute.'[8]

The Galician–Volhynian Chronicle (c. 1292) does not provide a coherent narrative of how Roman died, instead repeatedly recording several events "after Roman's death" (opening sentence, sub anno 6709, 6710, 6711).[11] The closet it gets is mentioning in passing that after Roman's death, the Galician boyars invited the Igorevichi princes to the throne; in the confusing attack that followed, Roman's wife Anna-Euphrosyne and sons first fled to Volodimer and then to Poland: 'They did not know where to turn: Prince Roman had been killed in Poland [в Ляхах v Lyakhakh] and Lestko [Leszek] had not yet concluded peace. But the Lord interceded in their behalf: Lestko made no mention of the hostilities [between them] and received his sister-in-law and her children with great honor. He took pity on them and remarked that the devil had caused this enmity to come between them. And indeed Volodislav [Tonkonogij] had plotted discord between [Roman and Lestko], for he was envious of the amicable relations that existed [between them].'[12] The chronicler thus blamed Władysław Laskonogi (Volodislav Tonkonogij) for the conflict.[13] Mykhailo Hrushevsky suggested that, if true, Władysław's attempts to undermine the Leszek–Roman alliance probably began in 1202, when Władysław was driven out of Kraków by Leszek, although Hrushevsky could not say whether this was the real reason behind the clash.[13]

Długosz version (1480)

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Konrad I of Masovia (Jan Matejko 1893).

Writing almost three centuries after the events, Polish chronicler Jan Długosz (1480) published a lengthy and detailed story about what supposedly happened. In the early spring, Roman invaded the land of Lublin and laid siege to the city. The Polish garrison was successful in defending the city, but the Rus'ian caused great destruction to the local population, as they captured and raped the wives of the knights of Lublin.[3] Leszek then started recruiting a force of knights and peasants from Sandomierz, Kujawy, and Mazovia, which was reinforced with a force of volunteers from Kraków.[3] When Roman learned of the Polish force that was advancing towards him, he raised the siege and advanced deep into Poland by pillaging and threatening with devastation and eradication of the Latin rite.[3] Several bishops and nobles approached Roman and asked for peace, promising to pay compensation; Roman accepted, but continued with the war.[3] He captured some priests and had them shot at with arrows, hoping to have the location of Leszek disclosed.[6] Długosz gives a detailed description of the battle.[c]

Many of the Rus' drowned and many more died at the hands of the local population, as Polish troops chased them all the way to Volodimer'.[6] Few survived the massacre and at the order of Leszek and Konrad, Roman's body was buried in Sandomierz.[6] The two factions came to an agreement and the Ruthenians released all their prisoners and paid 1,000 silver marks to recover the body of Roman, which was then buried in Volodimer'.[6]

Aftermath

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After his triumph, Leszek's reputation took a positive turn, earning him credibility and the trust of Kraków,[14] which would give him temporary power over the city. Konrad, coming of age, asked for his share of power and at the meditation of their mother and a selected group of aristocrats, the two brothers divide the country under their authority.[6] Rus' turned unstable from its internal conflicts and the country is invaded by Lithuanians, this being the first time the Poles hear of that name.[14] The Ruthenians suffered great casualties, but managed to defeat the invaders.[14] In 1208, the country fell into civil war.[15]

Notes

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  1. ^ According to Polish historian Artur Foryt, who wrote a work on the battle, the 13,000-strong Ruthenian army is incorrect, claiming that this is due to a misreading of the local chronicle by most Polish historians. He believes that the Ruthenian forces could have numbered between 5,000 and 7,500 men.[5]
  2. ^ Original text: "Тогож̑ лѣт̑ . ходиша кнѧзи Рѧзаньскъıӕ В на Половци и взѧша вежѣ ихъ ❙ Тогож̑ . лѣт̑ . Иде Романъ Галичьскъıи на Лѧхъı и взѧ . в҃ . города Лѧдьскаӕ . и ставшю же ѥму над Вислою рѣкою . и ѿѣха сам̑ в малѣ дружинѣ ѿ полку своѥго . Лѧхове же наѣхавше оубиша и . и дружину ѡколо ѥго избиша . приѣхавше же Галичане взѧша кнѧзѧ своѥго мр҃тва . и несоша и в Галичь . и положиша и въ цр҃кви ст҃ъıӕ Бц҃а".[10])
  3. ^ 'Leszek reaches the Vistula and gets his army across, partly in boats, partly by fording, for, thanks to a drought, there are a number of places where the river is so shallow as to allow this, and pitches camp outside Zawichost. When his scouts report the approach of the Poles, Roman laughs at them. Then some soldiers confirm what the scouts have said, but Roman still does not believe them, saying that the Poles will never engage him in battle. Then, at dawn, on June 19, the Feast of the martyrs SS Gervase and Protase, Leszek and Konrad arrive on the scene. Their army, commanded by the Voivode of Mazovia, is already in battle array and ready to fight. The shooting of the Polish archers and the pressure of the Polish attack is such that, in so narrow an area Roman is scarcely able to array his first line. The two armies raise a clamour and engage with spears and lances poised. Although Leszek and Konrad are present, they are not allowed to take part in the fighting but have to remain at a distance, where they await the result, torn between fear and hope. The Poles rout the Ruthenian first line, and it seems that Fortune is favouring them; however, having so many knights, Roman is able to replace those who fall or are wounded. The Poles are not angry with the Ruthenians but with their duke, who to them is a traitor, a breaker of faith and a deserter, and they are after his blood. They surround him, where he is fighting in the front rank, identifiable by his ducal emblems. Roman, seeing those with him hewn down before his eyes and realizing that escape is made difficult by the heaps of bodies on either side, digs his spurs into his horse, which tries to throw him, but he manages to get through the press and reach the river and there his horse falls. Now, how is he to get across and escape? A soldier brings him an old jage[clarification needed], which with great difficulty does get him to the far bank, where he mingles with the throng of fleeing soldiery, only to be rounded up by the Poles and, being taken for a common soldier, cut down. A number of Roman's knights and soldiers are standing on the bank of the river they have just managed to cross, watching the flight of their fellows, when the bank, ripped by the hooves of the struggling horses, is no longer able to bear their weight and collapses. The Ruthenians are now all seeking safety in flight, which means flinging themselves into the river.'[6]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Perfecky 1973, p. 128.
  2. ^ a b c Perfecky 1973, pp. 127–128.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h The Annals of Jan Długosz p. 153
  4. ^ Foryt 2021, p. 121.
  5. ^ Foryt 2021, p. 119.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h The Annals of Jan Długosz p. 154
  7. ^ Słupecki Leszek P., (1999) Bitwa pod Zawichostem, 19 czerwca 1205, Szkice Zawichojskie, red. Teresa Dunin-Wąsowicz, Stanisław Tabaczyński, Wydawnictwo Instytutu Archeologii i Etnologii PAN, Zawichost (in Polish)
  8. ^ a b c d e (in Russian) Valentin Yanin; L. M. Popova, N. I. Shchaveleva, "Velikaia khronika" o Polshe, Rusi i i Moscow University, OCLC 22324865
  9. ^ a b Perfecky 1973, pp. 127–128, 130.
  10. ^ *Suzdal Chronicle Laurentian Codex
  11. ^ Perfecky 1973, pp. 17–19.
  12. ^ Perfecky 1973, pp. 18–19.
  13. ^ a b Perfecky 1973, p. 130.
  14. ^ a b c The Annals of Jan Długosz p. 155
  15. ^ The Annals of Jan Długosz p. 156

Bibliography

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Primary sources

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Primary sources in Latin
  • Długosz, Jan. Annales seu cronicae incliti Regni Poloniae (Annals or Chronicles of the Famous Kingdom of Poland). (1480).
    • (in English) The Annals of Jan Długosz (English translation of key sections of the work) ISBN 1-901019-00-4
  • Chronica Poloniae Maioris or Wielkopolska Chronicle ("Chronicle of Greater Poland") (c. 1290).
  • Kadłubek, Wincenty, Chronica seu originale regum et principum Poloniae (1208).
  • Alberic of Trois-Fontaines, Chronica Albrici Monachi Trium Fontium (1251).
Primary sources in Church Slavonic and Ruthenian

Literature

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50°48′22″N 21°51′32″E / 50.805980°N 21.858755°E / 50.805980; 21.858755

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