Mieszko I

A member of the Piast dynasty, he was the first Christian ruler of Poland and continued the policies of both his father Siemomysł and his grandfather Lestek, who initiated a process of unification among the Polish tribes and the creation of statehood.

Mieszko's alliance with the Czech prince Boleslaus the Cruel was strengthened by his marriage in 965 to the Přemyslid princess Dobrawa, who is said to have brought the Christian faith to Poland.

Mieszko and his people were described around 966 by Abraham ben Jacob, a Sephardi Jewish traveller, who at that time visited the Prague court of Duke Boleslaus I the Cruel.

[11] Abraham presented Mieszko I as one of the four Slavic "kings",[12] reigning over a vast "northern" area, with a highly regarded and substantial military force at his disposal.

More precise contemporary records regarding Mieszko were compiled by Widukind of Corvey, and, half a century later, by Bishop Thietmar of Merseburg.

In 963 Margrave Gero of Meissen conquered territories occupied by the Polabian Lusatian and Słupian tribes, and as a result came into direct contact with the Polish state.

In addition, the Veleti Bohemia, which at that time possessed Silesia and Lesser Poland regions, constituted a danger for the young state of the Polans.

According to the majority of modern historians,[13] Thietmar made an error summarizing the chronicle of Widukind, placing the Gero raid there instead of the fighting that Mieszko conducted at that time against Wichmann the Younger.

The homage is then a separate issue, since, according to the chronicle of Thietmar, Mieszko actually paid tribute to the Emperor from the lands usque in Vurta fluvium (up to the Warta River).

[16] This understanding of the tribute issue explains why already in 967 Mieszko I was described in the Saxon chronicles as the Emperor's friend (or ally, supporter, Latin: amicus imperatoris).

Most often it is assumed that it was a political decision, intended to bring Mieszko's state closer to the Czechs and to facilitate his activities in the Polabian Slavs area.

At the same time, the baptism decreased the likelihood of future attacks by German margraves and deprived them of the opportunity to attempt Christianization of Mieszko's lands by force.

An additional reason could be Mieszko's desire to remove from power the influential pagan priest class, which may have been blocking his efforts to establish a more centralized rule.

There are no reasons to negate Dobrawa's role in Mieszko's acceptance of Roman Catholicism; however, crediting rulers' wives with positive influence over their husbands' actions was a common convention at that time.

After the normalization of relations with the Holy Roman Empire and Bohemia, Mieszko I returned to his plans to conquer the western part of Pomerania.

On 21 September 967 the Polish-Bohemian troops prevailed in the decisive battle against the Wolinians led by Wichmann the Younger, which gave Mieszko control over the mouth of the Odra River.

[23] The German margraves had not opposed Mieszko's activities in Pomerania, perhaps even supported them; the death of the rebellious Wichmann, who succumbed to his wounds soon after the battle, may have been in line with their interests.

In one version of the legend of Saint Adalbert of Prague (known in Polish as Wojciech) it is written that Mieszko I had his daughter married to a Pomeranian prince, who previously voluntarily "was washed with the holy water of the baptism" in Poland.

[34][35][36][37][38][39] Some historians suggest that the regions of Sandomierz, Lublin and Czerwień (western Red Ruthenia) were indeed annexed by Mieszko's state in the 970s, as lands valuable for trade reasons and as a starting point for a future attack against what was to become Lesser Poland, then in the hands of Bohemia.

It appears that during this time Mieszko I married Oda, daughter of Dietrich of Haldensleben, Margrave of the Northern March, after abducting her from the monastery of Kalbe.

This fact is confirmed in the chronicle of Thietmar, which noted that "There arrived [at the Diet of Quedlinburg] also, among many other princes: Mieszko, Mściwoj and Boleslaus and promised to support him under oath as the king and ruler".

[50] One year later, the Polish ruler had a personal meeting with the Emperor, an event mentioned in the Annals of Hersfeld, which reported that "Otto the boy-king ravaged Bohemia, but received Mieszko who arrived with gifts".

The meeting cemented the Polish-German alliance, with Mieszko joining Otto's expedition against a Slavic land, which "together they wholly devastated (...) with fire and tremendous depopulation".

The chronicler claims that a settlement was then concluded between the Emperor and the Bohemian ruler Boleslaus II the Pious, which is not mentioned in any other source and is contrary to the realities of the political situation at that time.

Many historians[59] suggested that the Czech rule over Lesser Poland was only nominal and likely limited to the indirect control of Kraków and perhaps a few other important centers.

After its incorporation, Lesser Poland supposedly became the part of the country assigned to Mieszko's oldest son, Bolesław, which is indirectly indicated in the chronicle of Thietmar.

[60] Some historians, on the basis of the chronicle of Cosmas of Prague, believe that the conquest of the lands around the lower Vistula River took place after Mieszko's death, specifically in 999.

[62] At the end of his life (c. 991–992), Mieszko I, together with his wife Oda and their sons, issued a document called Dagome iudex, where the Polish ruler placed his lands under the protection of the pope and described their borders.

He was the first ruler to conduct efficient foreign policy, which included agreements with Germany, Bohemia and Sweden, and prudently used his military resources.

Also, a theory exists (apparently based on Thietmar and supported by Oswald Balzer in 1895) that Vladivoj, who ruled as Duke of Bohemia in 1002–1003, was a son of Mieszko and Dobrawa.