Battle of Zawichost

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The Battle of Zawichost (1205) between Roman the Great of Halych-Volhynia and Leszek I the White of Lesser Poland is an event with rather contradictory accounts. While mentioned in several chronicles, the chroniclers agree only on the year, the opposing parties and that Roman with his force (druzhina) was ambushed and killed by the Poles in the vicinity of Zawichost by the Vistula (Visla) River.

Contents

[edit] Background

In the 11th century, Poland and Ruthenia entered a border dispute and the lands of Lesser Poland and Ruthenia (Rus') was changing constantly. In the early Middle Ages, the area of what later would become Galicia was scarcely populated, as the region was settled by Ruthenians from the east and by Poles from the west. Border-clashes took place in the lands of Przemyśl, Sanok, Drohiczyn and Volodymyr-Volynskyi. The decline of Kievan Rus gave Poland the opportunity to seize control of the regions. In 1199, an armed campaign led by Leszek the White helped to install Roman the Great on the throne in Volodymyr. In 1205, however, Roman declares war on Poland. The Polish chronicle, Jan Długosz, tried to give reasons for Roman's declaration of war:

"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 of Leszek and Conrad. 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.[1]

Długosz further explains that before crossing the Polish frontier, Roman sent emissaries to the Bishop of Vladimir and asked for his blessing, as he intended to campaign in Poland for three years. 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.[2]

[edit] Opposing forces

Leszek and Conrad assembled a force of knights and peasants from Sandomierz, Kujawy, and Mazovia, which is reinforced with a force of volunteers from Cracow.[3]

[edit] Battle

Different historians and different chroniclers give contradictory accounts on the size of the opposing forces, the reason and the scale of Roman's campaign. Even the date of the skirmish is cited as June 19 or October 14, 1205, depending on the source. Little is known of the battle itself. It is probable that Roman's forces were ambushed in the marshes around Zawichost. The defeated Ruthenians could not retreat as they were pushed back to the escarpment of Vistula river, where many of them died - including prince Roman.

According to the Suzdal Chronicle of the Laurentian Codex[4]):

"The same year (1205)... 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."

According to the later "Chronica Poloniae Maioris"[5]):

"At this time 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."

According to Długosz, Roman lay siege to Lublin at the start of spring and the siege lasted for a month; the siege was unsucccessful, but the Ruthenians captured the wives of the knights of Lublin, which they raped. When Roman finds out about the Polish force that was advancing towards him, he broke the siege and advanced deep into Poland by pillage; and then he threatened with eradication of the Latin rite. Several bishops and nobles approach Roman and asks for peace, promising to pay compensation; Roman accepts, but continues with the war[6] Długosz described the last moments of the battle:

Lelek reaches the Vistula and gets his army across, partly in boats, partly by fording, for, thanks to a drought, there are a numbers 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, It is difficult to understand how Roman, one of the greatest and most powerful Ruthenian princes, was in homage dependency to Leszek, a prince of the Lesser Poland, in order to refuse to pay the tribute at the first place.[5] On the basis of Albert of Stade chronicles, some historians speculate that Roman could have been passing through Poland on his way to Saxony to assist Philip of Swabia, the son of Frederick Barbarossa, in the Philip's quest for the Emperor's Crown. On his way Roman was met by Leszek, who was allied with the Saxon Welfs against Frederick and wished to prevent the Ruthenian prince from reaching the Saxony.[7]

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ The Annals of Jan Długosz p. 153
  2. ^ The Annals of Jan Długosz p. 153
  3. ^ The Annals of Jan Długosz p. 153
  4. ^ *Suzdal Chronicle Laurentian Codex
  5. ^ a b (Russian) Valentin Yanin; L. M. Popova, N. I. Shchaveleva, "Velikaia khronika" o Polshe, Rusi i ikh sosediakh, XI-XIII vv. (The Great Chronicle of Poland, Rus' and their negbours), Moscow, Moscow University, OCLC 22324865
  6. ^ The Annals of Jan Długosz p. 153
  7. ^ Пашуто В. Т. Внешняя политика... — p. 165, OCLC 2728099; Щавелева Н. И. Древнерусские известия Великопольской хроники // Летописи и хроники. — М., 1976. — С. 59 — 62, ISBN 5-88451-135-3; Chronica Alberici Monachi Trium fontium / Ed. P. Scheffer — Boichorst // MGH. SS. — Hannoverae, 1874. — Т. XXIII. — P. 885; Wlodarski В. Polityka ruska Leszka Bialego. — Lwow, 1925. — S. 19 — 21).

[edit] References

  • Długosz, Jan. The Annals of Jan Długosz ISBN 1-901019-00-4
  • Dovidnyk z istoriï Ukraïny, 3-Volumes, Article "Roman Mstyslavych" (T.3), Kiev, 1993-1999, ISBN 5-7707-5190-8 (t. 1), ISBN 5-7707-8552-7 (t. 2), ISBN 966-504-237-8 (t. 3).
  • Roman Mstyslavych in Encyclopedia of Ukraine
  • Roman Mstyslavych in Енциклопедія українознавства (Encyclopedia of Ukrainian studies), 3-volumes, Kiev, 1994, ISBN 5-7702-0554-7
  • "Chronica Poloniae Maioris" (The Cronicle of Greater Poland), Chapter 31 (Russian translation available online)
  • Ivan Kryp'yakevych, Halych Volynian principality,[1] Kiev, 1984
  • Suzdal Chronicle of Laurentian Codex (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")
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