Bolesław V the Chaste

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Bolesław V the Chaste
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Bolesław V the Chaste

Bolesław V the Chaste or the Shy (Polish: Bolesław Wstydliwy; 21 June 1226 O.S.7 December 1279 O.S.) was the son of Leszek the White. Several years after the death of Henry the Pious at the battle of Legnica (1241), he became prince in Cracow, and thus the predominant prince in fragmented Poland.

Royal seal of Bolesław
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Royal seal of Bolesław

He married Kinga or Cunegunda, daughter of Hungarian King Béla IV. According to medieval chronicles, the marriage was never consummated. Kinga, being extremely pious, was averse to fulfilling her marital duties. At first Bolesław tried to change her mind, but she demurred and he reluctantly accepted the situation. His religious convictions forbade him to take a mistress. Hence the epithet, "the Chaste" or "the Shy."

During his reign the city of Cracow, which had been destroyed in 1241 by the Tartars, was rebuilt, and mainly settled by German immigrants. The new city was built on a regular grid pattern (the "location" of 1257).


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