Topic: Quarrels in the ducal family and division of Poland by Bolesław III Wrymouth

Target group

5th‑grade students of elementary school

Core curriculum

5th‑grade students of elementary school

V. Poland in the early Piast period. Pupil:

4) characterizes the reconstruction and development of the Piast state during the reign of Kazimierz Odnowiciela and Bolesław Śmiały;

5) presents the achievements of Bolesław Krzywousty; describes the conflict with the German Empire;

6) describes the Polish society of the first Piasts.

VI. Poland during the district breakdown. Pupil:

1) places Poland in the period of district breakdown in time and space;

2) describes the causes and indicates the effects of neighborhood breakdown.

General aim of education

Students learn about the fate of Poland since the reunification of the country by Casimir the Restorer to the district division by Bolesław III Wrymouth.

Key competences

• communication in foreign languages;

• digital competence;

• learning to learn.

Criteria for success
The student will learn:

• what kind of ruler Bolesław II the Generous was;

• why Bishop Stanislaus of Szczepanów died, and what the consequences if his death were;

• why the authority of ducal rule collapsed during Władysław I Herman’s reign;

• how Bolesław III Wrymouth gained power, what kind of duke he was, and how it came to be that the country was divided according to his testament.

Methods/techniques

• activating

  • discussion.

• expository

  • talk.

• exposing

  • film.

• programmed

  • with computer;

  • with e‑textbook.

• practical

  • exercices concerned.

Forms of work

• individual activity;

• activity in pairs;

• activity in groups;

• collective activity.

Teaching aids

• e‑textbook;

• notebook and crayons/felt‑tip pens;

• interactive whiteboard, tablets/computers.

Lesson plan overview

Before classes

1. Students should recall knowledge of the previous lessons.

Introduction

1. The teacher gives the students the subject, the purpose of the lesson and the criteria for success.

2. Then, referring to the homework, he asks students how the crisis in the Piast dynasty during Mieszko II was solved. Students should mention the achievements of Kazimierz the Restorer.

Realization

1. The teacher begins the discussion by asking the students: What should a good ruler be like? What qualities should it represent? Then he narrows down the question by asking what should be the ruler like at the time when Poland was in the times of Kazimierz the Restorer. Asking questions, the lecturer remembers that they are to be formulated as the key questions.

2. The teacher introduces students to the figure of King Bolesław Śmiały and his accomplishment. He also introduces students to a dispute between the king and the bishop of Krakow, Stanisław. Students read two descriptions of the bishop's death and execute Task 1, and then they get acquainted with the interactive illustration from Task 2. The teacher makes sure that the task has been correctly done and gives feedback.

3. Then he asks the students what the situation of the ruler's exile from and the enthronement of his brother could have led to. Students should conclude that it weakened the authority of the monarch and could make him dependent on the overlords. The teacher presents the reign of Władysław Herman. Students list features of the prince (they do Task 3) and after reading the map showing the division of the Polish Duchy in 1102, they do Exercise 1.

4. The teacher introduces students to Bolesław Krzywousty and his attempts to prevent dynastic conflict and break down the country. Then presents the assumptions of the so‑called king's will.

5. Students - after learning about the Piast family tree - perform Task 4, and then in Exercise 2. They assign rulers to the category of princes or kings. Based on their knowledge, they indicate successors to the throne who have never taken power (Exercise 3). Then they discuss the tasks with the teacher. The teacher makes sure that the tasks have been correctly completed and gives feedback.

Summary

1. The teacher asks students to play the role of the medieval advisers of Prince Bolesław Wrymouth. Then, by impersonating the prince himself, he asks them for advice on what to do with the state, in the face of the approaching death. How can you avoid conflicts, fight among sons and maybe partition of the state? Thoughts about the division of the country and handing over to each of its sons its parts (as in the known testament). What advice do you give him?.

2. At the end of the lesson, the teacher gives the students an evaluation questionnaire in which they evaluate their own work during the lesson, the work of the teacher and colleagues.

Homework

1. The teacher sets homework (it is not an obligatory part of the script): Think about whether the bishop of Krakow Stanisław can be called a saint or was he perhaps a traitor? Look for arguments for both positions. You can refer to the sentences of the time - Gall Anonim, Wincenty Kadłubek - and to the opinions of contemporary researchers and historians..

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

Quarrels in the ducal family and division of Poland by Bolesław III Wrymouth

After years of crisis and collapse, the Piast monarchy was rebuilt by Casimir I the Restorer. He managed to unite the most important Polish lands and maintain friendly relations with the biggest neighbors – the German Empire and Kievan Rus'. He also reinstated and reformed the state organization, and reconstructed the network of fortified towns on which his power relied. After Casimir died, his eldest son Bolesław took power in the country. He carried out an active foreign policy, e.g., by getting involved in the dynastic conflict in Hungary and Rus', as well as intra‑German disputes, speaking out against Emperor Henry IV who had been weakened by the conflict with the Pope. Thanks to the support of Pope Gregory VII in the dispute about investiture, and his concern for the development of the Church in Poland, he obtained consent for a royal coronation, which took place in 1076. Unfortunately, the ruler’s exaggerated ambitions led to his conflict with the elite, headed by the Cracow Bishop – Stanislaus of Szczepanów. His death by order of the king (1079) led to a rebellion against Bolesław, as a result of which he had to leave the country by going to Hungary where he died.

Afterwards, power was taken over by his younger brother, Władysław I Herman. He did not pursue an expansive policy like his predecessor, but focused on peaceful coexistence. However, his weak position and dependence on the country’s elites forced him to share power with Palatine (voivode) Sieciech – the most powerful of the magnates. He held actual power for almost two decades, ruthlessly combating his opponents. Such an attitude and lack of reaction from the duke led to a rebellion of the subjects, supported by the ruler’s sons – Zbigniew, and Bolesław III Wrymouth. In the end, between 1097 and 1100, they succeeded in overthrowing Sieciech and depriving their father of any real power. They also forced him to divide the country into districts – Masovia (Władysław I Herman), Greater Poland and Kuyavia (Zbigniew), and Silesia and Lesser Poland (Bolesław III Wrymouth). After Władysław’s death in 1102, Zbigniew took over Masovia. Both brothers ruled independently, but Bolesław questioned Zbigniew’s position. In 1006, there was a conflict between them, as a result of which Zbigniew, defeated, had to leave the country. After he was allowed to return, he was accused of disloyalty and put in prison, where he died.

After his death, Bolesław III Wrymouth continued the policy of expansion in Pomerania, eventually gaining control thereof. He strengthened alliances with Russia and Hungary, as well as regulated the relations with Bohemia. Another great success was the obtainment, by the Polish episcopate, of the Bull of Gniezno in 1136, which confirmed the existence of an independent archbishopric, over which German clergy had wanted to take control. In 1138, Bolesław III Wrymouth divided the country between his sons, entrusting Principate to the oldest of them – Władysław II the Exile. We do not know whether the so‑called Testament of Bolesław III Wrymouth was ever written down. The earlier Piasts never did this. Nevertheless, the ruler’s decision was supposed to regulate the principles of inheritance and help avoid conflicts between his sons. However, the disintegration of the state was unavoidable.

The events connected with the removal of Bolesław II the Generous from the country were first presented by Gallus Anonymus. But his chronicle story lacked the details that were provided as late as at the turn of the 12th and 13th centuries, more than 100 years after the events concerned, by chronicler Wincenty Kadłubek. It is still being discussed whether the events described in the chronicle correspond to some extent to reality. Do they echo the death of Bishop Thomas Becket? Today, this is difficult to say.