A gifted ruler who could not keep his father's gains. Attacked from two sides, he lost his kingdom, his wife ... and his jewels. Not only the coronation ones. At least that's what they teach at school. Prof. Błażej Śliwiński proves that the son of Bolesław the Brave avoided at least this last unpleasantness.
The reign of Mieszko II started promising:a royal coronation and a successful invasion of Saxony. The card turned quickly, however. In 1031, the Ruthenian dukes Jarosław I the Wise and his son Mścisław I Chrobry attacked Poland from the east, while the German emperor Conrad II attacked from the west. Mieszko had to flee to Bohemia, where he was imprisoned and castrated by order of Prince Oldrzych (Udalryk).
This is the version of the events that they teach at school and most historians also accept it. According to prof. Błażej Śliwiński, the author of the recently published biography of Mieszko II's elder brother, Bezprym, however, the story of the castration of the Polish ruler does not add up.
Poland during the reign of Bolesław the Brave. In orange, the Czech Republic, temporarily taken over by the Polish ruler, is marked in orange (drawing Poznaniak, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Missing theme
Information about the castration of Mieszko II is provided by Gall Anonymous. According to him, Oldrzych was to take revenge in this way for the disgrace that befell his brother, the Czech prince Bolesław III the Red. In 1003 he was blinded by Bolesław the Brave, who was fighting for power in the Czech Republic.
The castration of Mieszko II may seem like a strange revenge for being blinded more than a quarter of a century ago. This event is all the more mysterious as the son of Brave was taken prisoner of the same Oldrzych for the first time in 1014 and returned from it safe and sound.
Additional doubts arise if we take into account the disputes prevailing in the ruling Czech family. Oldrzych did not mind the fact that Brave had mutilated his brother. Well, he could even be happy about it!
Prince Jarosław the Wise. He is, among others led to the escape of Mieszko II.
He himself was previously expelled from Bohemia by Bolesław the Red and barely escaped death on his orders. According to prof. Śliwiński:
Bolesław III the Red was Oldrzych's worst, deadly enemy […]. The lack of logic can also be seen in the way the punishment is imposed: "testicles for eyes", rather a certain balance should be expected:"eyes for eyes" . So there is really no reason to be seen for the castration of a mature and offspring prince like Mieszko II.
Other inaccuracies
The “Hildesheimian Annals” and the chronicler Wipon, who are well informed about Oldrzych, do not mention the castration of Mieszko II. In turn, Gall claims that the Polish ruler was captured by the Czech prince at a rally, when it is known that he was simply a refugee seeking refuge. During the rally, he was included in the year 1014, as we know thanks to another chronicler, Thietmar.
Prince Oldrzych and his second wife Bożena (František Ženíšek, public domain).
It is therefore clear that the author of the Polish chronicle was confusing the basic facts. Anyway, Gall Anonymous himself admitted that the story of Mieszko's castration reached him as an uncertain legend ...
Who did the Czechs castrate?
At the Piast court, where Gall wrote his work, the memory of an undefined castrated prince has probably been preserved. The chronicler matched it with Mieszko II, whose political failure was well combined with the more personal one. In fact, according to Professor Śliwiński, another Piastowice lost their testicles. Which one exactly?
The author analyzed in detail the internal struggles in Bohemia in the first years of the 11th century. As a result, he came to the conclusion that another son of Brave, Bezprym, was mutilated. This was to be done by Prince Jaromir, who had been castrated himself beforehand by his older brother, the already mentioned Bolesław III the Red. And this one was supported by Bolesław the Brave. In this conflict, alliances have changed like a kaleidoscope.
The material is based on the book by Błażej Śliwiński "Bezprym. The firstborn son of the first king of Poland ”.
No kernels, no primacy
If Bezprym was indeed the castrated son of Chrobry, this would explain why the first Polish king removed him from inheritance and chose the younger Mieszko as his successor. However, as Prof. Śliwiński: even the lack of hope for children did not rule out the will to power. When Mieszko II fled to Bohemia in 1031, Bezprym captured the reins of power in the country for a short time.
The source of the above news is:
Błażej Śliwiński, Bezprym. Firstborn son of the first king of Poland (986 - winter / spring 1032) , Ed. Avalon, Krakow 2014.
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