At the beginning of Polish history, just before the adoption of Christianity, we encounter a number of myths that we cannot ignore. These myths reflect, on the one hand, the external struggle, on the other, the internal one. The external struggle is the struggle of the Poles against the Germans, who are pushing the Western Slavs, trying to subjugate them, destroy their nationality, Germanize them. The Poles put up resistance to dangerous neighbors, the mythical Polish princess Wanda refuses the hand of the German. But along with the external struggle, myths indicate an internal struggle: they exhibit two princes - Popel I and Popel II - as persons hostile to the people, hostile to the principles of his life; the agricultural people live under the forms of tribal life; as among all Slavs, so among the Poles, the members of the genus are not divided, but constitute one; the unity of the clan is maintained by the fact that power passes to the eldest in the whole clan, the uncle has an advantage over the nephew. Popel I goes against the prevailing opinion among the people, wants to introduce a foreign German custom; he subordinates to his son, Popel II, his uncle, his younger brothers.

Popel II follows in his father's footsteps: he has no popular virtue, is not distinguished by hospitality, drives away two wanderers from himself, who find hospitality with the villager Piast and prophesy the throne for his son Zemovit. Popel wants to get rid of his uncles with villainy: he calls them to him and poisons them; he does this on the advice of his wife, Nemui. But villainy is punished in a terrible way: from the corpses of uncles, a huge number of mice are born, which devour Popel with the whole family, and the people elect Piast as king. This myth clearly indicates the resistance of the masses, the rural population, to the novelties that were introduced according to the foreign German model by the princes, the leaders of the conquering squads, for the father, Popel I, is exposed as the conqueror. This myth has significance in our eyes also because the phenomena indicated by it are repeated later, in historical times.

Reliable Polish history begins with the adoption of Christianity by Prince Mieczysław. Mechislav married a Christian, the Czech princess Dombrovka, who persuaded her husband to be baptized. The example of the prince worked, Christianity spread everywhere in Poland, but superficially, did not take deep roots, especially in the lower strata of the population. Next to this phenomenon, we see something else: Mechislav is a vassal of the German emperor, and the Germans call him only a count. With the accession to the throne of the son of Mechislav, Boleslav I the Brave, Poland begins to rise strongly: Boleslav, having driven out his brothers, seeks to subjugate Bohemia and Russia; neither one nor the other succeeds, but Boleslav leaves the struggle with rich conquests, acquires Moravia and Silesia from the Czechs, and also conquers Pomerania. The Germans cannot look indifferently that the son of their vassal is striving to become a powerful and dangerous sovereign for them, to establish a Slavic empire near them, and therefore they are working hard against Boleslav, hindering him. designs in Bohemia; Emperor Henry II directly wages war with the King of Poland, but unsuccessfully.

The reign of Bolesław, his brilliant and extensive military activities, conquests had a powerful influence on the internal life of Poland: from the numerous associates, from the vast retinue of the warlike king, a strong upper class was formed, which owns the land, occupies government positions, sits in cities built by the king, controls the regions . The agricultural state, industry and trade are extremely poorly developed; there is no wealthy industrial class to counterbalance the importance of the military or landowning class. Under Boleslav, royal power was strong and held back the nobles thanks to the personal merits of the king; but if kings not like the Brave go, what will hold them back?

And so it happened. The successor of Bolesław the Brave was Mechisław II, who did not at all resemble his father. With a decrease in royal importance, the importance of nobles rises, and then there are new favorable circumstances for them. Mechislav soon dies, leaving his infant son Casimir under the care of his mother, a German Ricksa. Riksa surrounds herself with Germans and despises the Poles; Polish nobles are strong and do not want to endure this contempt, do not want to share with the Germans in the management of their native country. Riksa was expelled with her son to Germany. The nobles seized the supreme power, but, having quarreled, they could not keep it in their hands; there was anarchy and a terrible turmoil: the common people rose up against the gentry, paganism, covered up, but not disappeared, rose up against Christianity, or, better, against the clergy, heavy for the people with their requisitions; the villager sought to get rid of two oppressors who wanted to live on his labor, from the pan and the priest; external enemies took advantage of the turmoil in Poland and rose up against it, began to cut it off. Then the only means of salvation was recognized as the restoration of royal power.

Casimir was called from abroad to the throne of his father and grandfather. Under Casimir the Restorer (Restorer), the unrest subsided, the Czechs were restrained in their hostile plans, Christianity was strengthened. Casimir's successor, Bolesław II the Bold, was similar to Bolesław the Brave and by his military exploits managed to raise the importance of Poland among its neighbors, but could not raise the values ​​of royal power within: the circumstances were not the same as under Bolesław I, the aristocracy was strong, and Bolesław II had more imprudence to face another powerful estate, the clergy, which joined the nobles and further strengthened the latter. Bishop Stanislav of Krakow publicly condemned the behavior of the king, the Bold could not resist in anger and killed the bishop. The result was the expulsion of Boleslav, whose place was taken by his brother, Vladislav-German.

The expulsion of the Bold was the most favorable circumstance for strengthening the power of the nobles, because Vladislav-German was an incapable sovereign; after his death, there are strife between his sons: the legitimate, Boleslav III Krivousty, and the illegal, Zbigniew; finally, Zbigniew was killed, but Bolesław Wrymouth divided Poland between his four sons in 1139, as a result of which the same tribal relations and strife begin between the princes in Poland, which were in Russia since the death of Yaroslav I (1054). But the difference is that in Russia these relations and strife began very early, when the nobles had not yet had time to strengthen themselves as regional chiefs, and the princes, having greatly multiplied, occupied all significant cities and volosts and thereby put an obstacle to the strengthening of the nobles, his independence; while in Poland, since the time of Bolesław the Brave, we see favorable circumstances for the strengthening of the importance of the nobles, and autocracy continues, and the nobles govern the regions. And now, already in 1139, when the power of the nobles has increased tremendously, autocracy ceases, strife between princes begins, and strong nobles use these strife to further strengthen their power.

The importance of the nobles was revealed immediately. The eldest son of Crooked Mouth, Vladislav II, under the influence of his German wife Agnes, wants to restore autocracy, drive out the brothers, and strengthen his power; but the nobles and prelates do not want this strengthening, they take the side of the younger brothers and expel Vladislav II himself; then they expel the energetic and therefore dangerous for them Mieczysław III. Thus, after Bolesław the Brave, we see the expulsion of four sovereigns in Poland. The Senate completely limits the power of the sovereign, who can neither issue a new law, nor start wars, nor give a charter for anything, nor finally decide a court case. Meanwhile, external enemies take advantage of the sad situation of Poland, the strife of its princes, their disputes with nobles and prelates, Poland had dangerous neighbors in the Prussians, a wild Lithuanian tribe; driven to despair by the devastating raids of the Prussians, the Polish princes of Mazovia call for the help of the Germans, namely the knights of the German, or Teutonic, order, giving them a place to settle. The German knights really stop the Prussian raids, moreover, they conquer Prussia, they exterminate some of the inhabitants, some are forced to flee to the forests inhabited by the same tribe of Lithuania, the rest are forcibly baptized and unmarked. But, having established itself in Prussia, the German order, in turn, becomes a dangerous enemy of Poland.

The danger from the Germans for Poland was not limited to one German order. The Polish princes in their strife and disputes with nobles and prelates, having a need for money, borrow it from the Germans, give them lands as a mortgage, which then remain with the lenders, because the debtors are not able to redeem them; thus, many Polish lands passed to the Margraves of Brandenburg. The abbots of the Polish monasteries, born Germans, populate the monastic lands with their Germans; with the underdevelopment of industry and trade between the Poles, German industrialists and merchants fill the Polish cities and introduce their German administration there (Magdeburg Law); the Polish princes surround themselves with Germans, they speak nothing but German, the nobles imitate them in order to distinguish themselves from the crowd; the use of the German language throughout Silesia and in large cities: Krakow, Poznań.

After long internal unrest and struggle with external enemies, one of the Polish princes, Vladislav Loketok (Korotky), managed to unite most of the Polish regions into one kingdom. In order to balance the power of the senate, in 1331 Loketek convened the first Sejm in Chentsiny, but he could oppose the nobility only to the mass of the armed class, the gentry, which gave the Sejm the character of a veche, a Cossack circle, began to strive for military Cossack democracy, did not give the king any support. The urban class, which absorbed many foreign elements, turned out to be weak, unable to balance the power of the nobles and the gentry and give support to the royal power; the settlers were slaves to their landowners, and thus the further fate of Poland was in the hands of the gentry.

Vladislav Loketek left the throne to his son Casimir, nicknamed the Great; but the publication of a code or statute (Wislicki) and the founding of the University of Cracow cannot justify this name. Casimir tried to alleviate the plight of the rural population, for which he earned the nickname from the gentry male king, but he could not do anything important in this respect, and in general one cannot find so many bright sides in Casimir's activity that they could outweigh the unfavorable impression that he makes with his immorality and promiscuity in satisfying his passions. Under Casimir, Poland yields to its neighbors in the north and west, renounces Danzig Pomerania in favor of the Germans, Silesia in favor of the Czechs; but on the other hand, Casimir takes advantage of the turmoil in the Galician kingdom and takes possession of this Russian land (1340). Childless Casimir passes the throne to his nephew from his sister, Louis, King of Hungary; the powerful nobility agrees to this transfer, because Louis promised not to impose taxes without the consent of the people.

Since Louis throughout his reign paid little attention to Poland, this, of course, led to an even greater strengthening of the gentry. The latter did what she wanted, and after the death of Louis, who gave the Polish throne to one of his daughters, Jadwiga; Jadwiga did not come to her kingdom for a long time, and without her there was confusion, strong fight powerful families of Nalencha and Grzhimala. Finally the young queen arrived; it was necessary to marry her, and the Poles wanted to arrange this marriage as profitable as possible for themselves. Their attention had long been turned to the East, to a strong country, an alliance with which alone could give them the means to successfully fight the Germans. They offered the hand of their queen and their kingdom to the Grand Duke of Lithuania Jagail, not in order to give Poland as a dowry for Jadwiga, but to take Lithuania as a dowry for Jagail. Seduced by the honor of being a Polish king, a semi-barbarian and a very narrow-minded man, Jagiello agreed to all the demands of the Polish nobles and clergy, he himself converted to Catholicism, promised to convert pagan Lithuania to Christianity according to the Roman rite, promised to spread Catholicism among his Christian subjects of the Eastern confession, Russians and Lithuanians , promised to annex all his possessions to Poland.

The fatal marriage was concluded, but immediately there were phenomena that usually occur when two different nationalities are forcibly united, or when one nationality is given as a dowry. Willy-nilly, the pagan part of Lithuania was baptized and joined to the Western Church; but Christians of the Eastern confession, Russians and Lithuanians, did not want to accept Latinism, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania did not want to submit to the Polish crown. As a result, a strong struggle was going on with a visible connection. The details of this struggle do not belong here, regarding the actual Polish history in the reign of Jogaila, the war with the German order is remarkable.

Comment: It is better to do the work step by step, sequentially completing tasks for contour maps. To enlarge the map, just click on it.

TASKS (1 part)

1. Circle the border of Russia in 1236

The border of Russia in 1236 - green color

2. Sign the names of the principalities and their centers highlighted on the map in color.

Novgorod land - Novgorod

Vladimir-Suzdal Principality - Vladimir

Murom Principality - Murom

Ryazan Principality - Ryazan

Smolensk Principality - Smolensk

Chernihiv Principality - Chernihiv

Novgorod - Seversky Principality - Novgorod - Seversky

Pereyaslavl Principality - Pereyaslavl

Kiev principality - Kyiv

Volyn Principality - Kholm (mark on the map yourself)

Galician Principality - Galich

3. Mark the campaign of the Russian princes and Polovtsy against the Mongols with arrows. Indicate the place and date of the battle, which is said in the annals: “Russian princes ... fought with the Tatars, and were defeated by them, and a few only escaped death; those who were destined to stay alive, they fled, and the rest were killed. Here the good old prince Mstislav was killed, and another Mstislav, and seven more princes died, and the boyars and simple warriors many many."

Campaign of Russian princes and Polovtsy against the Mongols - orange arrow

Place and date of the battle, which is mentioned in the annals - 1223, the battle on the Kalka River (orange cross near the coast of the Sea of ​​\u200b\u200bAzov)

4. Show the campaigns of Batu Khan in 1236-1238 and 1239-1242. Underline in red the names of the cities burned by the Mongols during the campaigns of Batu Khan.

Campaigns of Khan Batu in 1236-1238. - blue arrows

Campaigns of Batu Khan in 1239-1242. - purple arrows

Cities burned by the Mongols during the campaigns of Batu Khan:

• In Russia: Galich, Kostroma, Yuryevets, Gorodets, Gorokhovets, Suzdal, Vladimir, Yuryev, Pereyaslavl, Dmitrov, Torzhok, Tver, Volok-Lamsky, Moscow, Kolomna, Pereyaslavl-Ryazansky, Pronsk, Kozelsk, Murom, Ryazan, Novgorod-Seversky , Putivl, Glukhov, Chernigov, Pereyaslavl, Kyiv, Kolodyazhen, Kamenets, Galich, Vladimir-Volynsky, Berestye.
• IN Volga Bulgaria: Bilyar, Dzhuketau, Bulgar, Suvar.

5. Mark on the map the places and dates of the battles that the annals tell about:

1. “And they took the city ... in the month of December at 21 days. And the whole city was burned... And the temples of God were destroyed, and much blood was shed in the holy altars. And not a single living person remained in the city ... neither groaning nor crying "

The chronicle tells about the capture of Ryazan by Batu Khan in December 1237 - the place is indicated by the number 1.

2. “Prince Yuri with his brother Svyatoslav and his nephews ... and his soldiers went to the filthy. Both troops converged, and there was a terrible slaughter, and ours ran in front of foreigners, and here Prince Yuri was killed.

The chronicle tells of the battle on the City River on March 4, 1238 - the place is indicated by the number 2.

3. “The Tatars call his city evil, because they fought around it for seven weeks, and killed the three sons of Temnikov from the Tatars under it.”

The chronicle tells about the siege and capture of the city of Kozelsk, which took place from March to May 1238 - the place is indicated by the number 3.

TASKS (part 2)

1. Paint over the territory of the Livonian Order in 1236 and sign its name.

The territory of the Livonian Order is shaded in yellow.

2. Use green arrows to show the direction of the Swedes' campaign on Novgorod land and indicate the year when it took place.

The campaign of the Swedes to the Novgorod land took place in 1240 (green arrows)

3. Use black arrows to mark the campaigns of German knights on Novgorod land.

Campaigns of German knights on the Novgorod land are marked with black arrows.

4. Red arrows mark the direction of movement of the troops of Prince Alexander Yaroslavich and the Novgorod militia against the Swedes and German knights.

The directions of movement of the troops of Prince Alexander Yaroslavich and the Novgorod militia against the Swedes and German knights are indicated by red arrows.

5. Identify and label in the legend which battles are shown on the map.

The Battle of the Neva - On July 15, 1240, the famous battle between the Novgorod army under the command of Prince Alexander Yaroslavovich and the Swedish conquerors took place on the Neva River. Russian wars became the winners in this battle. The battle became known as the "Neva Battle", and Prince Alexander Yaroslavovich received the honorary nickname "Nevsky".

Battle on the Ice - On April 5, 1242, a battle took place on the ice of Lake Peipsi between the Russian army led by Alexander Nevsky and the knights of the Livonian Order. Alexander Nevsky won a crushing victory in it, the troops of the Livonian Order were defeated. The battle has since become known as the Battle on the Ice.

The history of each country is shrouded in secrets, beliefs and legends. The history of Poland is no exception. In its development, Poland has experienced many ups and downs. Several times it fell into the occupation of other countries, was barbarously divided, which led to devastation and chaos, but, despite this, Poland, like a phoenix, always rose from the ashes and became even stronger. Today Poland is one of the most developed European countries, with a rich culture, economy and history.

The history of Poland dates back to the 6th century. The legend says that there once lived three brothers, and their names were Lech, Czech and Russ. They wandered with their tribes through various territories and finally found a cozy place that stretches between the rivers called the Vistula and the Dnieper. Towering above all this beauty was a large and ancient oak, on which an eagle's nest was located. Here Lech decided to found the city of Gniezno. And the eagle, from which it all began, began to sit on the coat of arms of the founded state. The brothers went on to seek happiness further. And so two more states were founded - the Czech Republic in the south, and Russia in the east.

The first documented memories of Poland date back to 843. The author, who was called the Bavarian geographer, described the tribal settlement of the Lechites, who lived in the territory between the Vistula and the Odra. It had its own language and culture. And it did not obey any neighboring state. This territory was remote from the commercial and cultural centers of Europe, which for a long time kept it hidden from the bulk of nomads and conquerors. In the IX century, several large tribes emerged from the Lekhites:

1. glade - settled their settlement on the territory, which was later called Greater Poland. The main centers were Gniezno and Poznań;
2. Vistula - with the center in Krakow and Wislice. This settlement was called Lesser Poland;
3. mazovshan - center in Plock;
4. the Kuyavians, or, as the Goplians also called it, in Kruszwitz;
5. Ślązie - the center of Wrocław.

The tribes could boast of a clear hierarchical structure and a primitive state foundation. The territory where the tribes lived was called - "opolye". It was ruled by elders - people from the most ancient families. In the center of each "opolye" there was a "grad" - a fortification that protected people from bad weather and enemies. The elders sat hierarchically at the highest level of the population, they had their own retinue and guards. All issues were resolved at a meeting of men - "veche". Such a system shows that even in times of tribal relations, the history of Poland developed progressively and civilized.

The most developed and strongest of all the tribes was the Vislan tribe. Located in the basin of the Upper Vistula, they had large and fruitful lands. The center was Krakow, which was connected by trade routes with Russia and Prague. Such comfortable living conditions attracted more and more people and soon the Vistulas became the largest tribe, with developed external and political contacts. It is generally accepted that they already had their own "prince sitting on the Vistula."

Unfortunately, almost no information has been preserved about the ancient princes. We know only about one prince of Polyan, named Popel, who sat in the city of Gnezdo. The prince was not very good and fair, and for his deeds he got what he deserved, he was first overthrown, and then expelled into everything. The throne was occupied by a simple hard worker Semovit, the son of a plowman Piast and a woman Repka. He ruled with dignity. Together with him, two more princes sat in power - Lestko and Semomysl. They united various neighboring tribes under their rule. In the conquered cities, their governors ruled. They also built new castles and fortifications for defense. The prince had a developed squad and this kept the tribes in obedience. Such a good springboard was prepared by Prince Semovit, for his son - the great and just first ruler of Poland - Bag I.

Mieszko I sat on the throne from 960 to 992. During his reign, the history of Poland underwent a series of radical changes. He doubled his territory by conquering the Gdansk Pomerania, Western Pomerania, Silesia and the lands of the Vistula. Turned them into rich, both demographically and economically territories. The number of his squad was several thousand, which helped to restrain the tribes from uprisings. In his state, Mieszko I introduced a system of taxes for the villagers. Most often it was food and agriculture. Sometimes, taxes were paid in the form of services: construction, handicraft, etc. This helped to upset the state, and people not to give the last piece of bread. This method suited both the prince and the population. The ruler also had monopoly rights - "regalia" on increasingly important and profitable areas of the economy, for example, coinage, mining of precious metals, market fees, fees from beaver hunting. The prince was sole ruler country, he was surrounded by a retinue and several military leaders who helped in public affairs. Power was transferred according to the principle of "primogeniture" and in the ranks of one dynasty. Mieszko I, with his reforms, won the title of the founder of the Polish state, at the same time with a developed economy and defense capability. His marriage to a princess from the Czech Republic, Dobrava, and holding this ceremony according to the Catholic rite, was the impetus for the adoption of Christianity, once a pagan state. This marked the beginning of the acceptance of Poland by Christian Europe.

Boleslav the Brave

After the death of Sack I, his son Boleslav (967-1025) ascended the throne. For his fighting power and courage in defending his country, he was nicknamed the Brave. He was one of the most intelligent and resourceful politicians. During his reign, the country expanded its possessions and significantly strengthened its position on the world map. At the beginning of his journey, he was actively involved in various missions to introduce Christianity and his power in the territories occupied by the Prussians. By their nature, they were peaceful and in 996 he sent Bishop Adalbert, in Poland he was called Wojciech Slavnikovets, in the territory under the control of the Prussians, to preach Christianity. In Poland he was called Wojciech Slavnikoviec. A year later, he was killed, cut into several pieces. In order to redeem his body, the prince paid as much gold as the bishop weighed. The Pope heard this news, canonized Bishop Adalbert, who over the years became the heavenly protector of Poland.

After the failed peace missions, Bolesław began to annex territories with the help of fire and weapons. He increased the size of his squad to 3,900 cavalry soldiers and 13,000 infantry, turning his army into one of the largest and most powerful. The desire to win led to ten years of problems for Poland with a state like Germany. In 1002 Bolesław seized the territories that were under the possession of Henry II. Also, 1003-1004 was marked by the seizure of territories that belonged to the Czech Republic, Moravia and not a large part of Slovakia. In 1018, the Kyiv throne was taken by his son-in-law Svyatopolk. True, he was soon overthrown by the Russian prince Yaroslav the Wise. With him, Boleslav signed an agreement guaranteeing non-aggression, since he considered him a good and intelligent ruler. Another way to the diplomatic resolution of conflicts was the Gniezney Congress (1000). This was a meeting of Boleslav with the German ruler Otto III, during a pilgrimage to the tomb of the holy bishop Wojciech. At this congress, Otto III called Bolesław the Brave his Brother and Partner of the Empire. He also put a diadem on his head. In turn, Boleslav presented the German ruler with the brush of the holy bishop. This union led to the creation of an archbishopric in the city of Gniezno and a bishopric in several cities, namely: Krakow, Wroclaw, Kolobrzeg. Bolesław the Brave, through his efforts, developed the policy that his father had begun to promote Christianity in Poland. Such recognition from Otto III and later, the Pope, led to the fact that on April 18, 1025 Bolesław the Brave was crowned and became the first King of Poland. Boleslav did not enjoy the title for a long time and died a year later. But the memory of him, as a good ruler, lives on today.

Despite the fact that power in Poland was transferred from father to eldest son, Bolesław the Brave bequeathed the throne to his favorite, Mieszko II (1025-1034), and not Besprima. Mieszko II did not distinguish himself as a good ruler even after several high-profile defeats. They led to the fact that Mieszko II renounced his royal title and divided specific lands between his younger brother Otto and close relative Dietrich. Although until the end of his life he was still able to reunite all the lands, he failed to achieve his former power for the country.

The ruined lands of Poland and feudal fragmentation, that's what was inherited from his father, the eldest son of Mieszko II - Casimir, who later received the nickname - Restorer (1038-1050). He established his residence in Kruszwitz and this became the center of defensive missions against the Czech king, who wanted to steal the relics of Bishop Adalbert. Casimir started liberation war. The first to become his enemy was Metslav, who occupied large areas of Poland. To attack such a powerful opponent alone was a huge stupidity, and Casimir asked for the support of the Russian prince Yaroslav the Wise. Yaroslav the Wise not only helped Casimir in military affairs, but also became related to him by marrying him to his sister Maria Dobronega. The Polish-Russian army actively fought against the army of Metzlav, and Emperor Henry III attacked the Czech Republic, which removed the Czech troops from the territory of Poland. Casimir the Restorer gets the opportunity to freely restore his state, his economic and military policies have brought many positive changes to the life of the country. In 1044, he actively expanded the borders of the Commonwealth and transferred his court to Krakow, making it the central city of the country. Despite Meclav's attempts to attack Krakow and overthrow the Piast heir from the throne, Casimir mobilizes all his forces in time and cracks down on the enemy. At the same time, in 1055, they annexed Slensk, Mazowska and Silesia, once controlled by the Czechs, to their possessions. Casimir the Restorer became a ruler who succeeded, bit by bit, in uniting and turning Poland into a strong and developed state.

After the death of Casimir the Restorer, an internecine struggle for the throne broke out between Boleslav II the Generous (1058-1079) and Vladislav Herman (1079-1102). Boleslav II continued the policy of conquest. He repeatedly attacked Kyiv and the Czech Republic, fought against the policies of Henry IV, which led to the fact that in 1074 Poland declared its independence from imperial power and became a state that was under the protection of the Pope. And already in 1076 Boleslav was crowned and recognized as the King of Poland. But the strengthening of the power of the magnates, and the constant battles that tired the people, led to an uprising. It was headed by the younger brother Vladislav. The king was overthrown and expelled from the country.

Vladislav German took power. He was a passive politician. Relinquished the title of king and returned the title of prince. All his deeds were aimed at reconciliation with neighbors: peace treaties were signed with the Czech Republic and the Roman Empire, taming local magnates and fighting the aristocracy. This led to the loss of some territories and the displeasure of the people. Uprisings began against Vladislav, led by his sons (Zbigniew and Boleslav). Zbigniew became the lord of Greater Poland, Boleslaw - Lesser. But this alignment did not suit the younger brother, and on his orders, the older brother was blinded and expelled because of his alliance with the Roman Empire and bulks in Poland. After this event, the throne completely passed to Boleslav Wrymouth (1202-1138). He defeated German and Czech troops several times, which led to further reconciliation of the heads of these states. Having dealt with external problems, Boleslav set his sights on Pomorie. In 1113, he captured the area near the river Notes, also the fortress of Naklo. And already 1116-1119. subjugated Gdansk and Pomerania in the east. Unprecedented battles were fought to capture Western Primorye. rich and developed region. A number of successful operations carried out in 1121 led to the fact that Szczecin, Rügen, Wolin recognized the suzerainty of Poland. The policy of promoting Christianity in these territories began, which further strengthened the significance of the power of the prince. In Wolin, in 1128, the Pomeranian bishopric was opened. More than once, uprisings broke out in these territories, and Boleslav became engaged to the support of Denmark to pay them off. For this, he gave the territory of Rügen to Danish rule, but the rest of the territories remained under the suzerain of Poland, although not without omnage to the emperor. Bolesław Krivousty before his death in 1138 created a will - a statute according to which he divided the territories between his sons: the elder Vladislav sat in Silesia, the second, named Boleslav, in Mazovia and Kuyavia, the third Mieszko - in part of Greater Poland with a center in Poznan, the fourth son Heinrich, received Lublin and Sandomierz, and the youngest, named Casimir, remained in the care of brothers without lands and power. The rest of the lands passed into the power of the eldest of the Piast family and formed an autonomous inheritance. He created a system called seigniorate - the center of which was in Krakow with the power of the great Krakow prince-princeps. He had sole power over all territories, Pomorye and dealt with foreign policy, military and church issues. This led to feudal civil strife for a period of 200 years.

True, there was one positive moment in the history of Poland, which is associated with the reign of Boleslav Krivoust. After the Second World War, it was its territorial boundaries that were taken as the basis for the restoration of modern Poland.

The second half of the 12th century for Poland, as well as for Kievan Rus and Germany, became a turning point. These states collapsed, and their territories fell under the rule of vassals, who, together with the church, minimized his power, and then did not recognize it at all. This led to greater independence, once controlled areas. Poland began to look more and more like a feudal country. Power was concentrated in the hands not of the prince, but of the big landowner. Settlements were populated and new systems of cultivating the land and harvesting were actively introduced. A three-field system was introduced, they began to use a plow, a water mill. The reduction of princely taxes and the development of market relations led to the fact that the villagers and artisans received the right to dispose of their goods and money. This significantly increased the standard of living of the peasant, and the landowner received a better performance of the work. Everyone benefited from this. The decentralization of power made it possible for large landowners to establish a lively work, and then trade in goods and services. The constant internecine wars between the princes, who forgot to deal with state affairs, only contributed to this. And soon Poland began to actively develop as a feudal-industrial state.

The 13th century in the history of Poland was vague and bleak. Mongol-Tatars attacked Poland from the east, as well as Lithuanians and Prussians advanced from the north. The princes made attempts to protect themselves from the Prussians and convert the pagans to Christianity, but they were unsuccessful. Desperate, Prince Konrad of Mazovia in 1226. called on the help of the Teutonic Order. He gave them the Helminsky land, although the order did not stop there. The crusaders had at their disposal material and military means, and also knew how to build fortification defenses. This made it possible to conquer part of the Baltic lands and establish there, a small state - East Prussia. It was settled by immigrants from Germany. This new country limited Poland's access to the Baltic Sea and actively threatened the integrity of Polish territory. So the saving Teutonic Order soon became the unspoken enemy of Poland.

In addition to the Prussians, Lithuanians and crusaders in Poland in the 40s, an even bigger problem arose - the Mongolian bulk. Which has already managed to conquer Russia. They broke into the territory of Lesser Poland and, like a tsunami, swept away everything in their path. In 1241 in the month of April, a battle took place on the territory of Silesia, near Legnica, between the knights under the leadership of Henry the Pious and the Mongols. Prince Mieszko, knights from Greater Poland, from the orders of the Teutonic Order, St. John's Order, the Knights Templar, came to support him. 7-8 thousand soldiers gathered in the sum. But the Mongols had more coordinated tactics, more weapons and used gas, which was intoxicating. This led to the defeat of the Polish army. No one knows whether it's the resistance or the strength of the Poles' spirit, but the Mongols left the country and didn't attack like that again. Only in 1259. and in 1287. repeated their attempt, which was more like an attack for the purpose of robbery than conquest.

After the victory over the conquerors, the history of Poland flowed in its natural course. Poland recognized that the supreme power was concentrated in the hands of the Pope and paid tribute to him every year. The Pope had great power in resolving all internal and external issues in Poland, which preserved its integrity and unity, and also developed the culture of the country. The foreign policy of all the princes, although ambitiously aimed at expanding their territories, was not revealed in practice. Internal expansion reached a high level, when each prince wanted to colonize as many territories as possible within the country itself. The feudal division of society was reinforced by status inequality. The number of serfs increased. The number of emigrants from other countries also increased, for example, Germans, Flemings, who brought their innovations to legal and other systems of government. Such colonists, in turn, received land, money and incredible freedom of action to develop the economy. This attracted more and more new settlers to the territory of Poland, the population density increased, the quality of labor increased. Which led to the emergence of German cities in Silesia, which were ruled by Magdeburg, or as it was also called Helminsky right. The first such city was Środa-Śląska. Rather, such legal administration spread to the entire territory of Poland and to almost all spheres of the life of the population.

A new stage in the history of Poland began in 1296, when Władysław Loketok (1306-1333) from Kujawia began the path to the reunification of all the lands together with the Polish knights and some burghers. He was successful and in a short time united Lesser and Greater Poland and the Seaside. But in 1300, Vladislav fled from Poland because the Czech prince Wenceslas II became king and he did not want to engage in an unequal battle with him. After the death of Vlaclav, Vladislav returned to his native country and began to gather the lands together again. In 1305, he regained power in Kuyavia, Sieradze, Sandomierz and Lenchice. And a year later in Krakow. Strangled a number of uprisings in 1310 and 1311. in Poznan and Krakow. In 1314 it merged with the Principality of Greater Poland. In 1320 he was crowned and returned royal power to the territory of fragmented Poland. Despite his nickname Loketok, which Vladislav received due to his small stature, he became the first ruler who began the path to the restoration of the Polish state.

His father's work was continued by his son Casimir III the Great (1333-1370). With his coming to power, it is considered to be the beginning of the golden era of Poland. The country went to him in a very deplorable state. Lesser Poland wanted to capture the Czech king Jan Luxemburzky, Greater Poland was terrorized by the Crusaders. In order to preserve the shaky peace, Casimir in 1335 signed a non-aggression pact with the Czech Republic, while giving him the territory of Silesia. In 1338, Casimir, with the help of the Hungarian king, who was also his brother-in-law, captured the city of Lvov and united Galician Rus with his country. The history of Poland in 1343 survived the first settlement agreement - the so-called "perpetual peace", which was signed with the Teutonic Order. The knights returned to Poland the territories of Kuyavia and Dobzhinsk. In 1345, Casimir decided to return Silesia. This led to the beginning of the Polish-Czech war. The battles for Poland were not very successful, and Casimir was forced on the day of November 22, 1348. sign a peace treaty between Poland and Charles I. The lands of Silesia remained behind the Czech Republic. In 1366, Poland captured the Belsky, Kholmsky, Volodymyr-Volynsky lands and Podolia. Inside the country, Casimir also carried out many reforms according to the Western model: in management, the legal system, and the financial system. In 1347, he issued a code of laws called the Wislice Statutes. He eased the duties of the krnstyan. Sheltered Jews who fled from Europe. In 1364, in the city of Krakow, he opened the first university in Poland. Casimir the Great was the last ruler of the Piast dynasty, and with his efforts he revived Poland, made it a large and strong European state.

Despite the fact that he married 4 times, not a single wife gave Casimir a son and his nephew Louis I the Great (1370-1382) became the heir to the Polish throne. He was one of the most just and influential rulers in all of Europe. During his reign, the Polish gentry in 1374. received a lead, which was called Kosice. According to him, the nobles could not pay most of all taxes, but for this, they promised to give the throne to the daughter of Louis.

And so it happened, the daughter of Louis Jadwiga was given as a wife to the Grand Duke of Lithuania Jagiello, which opened a new page in the history of Poland. Jagiello (1386-1434) became the ruler of two states. In Poland he was known as Vladislav II. He began the path to the unification of the Principality of Lithuania with the Kingdom of Poland. In 1386 in the city of Kreva, the so-called Krevo Pact was signed, according to which Lithuania was included in Poland, which made it the largest country of the 15th century. Under this pact, Lithuania adopted Christianity, providing itself with assistance from the Catholic Church and the Pope. The prerequisites for such a union for Lithuania were a tangible threat from the Order of the Teutonic Knights, the Tatar bulk and the Moscow principality. Poland, in turn, wanted to protect itself from the oppression of Hungary, which began to lay claim to the lands of Galician Rus. Both the Polish gentry and the Lithuanian boyars supported the union, as an opportunity to gain a foothold in new territories, to gain new markets. The merger, however, did not go very smoothly. Lithuania was a state in which power was in the hands of the prince and feudal lords. Many, namely the brother of Jogaila, Vitovt, could not come to terms with the fact that after the union, the rights and freedoms of the prince would diminish. And in 1389. Vitov enlisted the support of the Teutonic Order and attacked Lithuania. The fighting continued from 1390-1395. although already in 1392. Vitovt reconciled with his brother and became the ruler of Lithuania, while Jagiello ruled in Poland.

Wayward behavior and constant attacks from the Teutonic Order led to the fact that in 1410. Lithuania, Poland, Russia and the Czech Republic united and held a large-scale battle at Gruwald, where they defeated the knights and got rid of their oppression for some time.

In 1413 in the city of Horodla, all questions on the unification of the state were clarified. The Union of Horodels decided that the Lithuanian prince was appointed by the Polish king with the participation of the Lithuanian council, the two rulers were to hold joint meetings with the participation of the lords, the position of governor and the castellan became a novelty in Lithuania. Following this union, the Principality of Lithuania embarked on the path of development and recognition, and turned into a strong and independent state.

After the union, Kazimierz Jagiellonchik (1447-1492) ascended the throne in the Principality of Lithuania, and his brother Vladislav took the throne in Poland. In 1444 King Vladislav died in battle, and power passed into the hands of Casimir. This renewed the personal union and for a long time made the Jagiellonian dynasty heirs to the throne, both in Lithuania and in Poland. Casimir wanted to reduce the power of the nobles as well as the church. But he did not succeed, and he was forced to accept their right to vote during the Diet. In 1454 Casimir provided representatives of the nobility with the so-called Neshav Statutes, which resembled the Magna Carta in their content. In 1466 a joyful and very expected event happened - the end of the 13th war with the Teutonic Order came. The Polish state won. October 19, 1466 A peace treaty was signed in Torun. After him, Poland regained such territories as Pomerania and Gdansk, and the order itself was recognized as a vassal of the country.

In the 16th century, the history of Poland experienced its dawn. It has become one of the largest states in all of Eastern Europe, with a rich culture, economy and constant development. Polish language became state and supplanted Latin. The concept of law, as power and freedom for the population, took root.

With the death of Jan Olbracht (1492-1501), a struggle began between the state and the dynasty that was in power. The Jagiellonian family was faced with the displeasure of the wealthy population - the gentry, who refused to give service in his favor. There was also a threat of expansion from the Habsburgs and the Moscow principality. In 1499 the Union of Horodel resumed, for which the king was elected at the elective congresses of the gentry, although the applicants were only from the ruling dynasty, so the gentry received their spoonful of honey. In 1501, the Lithuanian prince Alexander, for a place on the Polish throne, gave the so-called Melnitsky lead. Behind him, power was in the hands of parliament, and the king had only the function of chairman. Parliament could impose a veto - a ban on the ideas of the monarch, and also, without the participation of the king, decide on all issues of the state. Parliament became two chambers - the first chamber - the Sejm, with the petty nobility, the second - the Senate, with the aristocracy and the clergy. Parliament controlled all the expenses of the monarch, and issued sanctions for receiving funds. The higher versts of the population demanded even more indulgences and privileges. As a result of such reforms, the actual power was concentrated in the hands of magnates.

Sigismund I (1506-1548) The Old and his son Sigismund August (1548-1572) put all their efforts into reconciliation of the conflicting parties and satisfaction of the needs of these miles of population. It was customary to put the king, the senate and ambassadors on equal terms. This somewhat calmed the growing protests within the country. In 1525 Master of the Teutonic Knights, whose name was Albrecht of Brandenburg, was initiated into Lutheranism. Sigismund the Old transferred the Duchy of Prussia to him, although he remained the overlord of these places. Such a union, two centuries later, turned these territories into a strong empire.

In 1543 another outstanding event in the history of Poland happened. Nicolaus Copernicus declared, proved and even issued a book that the earth is not the center of the universe and rotates around its axis. In medieval times, the statement is shocking and risky. But later, found confirmation.

During the reign of Sigismund II Augustus (1548-1572). Poland blossomed and turned into one of the powerful powers in Europe. Native city He turned Krakow into a center of culture. Poetry, science, architecture, and art were revived there. It was there that the Reformation began. On November 28, 1561, an agreement was signed, according to which Livonia was under the protection of the Polish-Lithuanian country. Russian feudal lords received the same rights as Catholic Poles. In 1564 allowed the Jesuits to carry out their activities. In 1569, the so-called Union of Lublin was signed, after which Poland and Lithuania were united into one state of the Commonwealth. This marked the beginning of a new era. The king is one person for two states and he was elected by the ruling aristocracy, laws were adopted by parliament, a single currency was introduced. For a long time, the Commonwealth territorially became one of the largest countries, second only to Russia. This was the first step towards gentry democracy. The legal and economic system was strengthened. The safety of citizens was ensured. The gentry received the green light in all their undertakings, as long as they benefited the state. For a long time, this state of affairs suited everyone, both the population and the monarchs.

Sigismund Augustus died without an heir, which led to the fact that kings began to be elected. 1573 Heinrich of Valois was chosen. His reign lasted a year, but for such a short line he accepted the so-called "free election", according to which the gentry chooses the king. A pact of consent was also adopted - an oath for the king. The king could not even appoint an heir, declare war, increase taxes. All these issues had to be agreed with Parliament. Even the wife of the king was selected by the senate. If the king behaved inappropriately, the people could not obey him. Thus, the king remained only for the title, and the country turned from a monarchy into a parliamentary republic. Having done business, Henry calmly left France, where he sat on the throne after the death of his own brother.

After that, Parliament could not appoint a new monarch for a long time. In 1575, having married a princess from the Jagiellonian family to the Transylvanian prince Stefan Batory, they turned him into a ruler (1575-1586). He made a number of good reforms: he fortified himself in Gdansk, Livonia and freed the Baltic states from the attacks of Ivan the Terrible. Received support from the registered Cossacks

(Sigismund August was the first to apply such a term to the fugitive peasants from Ukraine, taking them into military service) in the fight against the Ottoman army. He singled out the Jews, giving them privileges and allowing them to have a parliament within the community. In 1579 opened a university in Vilnius, which became the center of European and Catholic culture. Foreign policy was aimed at strengthening their positions on the part of Muscovy, Sweden and Hungary. Stefan Batory became a monarch who began to return the country to its former glory.

Sigismund III Vasa (1587-1632) received the throne, but did not receive support from either the nobility or the population. They simply didn't like him. Since 1592 the idea of ​​​​fixation for Sigismund was the spread and strengthening of Catholicism. In the same year he was also crowned King of Sweden. He did not exchange Poland for Lutheran Sweden, and because of his non-appearance in the country and not conducting political affairs, he was overthrown from the Swedish throne in 1599. Attempts to regain the throne led Poland into a long and unequal war with such a powerful enemy. The first step towards the transfer of Orthodox subjects to complete submission to the Pope of Rome was the Union of Berestey in 1596. initiated by the king. The Uniate Church got its start - with Orthodox rites, but with submission to the Pope. In 1597 he moved the capital of Poland from the city of the kings of Krakow to the center of the country - Warsaw. Sigismund wanted to return absolute monarchy to Poland, limit all the rights of parliament, and hindered the development of voting. In 1605 ordered that Parliament's veto power be abolished. The reaction was not long in coming. And an uprising of citizens broke out in 1606. The rokosh uprising ended in 1607. July 6th Although Sigismund crushed the uprising, his reforms were never adopted. Sigismund also brought the country into a state of war with Muscovy and Moldova. In 1610 The Polish army occupies Moscow, winning the battle of Klushino. Sigismund puts his son Vladislav on the throne. Although they could not hold the power. The people rebelled and overthrew the Polish ruler. In general, the reign of Sigismund brought the country more harm and destruction than development.

The son of Sigismnd Vladislav IV (1632-1648) became the ruler in a country that had weakened from the war with Muscovy and Turkey. Ukrainian Cossacks attacked its territory. Enraged by the situation in the country, the gentry demanded even more liberties, and also refused to pay income tax. The situation in the country was bleak.

The situation did not improve even after the leadership of Jan Casimir (1648-1668). The Cossacks continued to torment the territory. The Swedes did not refuse such pleasure either. In 1655 A Swedish king named Charles X conquered the cities of Krakow and Warsaw. Cities passed from one army to another several times, the result was their total devastation and death of the population. Poland was tormented by constant battles, the king fled to Silesia. In 1657 Poland lost Prussia. In 1660 the long-awaited truce between the rulers of Poland and Sweden was signed in Oliva. But Poland continued the exhausting war with Muscovy, which led to the loss of Kyiv and the eastern banks of the Dnieper in 1667. uprisings rose up inside the country, the magnates, guided only by their own interests, destroyed the state. In 1652 it got to the point that the so-called "liberium veto" was used in personal interests. Any deputy could, with his vote, reject a law he did not like. Chaos began in the country, and Jan Casimir could not stand it and abdicated in 1668.

Mikhail Vyshnevetsky (1669-1673) also failed to improve life in the country, and also lost Podolia, giving it to the Turks.

After such a reign, Jan III Sobieski (1674-1696) ascended the throne. He began to return territories that had been lost during numerous hostilities. In 1674 with the Cossacks went on a campaign to liberate Podolia. In August 1675 defeated a large Turkish-Tatar army near the city of Lvov. France, as protector of Poland, in 1676 insisted on a peace treaty between Poland and Turkey. In October of that year, the so-called Zhuravinsky Peace was signed, after which Turkey gave 2/3 of the territory belonging to Ukraine to Poland, and the remaining territory was placed at the disposal of the Cossacks. February 2, 1676 Sobieski was crowned and given the name Jan III. Despite the support of the French, Jan Sobieski wanted to get rid of Turkish oppression and on March 31, 1683, he made an alliance with Austria. This event led to the offensive of the troops of Sultan Mehmed IV to Austria. The army of Kara-Mustafa Keprulu captured Vienna. On September 12 of the same year, Jan Sobieski with his army and the army of the Austrians near Vienna defeated the enemy troops, stopping the Ottoman Empire from advancing into Europe. But the impending threat from the Turks forced Jan Sobieski in 1686. sign an agreement called "Eternal Peace" with Russia. Russia received at its disposal the Left-bank Ukraine and joined the coalition against Ottoman Empire. Domestic politics aimed at restoring hereditary power was not successful. And the act of the queen, who offered to take various government positions for money, completely shook the power of the ruler.

For the next 70 years, the Polish throne was occupied by various foreigners. Ruler of Saxony - August II (1697-1704, 1709-1733). He enlisted the support of the Moscow prince Peter I. He managed to return Podolia and Volhynia. In 1699 concluded the so-called Charles Peace with the ruler of the Ottoman Empire. He fought, but without result, with the Kingdom of Sweden. And in 1704. left the throne at the insistence of Charles XII, who gave power to Stanislav Leshchinsky.

Decisive for Augustus was the battle near Poltava in 1709, in which Peter I defeated the Swedish troops, and he returned to the throne again. 1721 brought the final victory of Poland and Russia over Sweden, the Northern War ended. This did not bring positive for Poland, because it lost its independence. In doing so, she became part of Russian Empire.

His son August III (1734-1763) became a puppet in the hands of Rossi. The local population, under the leadership of Prince Czartoryski, wanted to cancel the so-called "liberium veto" and restore Poland to its former greatness. But the coalition led by the Pototskys prevented this in every possible way. And 1764. Catherine II helped Stanislav August Poniatkovsky (1764-1795) ascend the throne. He was destined to become the last king of Poland. He made a number of progressive changes in the monetary and legislative system, replaced the cavalry with infantry in the army and introduced new types of weapons. Wanted to override the liberium veto. In 1765 introduced such an award as the Order of St. Stanislaus. The gentry dissatisfied with such changes in 1767-1678. The Repninsky Diet was held, at which it was decided that all freedoms and privileges are reserved for the gentry, as well as Orthodox citizens and Protestants have the same state rights as Catholics. The conservatives did not miss the chance to create their own union, called the Bar Conference. Such events ignited a civil war, and the interference in its course by neighboring countries became undeniable.

The result of this situation was the first division of the Commonwealth, which took place on July 25 in 1772. Austria took the territory of Lesser Poland. Russia - captured Livonia, the Belarusian cities of Polotsk, Vitebsk and some part of the Minsk province. Prussia received the so-called Greater Poland and Gdansk. The Commonwealth ceased to exist. In 1773 destroyed the Jesuit order. All internal affairs were handled by the ambassador, who sat in the capital Warsaw, and throughout Poland from 1780. permanent troops were stationed from Russia.

May 3, 1791 the winners created a code of laws - the constitution of Poland. Poland was turning into a hereditary monarchy. All executive power belonged to the ministers and the parliament. They are elected every 2 years. "Liberium veto" the constitution cancels. Judicial and administrative autonomy was given to cities. A regular army was organized. The first prerequisites for the abolition of serfdom were adopted. The history of Poland has received worldwide recognition, because the constitution was the first written constitution in Europe, and the second in the whole world.

Such reforms did not suit the magnates who created the Targowice Confederation. They asked for even more support from the side of the Russian and Prussian troops, the result of such assistance was the subsequent division of the state. January 23, 1793 became the day of the next section. Territories were attached to Prussia, such as the city of Gdansk, Torun, the territories of Greater Poland, Mazovia. The Russian Empire took a huge part of the territories belonging to Lithuania and Belarus, Volhynia and Podolia. Poland was torn apart and ceased to be considered a state.

Such a turn in the history of Poland could not do without protests and uprisings. March 12, 1794 Tadeusz Kosciuszko became the leader of a massive popular uprising against the usurpers. The motto of which was the revival of Polish independence and the return of lost lands. On this day, the Polish soldiers went to Krakow. And on March 24, the city was liberated. On April 4, the peasants near Racławice defeated the tsarist troops. On April 17-18, Warsaw was liberated. This was done by artisans under the leadership of J. Kilinky. On April 22-23, the same detachment also liberated Vilna. The taste of victories led the rebels to demand decisive action and the continuation of the revolution. On May 7, Kosciuszko created the Polaniec station wagon, but the peasants did not like it. A series of defeats in battles, troops from Austria and the offensive of Russian troops on August 11 under the leadership of the famous general A.V. Suvorov forced the rebels to leave Vilna and other cities. On November 6, Warsaw surrendered. The end of November became sad, the tsarist troops crushed the uprising.

In 1795 the so-called third partition of Poland took place. Poland has been erased from the world map.

The subsequent history of Poland was no less heroic, but also sad. The Poles did not want to put up with the absence of their country, did not give up trying to restore Poland to its former power. They acted independently with uprisings, or were part of the troops of countries that fought against the invaders. In 1807 when, during the defeat of Napoleon's Prussia, the Polish troops played an important role in this victory. Napoleon gained power over the occupied territories of Poland during the 2nd partition and created there the so-called Grand Duchy of Warsaw (1807-1815). In 1809 he added to this principality the lands lost after the 3rd partition. Such a small Poland pleased the Poles and gave hope for complete liberation.

In 1815 when Napoleon was defeated, the so-called Congress of Vienna was assembled and territorial changes took place. Krakow became autonomous with a protectorate (1815-1848). The joy of the people, what has become, the so-called Grand Duchy of Warsaw lost its western lands, which were taken over by Prussia. She turned them into her own Principality of Poznań (1815-1846); the eastern part of the country received the status of a monarchy - under the name "Kingdom of Poland", went to Russia.

November 1830. There was an unsuccessful uprising of the Polish population against the Russian Empire. The same fate awaited the opponents of power in 1846 and 1848. In 1863 the January uprising broke out, which for two years did not succeed. There was an active Russification of the Poles. In 1905-1917. Poles took part in the 4 Dumas of Russia, while actively seeking the national autonomy of Poland.

In 1914 the world was drowned in the fires and devastation of the First World War. Poland received, as well as the hope of gaining independence, because the ruling countries fought among themselves, and many problems. The Poles had to fight for the country that owned the territory; Poland became a springboard for hostilities; The war exacerbated an already tense situation. The society was divided into two camps. Roman Dmovsky (1864-1939) and his comrades-in-arms believed that Germany created all the problems, and fiercely supported cooperation with the Entente. They wanted to unite all once Polish lands into autonomy under the protection of Russia. Representatives of the Polish Socialist Party acted more radically, their main desire was to defeat Russia. Liberation from Russian oppression was the main condition for independence. The party insisted on the creation of independent armed forces. Jozef Pilsudski created and led the garrisons of the people's army and took the side of Austria-Hungary in the battle.

The Russian ruler Nicholas I, in his declaration of 1914 of August 14, promised to accept the autonomy of Poland with all its lands under the protection of the Russian Empire. Germany and Austria-Hungary, in turn, two years later, on November 5, announced a manifesto, which stated that the Kingdom of Poland would be created on the territories belonging to Russia. In the month of August 1917. In France, they created the so-called Polish National Committee, whose leaders were Roman Dmowski and Ignacy Paderewski. Józef Haller was called to become commander-in-chief of the army. The history of Poland received an impetus for development on January 8, 1918. Wilson, President of the United States, insisted on the restoration of Poland. He called for Poland to regain its positions and become an independent country with open access to the Baltic Sea. In early June, she was recognized as a supporter of the Entente. October 6, 1918 taking advantage of the confusion in government structures, the Polish Regency Council made a declaration of independence. November 11, 1918 power passed to Marshal Pilsudski. The country received the long-awaited freedom, but faced certain difficulties: the lack of borders, the national currency, state structures, the devastation and fatigue of the people. But the desire to develop gave an unrealistic impetus to action. And January 17, 1919. at the fateful Versailles Conference, the territorial boundaries of Poland were determined: Pomerania was attached to its territory, access to the sea was opened, Gdansk received the status of a free city. July 28, 1920 the large city of Cieszyn and its suburbs were divided between two countries: Poland and Czechoslovakia. February 10, 1920 joined Vilna.

On April 21, 1920, Pilsudski teamed up with the Ukrainian Petliura and dragged Poland into the war with the Bolsheviks. The result was the offensive of the Bolshevik army on Warsaw, but they were defeated.

Poland's foreign policy was directed towards a policy of not joining any country or alliance. January 25, 1932 signed a bilateral non-aggression pact with the USSR. January 26, 1934 a similar pact was signed with Germany. This idyll did not last long. Germany demanded that the city, which was free - Gdansk, be given to their location and that they be given the opportunity to build highways and railway across the Polish border.

April 28, 1939 Germany broke the non-aggression pact, and on August 25 a German battleship landed on the territory of Gdansk. Hitler explained his actions by the salvation of the German people, who are under the yoke of the Polish authorities. They also staged a brutal provocation. August 31 dressed up in Polish uniform German soldiers burst into the studio of a radio station in the city of Gleiwitz, accompanied by shots, read a Polish text that called for war with Germany. This message was broadcast on all radio stations in Germany. And September 1, 1939. at 0445, armed German troops began shelling Polish buildings, aircraft destroyed everything from the air, and the infantry sent their forces to Warsaw. Germany began its "blitzkrieg". 62 infantry divisions, 2 air navies were to quickly break through and destroy the defenses of Poland. The Polish command also had a secret plan called "West" in case of a military conflict. Following this plan, the army was supposed to prevent the enemy from reaching vital areas, conduct active mobilization and, having received support from Western countries, go on the counteroffensive. The Polish army was significantly inferior to the German one. 4 days was enough for the Germans to go 100 km inland. For a week, cities such as Krakow, Kielce and Lodz were occupied. On the night of September 11, German tanks entered the suburbs of Warsaw. On September 16, the cities were captured: Bialystok, Brest-Litovsk, Pshemishl, Sambir and Lvov. Polish troops, with the support of the population, led guerrilla war. On September 9, the Poznan garrison defeated the enemy over Bzura, and the Hel Peninsula did not surrender until October 20. Following the Molotov-Ribentrop Pact on September 17, 1939. like clockwork, the powerful Red Army entered the territory of western Ukraine and Belarus. On September 22, she entered Lvov without difficulty.

On September 28, Ribentrop signed an agreement in Moscow, according to which the border between Germany and the USSR was designated by the Curzon line. During the 36 days of the war, Poland was divided for the fourth time, between two totalitarian states.

The war brought a lot of grief and destruction to the country. Everyone suffered, despite their former power or wealth. The Jews suffered the most in this war. Poland is no exception in this regard. The Holocaust on its territory assumed a terrifying character. There were justified concentration camps for prisoners. They were not just killed there, they were mocked and carried out incredible experiments. The largest death camp is considered to be Auschwitz, but there were many smaller ones scattered around the country, and sometimes several in each city. People were scared and doomed.

On April 19, 1943, the inhabitants of the Warsaw ghetto could not stand it and on the night of Jewish Passover they began an uprising. From 400 yew. Only 50-70 thousand Jews remained alive in the ghetto at that time. of people. When the police entered the ghetto for a new batch of victims, the Jews opened fire on them. Methodically, in the weeks that followed, the SS corrals exterminated the inhabitants. The ghetto was set on fire and razed to the ground. In May, the Great Synagogue was blown up. The Germans declared the end of the uprising on May 16, 1943, although the outbreak of fighting continued until June 1943.

Another large-scale uprising took place on August 1, 1944. in Warsaw, as part of Operation Tempest. The main goal of the uprising was to oust the German army from the city, and show independence to the Soviet authorities. The beginning was rosy, the army was able to take control of most of the city. The Soviet army, for various reasons, stopped its offensive. September 14, 1944 The first Polish army strengthened its positions on the eastern bank of the Vistula and helped the rebels to move to the western bank. The attempt was not successful and only 1200 people were able to do it. Winston Churchill demanded radical action from Stalin to help the uprising, but this did not succeed, and the Royal Air Force made 200 sorties and dropped aid and military ammunition directly from the board. But even this could not turn the Warsaw uprising into a successful one, and it was soon brutally suppressed. The number of victims is not known for certain, but they say that there were 16,000 killed and 6,000 wounded, and this was only during the fighting. In the operations carried out by the Germans to clean up the rebels, about 150-200,000 civilians died. 85% of the entire city was destroyed.

For another year, the history of Poland experienced murder and destruction, and for a year there were constant battles and hostilities. The Polish army took part in all the battles against the Nazis. She was a member of various missions.

January 17, 1945 the capital was liberated from the Nazis. Germany announced its surrender.

The first Polish army was the second largest after the Soviet one, which took part in the war, and in particular in the storming of Berlin.

May 2, 1945 During the battles for Berlin, Polish troops planted a white and red flag of victory on the Prussian Victory Column and on the Brandenburg Gate. On this day modern history Poland celebrates National Flag Day.

On February 4-11, 1945, at the so-called Yalta Conference, Churchill and Roosevelt decided to attach the territories of Poland, which were located in the east, to the USSR. Poland compensates for the lost territories by receiving once German lands.

On July 5, 1945, the Polish government of Lublin was temporarily recognized as legitimate. Non-communists could also apply for a place in management. In August, a decision was made to annex to Poland the territories that belonged to the eastern parts of Prussia and Germany. 15% of the 10 billion reparations paid by Germany were to go to Poland. Post-war Poland became communist. The regular troops of the Red Army opened the hunt for members of various party forces. Boleslav Bieruta, a communist representative, became president. An active process of Stalinization began. In September 19948 general secretary Władysław Gomułka was removed from office due to his nationalistic biases. In the process of merging the two - the Polish Workers' Party and the Polish Socialist Party - in 1948, a new Polish United Workers' Party appeared. In 1949, the so-called United Peasant Party was approved. Poland received membership in the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance of the USSR. June 7, 1950 signed an agreement between the GDR and Poland, beyond which the border of Poland in the west is located along the Oder-Neisse - the distribution line. In order to create a military coalition against the main enemy of the USSR - NATO, in 1955. the Warsaw Pact was signed. The coalition included such countries as: the USSR, Poland, East Germany, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and for some time Albania.

Dissatisfaction with Stalin's policies led to mass riots in 1956. in Poznan. 50ths. people, workers and students, opposed the prevailing Soviet oppression. In October of this year, the nationalist Gomulka became the general secretary of the PZPR. He reveals all the abuses of power within the Communist Party, reveals the truth about Stalin and his policies. Removes from the post of Chairman of the Seim, also Rokossovsky and many other officers from the union. By his actions he won some neutrality from the USSR. The lands were returned to the peasants, freedom of speech appeared, trade and industry gave the green light to all undertakings, workers could interfere in the management of enterprises, warm relations with the church were restored, and the production of missing goods was adjusted. The United States gave its economic assistance.

In the 1960s, the restored Soviet power canceled almost all of Gomulk's reforms. The pressure on the country increased again: peasant associations, censorship and anti-religious policies returned.

In 1967, the famous Rolling Stones gave a concert in the Palace of Culture in Warsaw.

And in March 1968. student anti-Soviet demonstrations swept across the country. The result of which were arrests and emigration. In the same year, the country's leadership refused to support the reforms of the so-called "Prague Spring". In August, under pressure from the USSR, Polish troops took part in the occupation of Czechoslovakia.

December 1970 was marked by mass demonstrations in the cities of Gdansk, Gdynia and Szczecin. People opposed the increase in prices for various goods, and mainly for products. It all ended sadly. About 70 workers were killed and about 1,000 were injured. Constant persecution and persecution of the “dissatisfied” led to the creation in 1798 of Committee of Public Protection, which was the first step to create an opposition.

October 16, 1978 the new Pope is not an Italian, but the Bishop of Krakow - Karol Wojtyla (John Paul II). He directs his works to bring the church closer to the people.

In July 1980, food prices skyrocketed again. A wave of strikes swept the country. The working class protested in Gdansk, Gdynia, Szczecin. This movement was also supported by miners in Silesia. The strikers united in committees and soon they developed 22 demands. They were economic and political in nature. People demanded lower prices, higher wages, the creation of trade unions, reduced levels of censorship, the right to rallies and strikes. The management accepted almost all requirements. This led to the fact that the workers began to en masse join trade union associations independent of the state, which soon turned into the Solidarity federation. Lech Walesa became its leader. The main requirement of the workers was the permission to manage the enterprises themselves, appoint management and select personnel. In September, Solidarity called on workers across Eastern Europe to form free trade unions. In December, the workers demanded a referendum to decide on the power of the Soviet Communist Party in Poland. Such a statement had an immediate reaction.

On December 13, 1981, Jaruzelski declared martial law in the country and arrested all the leaders of Solidarity. Strikes broke out, which were quickly suppressed.

In 1982 unions were established under the leadership of the country.

In July 1983 Pope John Paul II arrived in the country, which led to the abolition of the protracted martial law. Pressure from the international community granted an amnesty to the prisoners in 1984.

During 1980-1987. The economic situation in Poland worsened. The workers were also starving in the summer of 1988. strikes began in factories and mines. The government called for the help of the leader of the "Solidarity" Lech Walesa. These negotiations received the symbolic name of the Round Table. They decided to hold free elections, the legalization of "Solidarity".

June 4, 1989 elections were held. "Solidarity" pulled ahead, overtaking the Communist Party, and took all the leading positions in the government. Tadeusz Mazowiecki became the prime minister of the country. A year later, Lech Walesa became president. His leadership lasted one term.

In 1991 ended officially cold war. The Warsaw Pact was terminated. Early 1992 pleased with the active growth of GNP, new market institutions were created. Poland began active economic development. In 1993 opposition was formed - the Union of Democratic Left Forces.

In the next elections, Aleksander Kwasniewski, head of the Social Democratic Party, ascended to the presidency. His government did not start easily. Members of Parliament demanded an active policy of dismissing traitors to the country and those who had long collaborated or worked for the union, and after Russia. They put forward a law on lustration, but it did not pass by the number of votes. And in October 1998, Kwasniewski signed this law. Everyone who was in power had to frankly confess their ties with Russia. They were not fired from their positions, but this knowledge became public knowledge. If suddenly someone did not confess, and such evidence was found, then the official was forbidden to hold office for 10 years.

In 1999 Poland has become an active member of the NATO alliance. In 2004 entered the European Union.

Elections 2005 brought victory to Lech Kachinsky.

In November 2007, Donald Tusk was elected Prime Minister. This government structure managed to maintain a stable political and economic situation. And even during the crisis of 2008. Poles did not feel big problems. They chose neutrality in foreign policy leadership and avoided conflicts with both the EU and Russia.

April 2010 plane crash took the lives of the president and representatives of the colors of Polish society. It was a dark page in the history of Poland. People mourned the just leader, the country plunged into mourning for a long time.

After the tragic incident, it was decided to hold early elections. The first round on June 20 and the second on July 4, 2010. In the second round, Bronisław Komorowski, a representative of the party called Civic Platform, won with 53% of the votes, overtaking L. Kaczynski's brother, Yaroslav Kaczynski.

Party "Civil Platform" October 9, 2011 won the parliamentary elections. The parties also came to power: "Law and Justice" J. Kaczynski, "Movement of Palikot" J. Palikot, PSL - Polish peasant party leader W. Pawlak and the Union of Left Democratic Forces. The ruling Civic Platform party, along with the budding PSL, formed a coalition. Donald Tusk was again chosen as prime minister.

In 2004 he was elected President of the European Council.

The history of Poland has come a long and very difficult road to becoming an independent state. Today it is one of the developed and strong countries of the European Union. Harvested fields, quality roads, good wages and prices, handicrafts, modern education, assistance to the disabled and low-income, developed industry, economy, courts and governing bodies, and most importantly, the people who are so proud of their country and would not change it for anything in the world - make Poland the country that we know, appreciate and respect. Poland proved by its own example that even from a completely destroyed, fragmented state, it is possible to build a new competitive country.

At the end of the 9th century, an unknown historian, later called the Bavarian geographer, reported on the tribal Slavic groups living on the banks of the Warta and the Oder, and occupying the vast flat lands of Central Europe. Initially scattered in Western sources, they were called Lekhites, but later they began to be called glades, after the name of one of the strongest tribes; It was from the meadows that the founder of the Polish state, Mieszko I, came out.

Ancestors

Separate scattered tribes of Lekhites were ruled by princes, whose names history has not preserved. Modern historians know only one message, which concerns the genealogy of the rulers of the Glade tribe. This is explained by the fact that the glade, having carried out a number of successful military operations and subjugated the neighboring tribes, preferred to oust the names of their rulers from the memory of the vanquished, and preserve their traditions in history. In the 12th century, the chronicler Gallus Anonymus wrote down oral legends about the rulers of the meadows, and this is how they ended up in medieval chronicles. According to Anonymous, Prince Popiel, who was expelled, ruled in the city of Gniezno. His place was taken by Semovit, who did not occupy a high social position, but was the son of a simple plowman Piast. Semovit and laid the foundation for the Piastovich dynasty, who ruled in the fortification of Gniezno. It was this prince and his heirs, Lestko and Semomysl, who became the ancestors of Meshko I.

Prerequisites

Most likely, Mieszko I formed his state not from scratch. One can be sure that the history of the Polish state began long before the birth of this prince, and the former princely dynasty had already taken serious steps towards the centralization of power. The ancestors of Meshko I added the lands of neighboring tribes to the possessions of the glades: Kuvyan, Mazovshan, Lendzyan. On the occupied lands, defensive structures were built - cities. In some lands, the towns were located at a distance of 20-25 km from each other, that is, during the daytime march of a combat detachment. A strong army became decisive factors in expanding and strengthening the power of the meadows. But vast territories, wetlands and impenetrable jungles of forests allowed the conquered tribes to maintain significant independence. The invaders did not change the way of life of the captured tribes, but imposed taxes on the peasant communities, which were collected by the servants of the prince. Thus, the founder of the Polish state owed much to his predecessors, who had created a system of government over the previous two centuries.

Beginning of the reign

Meshko was the son of Semomysl, the name of his mother remained unknown. The beginning of the reign dates back to 960, when the future founder of the Polish state began to rule in the principality of Great Poland with the center in Gniezno. Ten years later, he almost doubled the area under his control, annexing the territories of Mazovia, Kuyavia and the Gdansk Pomerania. The year 982 became the date of the conquest of Silesia, and in 990 the meadow was annexed by the Vistula lands. The conquests of the Poles began to take on a threatening character. In Western European and Arabic sources, information appeared about a powerful man with strong power and a well-trained army. Therefore, it is generally accepted that the Polish state was formed in the 10th century, when the Polish possessions were significantly expanded and strengthened, and the prince and his squad converted to Christianity.

Adoption of Christianity

Without the adoption of Christianity by Mieszko I in 966, the formation of the Polish state would have been impossible. The expansive foreign policy of the prince led to an aggravation of relations with neighboring states. Emperor Otto I repulsed the attempts of the Polyans to conquer the lands of the Lubushans, and Mieszko I agreed to pay tribute to this ruler. At the same time, the prince develops Polish-Czech relations. To secure relations with the Czech kingdom, Mieszko marries the daughter of the Czech king, Princess Dubravka. Two powerful neighbors - Sacred and Bohemia, led the prince to the decision to accept Christianity. Prince Mieszko was baptized according to the Latin rite in 966. The adoption of Christianity gave impetus to the fact that the first Polish state began to be recognized by contemporaries at the European level.

The structure of the Polish state

At the initial stage of formation, the Polish-Lithuanian state occupied an area of ​​approximately 250 thousand square meters. km. It is impossible to say more precisely, since the borders of the newly formed country were constantly changing. Most of the population was engaged in agriculture. The most numerous stratum of the population were the Kmets, free peasants. The Kmets lived in large families and after the unification of the tribes, the differences between the communities were preserved, which gave rise to the administrative division of the Polish lands, and later the adoption of Christianity, the same principle formed the division of the territory into dioceses.

Administrative division

The smallest step of the administrative division was the urban district. It was under the control of the representatives of the prince, who had full administrative, military and judicial power. There are references to four such centers in the cities of Gniezno, Poznań, Geche and Wloclawek. It was here that the shield-bearers and men-at-arms, who formed the backbone of the Polish army, took place. If necessary, detachments were assembled from all the free peasants. In terms of their armament and military training, such detachments were inferior to the soldiers of the princely squad, but they were successfully used in reconnaissance and in partisan attacks. According to historians, at the beginning of the 11th century, the total number of troops of Mieszko I was over 20 thousand people.

Economy of ancient Poland

The maintenance of a large and combat-ready army required a constant influx of funds. To ensure the country's defense capability and hold the occupied lands, Prince Meshko I created an established fiscal apparatus, which was engaged in the collection and distribution of taxes. The tax was paid by the entire rural population of the country, in the form of livestock products and agriculture. Another financial lever was the distribution of "regalia" - various rights to conduct especially profitable branches of economic activity. Regalia were: coinage, extraction of precious metals, the organization of markets and inns, some types of hunting. The main exports were furs, amber and slaves. But by the end of the 11th century, the development of agriculture began to require a constant influx of labor, and the growing influence of the church prohibited human trafficking. Therefore, the slave trade after XI ceased to be an element of export, and later it ceased altogether.

The end of the reign of Mieszko I

As in other European states, the rights to the princely throne were inherited. However, the right of birthright was not yet fixed on the Polish lands, therefore there were frequent civil strife between possible contenders for the throne. The founder of the Polish state had two brothers, one of whom died in battle, and the second, Chtibor, held a high-ranking post. Dying, Mieszko I left part of the state in the hands of his firstborn son Boleslav. This son went down in history as Boleslav the Brave. He inherited from his father a developed, rich, vast country with great international influence. And after a long series of victories and defeats, Bolesław the Brave became the first king of the Polish state.

In previous decades, domestic science considered any state as a machine for suppressing one class by another. This is not to say that this is completely false. However, it is also true that the nature of the state is not limited to a single repressive function. The state also acts as a powerful creative force in history. From the point of view of the self-organization of society, the state is the most important step in curbing the elemental forces of social development, the most essential achievement of progress. Therefore, there is every reason to count the actual historical existence of this or that people from the moment of the formation of statehood.

The genesis of Polish statehood
In the Polish past, the state enters the historical arena in the 9th-10th centuries, but the first decades of its existence are not covered by sources that would allow describing the genesis of Polish statehood. In the second half of the 10th century, the state of the first dynasty of Polish rulers - the Piasts - appears as an already established and sufficiently developed military-administrative machine. The main source for the reconstruction of the Polish history of this time - the Chronicle of Gall Anonymus, written only at the beginning of the 12th century - conveys some echoes of the events and processes of the 9th - beginning of the 10th centuries. It can be seen from it that already in the 9th century there was a consolidation of the Wielkopolska "big tribe" of the Polans, who began to conquer neighboring tribes. Simultaneously with the conquests, the construction of towns was going on, a permanent and rather numerous squad was formed, together with the squad, the tribal aristocracy was separated into a special social group, whose source of livelihood was the tribute collected from the subject population.
The chronicle of Gall Anonymus brings us legends, from which we learn about the legendary ancestor of the Polish rulers, the simple peasant Piast, who was elevated to the throne by God's providence, and about his three semi-legendary successors - Zemovit, Leshke and Zemomysl. They managed to subjugate to their power not only Greater Poland, but also Mazovia, Kuyavia, part of Pomerania, the land of Lendzyan. Their residence was the city of Gniezno, which grew in proportion to the military successes of the glades.

Organization of the Polish state in the X-XI centuries.
The first monarch about whom more reliable data have been preserved was Mieszko I (circa 960-992). Western European and Arabic sources of the 10th century describe his state as a strong and ramified organism, based on a network of towns, which ceased to be the center of tribes or opol, becoming the support of the power of the Polish prince, centers for collecting tribute and residences of small retinue garrisons led by princely governors. Over time, these towns turned into feudal castles. Under the heir of Sack I, Boleslav the Brave (992-1025), according to Gall Anonymus, in a number of the largest centers (Gniezno, Poznan, Wloclawek, Gdech), numerous squad detachments were concentrated (a total of more than 10 thousand knights and defenders) . Such an army could exist only thanks to the system of centralized state exploitation of the dependent population, which consisted in the regular collection of tribute-tax. The entire territory subordinated to the prince was considered, respectively, as his own possession (patronimium), a single economic domain controlled by representatives of the princely administration and divided into a number of administrative districts (Greater Poland, Silesia, Krakow, Sandomierz, Mazovia, Lenchitsko-Sieradz, Kuyavia and Pomeranian lands). At the grand prince's court, a system of state positions was formed (chancellor, governor, treasurer, chashniki, stolniks, stablemen, etc.), which in its main elements was reproduced at the level of local administration in the largest cities. The head of the district, the future castellan, with the help of his subordinates, collected taxes, organized a squad, and ruled the court on behalf of the prince. Like all early medieval rulers, the Polish monarch spends almost his entire life in the saddle, moving with his retinue from one land to another and thereby asserting his power and authority on the ground. After the adoption of Christianity in Poland in 966, along with the secular administration, the church began to take shape.
A characteristic feature of such a system of state organization is that it is the state, represented by the prince and his warriors, that acts as a feudal corporation that centrally exploits the country subject to the prince. Only gradually, as the local representatives of the prince are given immunity privileges, does the combatant turn from a representative of the state into a feudal lord, who receives certain populated territories into a private conditional possession, for which he must serve the prince. State organization Thus, they precede the feudal system, and the entire social system can also be defined as a system of state feudalism.

Milestones of political development
The main organizing principle of the political life of any early medieval society is war. Domestic political changes and events are most often the result of military-political conflicts. Poland is no exception in the 10th and early 12th centuries.
The reign of Mieszko I (until 992) was marked by the territorial expansion of the Wielkopolska state, which subjugated Silesia, Pomerania, and part of Lesser Poland. Another important event of this time was the adoption of Christianity as the state religion in 966, dictated largely by political considerations, and the symbolic transfer of Polish lands under the care of the Roman throne. Another milestone in the reign of Mieszko I was the formation of a system of military-state institutions of the Polish monarchy, the establishment of a system of centralized state exploitation of the population.
The reign of Boleslaw the Brave (992 - 1025) was marked by the annexation of Krakow to his state in 999, the conclusion of a close military-political alliance with the emperor of the Holy German Empire Otto III during the so-called Gniezno Congress of 1000. This union was accompanied by the creation of an independent Gniezno archdiocese, which guaranteed Poland's ecclesiastical and political independence from the German church. Rapprochement with Germany gave way to a period of long wars with the successors of Otto III in 1002-1018. After the conclusion of the Bulishinsky peace with the Empire in 1018, Boleslav undertook a victorious campaign against Kievan Rus and annexed a number of cities in Galician Rus to Poland (1018). The apogee of Bolesław's political activity was his coronation in 1025.
During the reign of Mieszko II (1025 - 1034) there were a number of defeats: the crown and part of the acquired lands were lost, internal strife broke out in the country, forcing Mieszko II to flee Poland, the monarchy plunged into a political and social crisis.
The apogee of this crisis falls on the reign of Casimir I the Restorer (1034 - 1058): almost the entire territory of Poland in 1037 was engulfed by a popular uprising, directed both against the feudalization that was in full swing and against the church that had taken root in the country. In Polish historiography it is sometimes called the social-pagan revolution. The consequences of this social explosion were catastrophic: the existing state-administrative and church systems were almost destroyed, which the Czech prince Bretislav took advantage of by undertaking a devastating campaign against Poland in 1038. Nevertheless, Casimir managed to defend the independence of the Polish principality, calm the country and restore the shaken social, state and church order.
The reign of Bolesław II the Bold or the Generous (1058-1081) was marked by the participation of Poland in the conflict between Pope Gregory VII and the German Emperor Henry IV, who brought Bolesław the royal crown in 1076. However, in 1079 he faced a feudal conspiracy led by his brother Władysław and, possibly by the Krakow Bishop Stanislav. Although Boleslav even decided to execute Stanislav, his strength was not enough to keep power in the country, and he was forced to flee in the same 1079 to Hungary.
The transfer of power to his brother Vladislav I German (1081-1102) meant the victory of the centrifugal forces of the feudal opposition over the central government. In fact, on behalf of Vladislav, the country was ruled by his governor Seciech, which meant that Poland entered a period of new political strife and feudal fragmentation.
The reign of Bolesław III Wrymouth (1102-1138) led to a temporary victory over the opposition forces in the course of the struggle against Sieciech and Bolesław's brother Zbigniew. This was largely the result of successful wars for the reunification and Christianization of Pomerania. In his will in 1138, Bolesław tried to prevent the disintegration of the country into separate principalities and destinies by introducing the rule of the principate into the succession of the grand duke's throne, that is, by transferring supreme power to the eldest of four sons. However, this state act could no longer stop the inevitable processes of decentralization, and after the death of Bolesław, Poland finally enters a period of feudal-political fragmentation.

Poland in the 10th - early 12th centuries: economic and social development

Population and internal colonization
The main Polish territory at that time covered about 250 thousand square meters. km. It lived by the turn of the X - XI centuries. from 750 thousand to 1 million people. The population density was naturally uneven. Central Silesia, the center of Greater Poland, the west of Lesser Poland, Kuyavia and Pomerania were more densely populated than others. At that time, forests covered vast expanses, and uninhabited areas were especially extensive on the borders between regions.
Grody, becoming the military-administrative centers of the Polish state, gradually overgrown with handicraft settlements and gave shelter to markets, the villages remained small, but still larger than before, uniting up to 10-15 households. Their location was still not stable, as the population developed more and more new lands. Instead of a large family, the basic production and social cell became a small one, cultivating 8-9 hectares of land in two fields.
This internal colonization, as historians have recently established, began relatively early - already in the 11th-12th centuries, that is, even before the so-called "German colonization" unfolded. On the one hand, the pioneers who burned and uprooted the forest were people or entire families who, for one reason or another, found themselves outside the community. In the course of such spontaneous peasant colonization, an entire village could move to a new place. On the other hand, the monasteries used the dependent population for the organized development of new lands. When there were not enough workers to clear new plowing, secular feudal lords and the church invited settlers, granting them, unlike the rest of the dependent peasants, the status of "free guests", hospitals. They carried certain duties in favor of the owner of the land, but could leave it at any time, without, however, having any rights to the cultivated plot. The development of legal norms for "free guests" led to the fixing of the legal status of other peasants. We emphasize, however, that in the XI - XII centuries. all these processes were just unfolding, acquiring a real scope only in the 13th-14th centuries.

Agriculture
Agriculture and cattle breeding developed from the 10th century not only on peasant farms, but also in feudal estates. It is the latter that constitutes an innovation not familiar to previous eras. Its purpose was to provide everything necessary for the squad of the Grand Duke and to ensure the collection of state rent-tax from the peasantry. Grod and the princely patrimony were closely connected with each other. Estates X - XI centuries. were exclusively princely, in the XII century they began to pass into the hands of individual families of the emerging feudal estate.
At the same time, the main place in the princely, and later privately feudal patrimonial economy was occupied not by agriculture, but by animal husbandry, which was carried out by some of the peasants living in the patrimony. Along with this, special people were responsible for organizing hunting, which was not only a sport and entertainment, but also an important help in supplying the squad with meat, especially corned beef on the eve of big campaigns. Another group of workers in the patrimony were artisans, who most often had their own allotment of land. The private estates that arose after the princely estates were organized in a similar way, although on a smaller scale.
In the traditional peasant economy, the slash-and-burn system gradually developed in the 10th-12th centuries. gave way to stable arable farming, although on the periphery colonization was accompanied by the burning of forests. The dominant system of land use was two-field, only in the XII century it began to be replaced by three-field (allocation along with spring arable land and winter field fallow). The only fertilizer system was the burning of stubble, which remained very high after harvest, since only spikelets were cut with a sickle during the harvest. Manure was used only in vegetable gardens.
The plow with an iron tip remained the main tool of labor, sickles were iron, flails were wooden, millstones until the 12th century, when the first mills began to appear, were hand-made. Oxen was used as a draft force, and from the 12th century horses were also used.
Millet remained the main grain crop, but rye also began to grow in importance next to it. Wheat was sown less frequently, mainly on the good lands of southern Poland. From other cultures, barley was widespread, which was intended for making porridge and beer, already in the 11th century. displacing honey as the main intoxicating drink. They also sowed peas, beans, lentils, from garden crops - turnips, carrots, cucumbers, from industrial crops - flax and hemp. The acculturation of fruit trees was just beginning, so fruit has hardly been indulged in yet. Separate princely and church estates had vineyards, but the wine produced was of poor quality and served mainly for liturgical needs. According to G. Lovmyansky, 60% of the food needs of a peasant family were covered by bread, cereals and other grain products, about 25% by meat, 10% by dairy products, and the rest by honey, beer and vegetables.
Animal husbandry in the peasant economy was represented by oxen, pigs (which were grazed in the forest), sheep, and cows. They also raised poultry. In the patrimonies, primarily princely, specialized animal husbandry played an important role, in which horse breeding occupied a special place. Cattle were bred to provide meat for the table of the lord and his squad. For a long time, the power and wealth of the feudal lord was measured not so much by the amount of land or dependent peasants, but by the large number of herds and herds.
Along with agriculture and cattle breeding, the proportion of gathering in the rural economy was still large. Apiaries and mead production acquired great importance, since honey replaced both alcoholic beverages and sugar, and after the adoption of Christianity, the production of wax candles became an urgent need. For the use of the boards and apiaries, a special tribute was paid to the landowner, the beekeepers constituted a privileged professional group. Beavers enjoyed no less respect, because breeding and catching beavers also required special skills. Honey, wax and furs were a significant export trade item. Of course, fishery also retained its importance. As feudal relations developed, landowners sought to limit the rights of peasants to use forests, rivers, and water bodies.

Craft and trade
During the X - XII centuries. in the Polish lands, along with the traditional home craft, a professional, specialized craft develops, gradually concentrating in the cities and large feudal estates that develop around the towns. In the 12th century, in Polish sources, we already find references to coal miners, carpenters, shipbuilders, coopers, tailors, etc. Villages specializing in one or another craft production developed in the estates - villages where blacksmiths or salt cookers, carpenters or leather workers, coopers lived or weavers. Traces of such settlements remained in the toponyms that have come down to us: Solniki, Bovary, Kolodzheye, Shchitniki, Sanniki, etc. From the 12th century, mining began to develop: for the extraction of lead, silver, and gold, primitive mines were created, where, apparently, princely slaves worked; iron ore was mined in shallow pits. In the north of Poland, the simplest salt pans arose; in the Lesser Poland villages of Bochnia and Wieliczka, they began to extract rock salt from underground.
Gradually, cities became centers of crafts and trade, but until the 12th century they still very little resembled the cities of the mature Middle Ages: legally they were completely dependent on the prince, in whose favor trade duties and craft taxes were collected. Citizens were also required to carry out labor (underwater) duty. Although in the 12th century its own coin supplanted foreign coins from circulation, the role of the city in domestic and local trade was still very small, and foreign trade was monopolized by the feudal militias. The Western Pomeranian cities (Wolin, Szczecin, Kolobrzeg) developed faster than others, the importance of Wroclaw and Krakow as intermediaries between Central Europe and the ancient Russian lands grew; Poznan and Gniezno - as a link between Pomerania and southern Poland.
In general, until the 13th century, the Polish economy retained a deeply natural character, with the absolute predominance of the agricultural sector.

Social structure and social relations
In the X - XII centuries. in Poland there was a process of feudalization, that is, the emergence of a system of patrimonial land tenure and the formation of two main social groups of medieval society: the dependent peasantry and the feudal lords. Contrary to the opinion prevailing in the domestic scientific literature for a long time, until the 12th century, Polish feudalism was based not on a large private feudal estate, which until that time simply did not exist as any significant phenomenon, but on a centralized system of state exploitation of the dependent population. Accordingly, the combatant was a feudal lord only insofar as he remained a member of this military-political corporation. The feudal lord in the proper sense of the word was the state itself, represented by the Grand Duke. The peasants, in turn, retained personal freedom and the unquestioned right to use the land as subjects of the sovereign. They were connected with the state by a centrally collected rent, which at the same time turned out to be a tax.
This early medieval system of social relations, typical of most "barbarian" "societies growing into feudalism, in the 11th - 12th centuries gave way to classical, "normal" feudalism. The essence of this process was that the state transferred the right to use part of the centralized rent to individual representatives of the military elite, distributing in conditional holding state lands with peasants sitting on them.Over time, these lands - through giving them tax, judicial and administrative immunity - turned from, so to speak, service residences into private feudal estates. The process of feudalization was underway, thus, not from below (through the social differentiation of the community and the emergence of private ownership of land, on the basis of which the state later grew), but from above - through the distribution of state lands into first conditional, and then unconditional ownership of members of the military-feudal retinue corporation.
The first non-state feudal patrimonies were the patrimonies of the Church. The largest of them was the patrimony of the head of the Polish Catholic Church of the Poznan (Gniezno) Archbishop, which, as can be seen from the papal bull of 1136, consisted of about 150 settlements, 1000 peasant households, more than 6 thousand peasants. Of course, such a complex could not have been formed in a jiffy, so it can be assumed that the first church estates began to appear soon after the adoption of Christianity by Meshka I. This does not mean that the church immediately acquired an independent material base. On the contrary, the clergy remained until the 12th century in the same dependence on the prince as his own warriors. Nevertheless, it is the clergy that acquires the status of an estate before others, that is, it is endowed with a number of rights and privileges that make it largely immune to princely arbitrariness and independent of the secular feudal nobility. 11th-12th centuries became the time of the folding of the clergy as the first class group in social structure Polish medieval society.
The secular feudal patrimony takes shape in Poland later than the ecclesiastical one. This process only unfolds in the second half of the 11th-12th centuries. and expands only with the approval of the regime of feudal fragmentation. Therefore, the main criterion separating the feudal lords from the rest of the population and one group of feudal lords from another is not land wealth. military and political authority, prestige in the squad environment, closeness to the prince himself, the nature of the functions performed at court and in the squad, partly movable property, for example, the amount of cattle and horses belonging to one or another owner. These people appear in the sources as " the best people", optimates. The roots of this group go back to the former tribal elite. In Poland, the first Piasts can become owners of military leaders, garrison commanders (kastelyans), and the closest advisers to the prince.
Chivalry, nobiles make up the bulk of the military service environment. It is already completely different from the squad of tribal times, since it is not consolidated by either kinship or a single territory. The knight is completely dependent on the prince, who provides him with food, clothing, housing, equipment, and even deals with his marriage affairs. Around the prince himself, the retinue elite is concentrated, and the knights who were sitting under the command of the princely governors in local garrisons differed little in their way of life from peasants or artisans. Next to the knights in the sources of the XII century, we also meet the third category of military service people - vlodyks, that is, peasants who are called up from time to time for military service. This is a marginal group, which indicates the immaturity of estate-class structures and which will later resolve itself between the nobility and the peasantry. Starting from the 11th century, the process of settling warriors on the ground as a result of princely land grants unfolded, which created the prerequisites for feudal fragmentation.
In general, neither power nor chivalry, even in the 12th century, had yet acquired the features and status of the medieval service nobility and feudal aristocracy, had not yet constituted an estate. At the same time, they no longer look like the tribal aristocracy and warriors of tribal times. From this point of view, X - XII centuries. constitute the transitional period between the feudal and pre-feudal systems.
Polish peasantry in the X-XII centuries. remained personally free, united in traditional communities, gminas. As the processes of feudalization unfolded, groups emerged from the homogeneous environment of the peasantry that became dependent on individual landowners. This process was reflected in the diversification of the terminology of sources relating to the peasantry. However, the predominance of forms of state feudalism and the need for internal colonization contributed to the preservation of the traditional status of the personally free subjects of the prince by the Polish peasantry. In the princely and church estates, along with the peasants, one could also meet landless slaves, slaves, whose role in the economy and their share in the social structure were not great.
As for the Polish burghers, in the XI - XII centuries. it is just beginning to take shape as a separate social group, since even a specialized craft remained the occupation of the villagers, and trade remained the monopoly of the squad. However, in the XII century - especially in Silesia and Pomerania - mature forms of urban organization begin to take shape and the burgher class begins to act as a special layer in the social structure of society.
Thus, Poland X - XII centuries. was a society in which the division into social groups characteristic of mature feudalism was only outlined, and the processes of feudalization themselves were still far from completed.

Culture of Poland in the X-XII centuries.

10th-12th centuries - the time of Poland's introduction to the Latin culture of the West, the stage, so to speak, of apprenticeship, when Polish society mastered the achievements of medieval Christian civilization before making its own original contribution to European culture. Naturally, the gradual Christianization of the Polish population became the central process here, since throughout the Middle Ages culture and religion were inextricably linked.

"Baptism" and Christianization of Poland
As in many other cases, for example, during the "baptism" of Russia, political circumstances served as an immediate impetus for the proclamation of Christianity as the state religion. Fighting for Western Pomerania and facing the threat of German political and religious expansion, Mieszko I sought to find an ally in the person of the Czech rulers and stand on an equal footing in political and diplomatic relations with Germany. The union with the Czech Republic was reinforced by marriage with the Czech princess Dubrava, which was accompanied by the baptism of Mieszko I and his inner circle. Apparently, the very act of baptism took place not in Poland, but in Bavaria.
Mieszko I and other Polish rulers faced a difficult double task: to introduce Christianity into the practice of everyday life and into the consciousness of Polish society; ensure the emerging Polish church independence from the German hierarchy. The latter need was especially urgent, since Poland, as a field of activity for Christian missionaries, would have to fall into ecclesiastical and administrative dependence on the Archdiocese of Magdeburg. However, the first Polish monarchs managed to avoid this: at first, the clergy who arrived in Poland were headed by Bishop Jordan (Italian by birth), who arrived from the Czech Republic, later, in 1000, the Poznan Archdiocese, directly subordinate to Rome, was created, headed by Gaudent, a representative of the Czech aristocracy and a Czech by birth. blood.
The network of parishes took shape, of course, not immediately. Initially, monasteries became the main strongholds of Christianity, which converted the local population to the new faith and were training centers for the Polish clergy. The Polish bishops, apparently, for a long time remained generals without an army, and the church itself - the actual part of the state apparatus, completely dependent on the prince. Only in the 12th century, after the spread of the reforms of the famous Pope Gregory VII to Poland, did the clergy acquire class privileges and rights that gave the church independence from the state.
The uprising of 1037 testifies to the difficulty with which Christianity penetrated the popular strata. The Christianization of the bulk of the population, indeed, was the work of more than one decade and, perhaps, not even one century. Even in the retinue-princely environment, Christian norms and beliefs did not take hold immediately. Mieszko I himself, after the death of Dubrava, married a nun, Bolesław the Brave was married many times and had concubines; under Boleslav the Bold, teeth were knocked out for meat-eating during fasting; the churches themselves were originally very small and could accommodate only members of the elite during worship. Even such fundamental rites for Christianity as baptism, weddings and burials were performed very irregularly, if children were baptized, then they did it a few years after their birth; the dead continued to be burned, household items were placed in the graves, etc. The priests themselves were not much different from their parishioners: they were very often illiterate, had wives and children, plowed and hunted along with the peasants. Episcopal power remained nominal, Christianization until the 12th century was the concern of the state. At the same time, the process of transformation of religious customs and norms of behavior was underway, popular pagan culture was being replaced by Christian one, new beliefs were fused with old ones, the annual cycle of Christian holidays and fasts was performed with increasing regularity. In a word, in the X - XII centuries. Polish culture was undergoing a process of deep internal transformation, becoming part of Western Christianity.

Education, enlightenment, art
The spread of education and books was closely connected, as elsewhere in "barbarian" Europe, with the establishment of Christianity. Therefore, the emergence of the first schools and libraries, from which there were no documentary traces in the sources, should be attributed to the second half of the 10th century, although until the end of the 11th century, the Polish clergy received education in most cases outside of Poland. The first proper Polish school for the clergy is known from sources from the end of the 11th century. In the 12th century, schools existed at all cathedrals in Poland. There is no doubt that one of the schools existed before at the princely court. It is known about Mieszko II that he knew not only Greek, but also latin languages; his daughter Gertrude was fluent in Latin. In the Krakow Cathedral at the beginning of the XII century. there was a library of almost 50 volumes; one must think that similar libraries existed in Gniezno and in Plock, where at the end of the 11th - beginning of the 12th centuries. housed the residence of the monarch.
The first monuments of Polish literature were, respectively, hagiographies and chronicles created in monasteries and at the princely court. Hagiographic literature is represented by the life of the famous missionary St. Wojciech, created already in the 10th century and a story about the life and martyrdom of 5 other monks who took part in missionary work in Poland. The author of the last work and one of the editions of the life of St. Wojciech was Bruno from Querfurt. From the end of the XII century. the handwritten tradition of the life of St. Stanisław, Bishop of Cracow, who was executed by Bolesław the Bold.
The secular literature of this time is represented by the chronicle of Gallus Anonymus, written at the beginning of the 12th century, by the first rockers and the so-called. "Maur's Song" of the 12th century, which sings the deeds of the governor of the Polish king Vladislav the Exile, the eldest son of Boleslav Krivousty.
Of course, as in any society, in Poland throughout the Middle Ages the richest folklore traditions were preserved, reflected in a number of narrative sources of the 12th and subsequent centuries.
Polish architecture of the 11th - 12th centuries. It is represented mainly by church monuments of the Romanesque style, although traces of the first princely castles dating back to the turn of the 10th and 11th centuries are also known. In the Romanesque style, cathedrals were built or rebuilt in Gniezno, Poznan, Krakow and Plock, monastery churches in Tynce, Krushwitz, the church of St. Andrew in Krakow, a temple in Strzelno. The most notable monument of art of this era is the bronze doors of the Gniezno Cathedral (second half of the 12th century), decorated with 18 sculptural scenes from the life of St. Wojciech. A number of other sculptural monuments of these centuries and many works of small plastic arts and applied art are also known. In the 12th century, the traditions of book miniatures began to take shape in Polish culture.