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Piast Dynasty

Type Object Region Eastern Europe Time c. 960–1370

The Piast Dynasty was Poland's earliest medieval ruling dynasty, said to be founded by Piast, with capitals at Gniezno and Kraków, uniting scattered …

Timeline

  1. c. 960–1025Gniezno · PolandMieszko I was baptized and converted to Christianity, Bolesław I was crowned King of Poland, and the Piast Dynasty integrated the Polish tribes into the European Christian kingdom system.
  2. c. 1025–1102Kraków · PolandDuring the reign of Bolesław I the Brave, Bohemia (1003–1004) and Moravia were conquered and briefly controlled; Poland's territory once reached its medieval maximum, and Piast royal power flourished.
  3. 1131–1140Kraków · PolandIn his later years Bolesław III Wrymouth dealt with the Holy Roman Empire and Bohemia; before dying in 1138 he issued a testament dividing Poland among duchies, with the eldest son receiving Kraków and the supreme title, while the other sons took Masovia, Greater Poland, Silesia, etc., opening an era of feudal fragmentation.
  4. c. 1140–1370Polish duchies · PolandVarious Piast branches carved up and contended for power, with occasional brief reunifications by the Grand Duke of Kraków; Casimir III the Great restored strong rule, and after his death in 1370 the male direct line ended and the Angevin dynasty took the throne.

Sources