Bolesław V the Chaste (Polish: Bolesław Wstydliwy; 21 June 1226 – 7 December 1279) was Duke of Sandomierz in Lesser Poland from 1232 and High Duke of Poland from 1243 until his death, as the last male representative of the Lesser Polish branch of Piasts.
Bolesław V was born on 21 June 1226 at Stary Korczyn, as the third child and only son of Leszek I the White by his wife Grzymisława, a Rurikid princess of disputed parentage.
Named after his great-grandfather Bolesław Wrymouth, the numeral V was assigned to him in the Poczet królów Polskich. His nickname of "Chaste" (Latin: Pudicus), appeared relatively early and was already mentioned in the Rocznik franciszkański krakowski. It was given to him by his subjects because of the vows of chastity that Bolesław V and his wife Kinga of Hungary had jointly taken; for this reason, their marriage was never consummated.
On 24 November 1227, during the Congress of Gąsawa, Bolesław V's father, Leszek the White, was killed. Like his own father and paternal grandfather before him, he was orphaned at a young age. After Duke Leszek's death, many people claimed the custody of his only son. The nobility of Kraków wanted the regency to be exercised by Dowager Duchess Grzymisława, jointly with the local voivode and bishop; however, this was contrary to the treaty of mutual inheritance signed in 1217 by Leszek and Władysław III Spindleshanks, under which it was agreed that in the event of the death of one of them, the other would take the government of his domains and custody of his minor children.
On 6 December 1227 Casimir I of Kuyavia - who probably represented his father Konrad I of Masovia at the funeral of Leszek I - advanced his father's claims over the custody of Bolesław V and his inheritance as his closest male relative. Due to the lack of response, Konrad I came to Skaryszew to negotiate with Grzymisława and the local nobility in the first half of March 1228, with regard to assuming the guardianship of his nephew during his minority. The nobility, especially the Gryfici family, preferred the rule of Władysław III Spindleshanks, but at that point, he was in the midst of fighting with his nephew Władysław Odonic and was unable to claim his rights. Konrad I then appeared in the northern part of Kraków, but at his side were only the Topór and Sztarza families, and so this attempt to take the Seniorate failed. According to Kazimierz Krotowski, the absence from Lesser Poland was the cause of the Prussian invasion of Masovia.
Adoption by Władysław Spindleshanks
On 5 May 1228, a meeting was organised in Cienia between Władysław Spindleshanks and a delegation of Kraków nobles, which included Bishop Iwo Odrowąż; voivode Marek Gryfita; Pakosław Awdaniec the Old, voivode of Sandomierz; and Mściwój, castellan of Wiślica. Under the terms of the meeting, Władysław agreed to the adoption of Bolesław V, making him his successor over Kraków and Greater Poland. After the meeting, Władysław arrived in Kraków, where Grzymisława formally gave him the rule of the city. The dowager duchess and her son received the Duchy of Sandomierz, where she exercised the regency.
Shortly afterwards, Władysław Odonic escaped from prison and the fight for Greater Poland was resumed. Władysław Spindleshanks was forced to leave Kraków. Then the local nobility, with the consent of Grzymisława, called Henry the Bearded to Kraków, but only to rule as a governor. In the summer of 1228, Konrad I of Masovia attacked Kraków, but was defeated at the Battle of Skała by Henry I's son, Henry the Pious. However, a year later, Konrad I captured Henry the Bearded and occupied Sieradz-Łęczyca and later Sandomierz, removing Grzymisława from power, despite resistance from the local nobility. In 1230, Władysław Spindleshanks, with the help of Henry I, made an unsuccessful attempt to recover his lands. Władysław died one year later in exile in Racibórz.
Władysław's will named Henry the Bearded heir to Kraków and Greater Poland. In 1231, with the support of the Gryfici family, Henry obtained the rule over Sandomierz, after Grzymisława (who feared for the future of the inheritance of her infant son) surrendered the regency. During 1231–1232, Henry fought against Konrad for Lesser Poland; by the autumn of 1232, Henry finally obtained control over Lesser Poland and Konrad could only keep Sieradz-Łęczyca.
Imprisonment by Konrad I of Masovia
In 1233, Konrad I of Masovia captured Grzymisława and her son after personally robbing and beating them, according to a bull of Pope Gregory IX. Bolesław V and his mother were imprisoned firstly in Czersk and then in Sieciechów. The humiliations to the dowager duchess continued there, including a slap in the face by Konrad I.
Henry the Bearded decided to rescue the imprisoned prince and his mother; shortly thereafter, Bolesław and Grzymisława managed to escape from the monastery of Sieciechów with the help of Kraków voivode Klement of Ruszcza and Mikołaj Gall, who was in charge of the prisoners. Both Klement and Mikołaj bribed the guards, who were busy drinking, and did not pay attention to the prisoners, who left the monastery in disguise. Jan Długosz described the events as follows:
When one night the guards, after drink and feast, forgot their duties, abandoned their posts and quietly during the night Duke Bolesław and his mother secretly left the monastery.
For safety reasons, Henry the Bearded hid Bolesław and his mother in the fortress of Skała near the valley of the Prądnik river. Then, on behalf of her son, Grzymisława renounced his rights over Kraków to Henry. In 1234, a war between Henry and Konrad for Lesser Poland broke out. Thanks to Archbishop Pełka, the Treaty of Luchani was signed in August of that year, under which Bolesław received Sandomierz and gave several castles to Henry. In June 1235, Pope Gregory IX approved the Treaty of Luchani; however, shortly afterwards, Konrad invaded Sandomierz, and as a result of this invasion, Bolesław lost the district of Radom.
Henry the Bearded died in 1238, and his son Henry the Pious succeeded him. Like his father, he took the regency of Bolesław and his Duchy of Sandomierz. In 1239 in Wojnicz, the 13-year-old Bolesław met his bride, the 15-year-old Kinga (also known as Kunigunda), daughter of King Béla IV of Hungary. The wedding was celebrated shortly thereafter. Kinga spent her first years in Sandomierz with her mother-in-law. On 9 July of that year, a meeting also took place in Przedbórz between Bolesław and Konrad, at which the Masovian ruler agreed to renounce his claims over Sandomierz. It was at this point that Bolesław began his personal government.
In 1241, the first Mongol invasion of Poland occurred. In January, the Mongols took Lublin and Zawichost. Bolesław, with his mother and wife, fled to Hungary at the side of his older sister Salomea, wife of the Hungarian prince Coloman, leaving his lands without his leadership. On 13 February, the Mongols conquered and burned Sandomierz, and on 11 March, he refused to participate in the Battle of Chmielnik. One month later, on 9 April, the Battle of Legnica took place, in which the army commanded by High Duke Henry II the Pious was defeated, and the duke himself was killed. After the defeat of the Hungarian army at the Battle of the Sajó River two days later (11 April) – where Prince Coloman was seriously injured and died shortly after – Bolesław V and his family (including Salomea, now a widow) fled to Moravia, and then eventually returned to Poland.
After the death of Henry the Pious, his eldest son, Bolesław the Bald, took the title of high duke; however, he did not appear in Kraków, where the government was exercised by Klement of Ruszcza on his behalf. Konrad I of Masovia took this opportunity, and despite the strong resistance of the knights and nobility, he finally entered Kraków on 10 July 1241. A few months later, the fortress of Skała, held by Klement of Ruszcza, capitulated. Despite his success, Konrad failed to gain the support of the local nobility, victims of Konrad's mercenaries (the Teutonic Order) themselves, who in 1243 appointed Bolesław the Chaste as their new ruler. On 25 May of that year, the Battle of Suchodoły took place, in which the Lesser Poland and Hungarian (Sarmatian) troops, under the command of Klemens of Ruszcza, defeated the Masovian troops of Konrad. With this victory, Bolesław the Chaste regained the government over Kraków. Now at the age of 17, he was the high duke of Poland; however, he remained under the strong influence of his mother until her death. Later that year, Konrad tried to regain control over Kraków and attacked Bolesław, but was again defeated.