The three direct predecessors of Mieszko I are known only from the account of
Gallus Anonymus, who wrote the oldest Polish chronicle, at the beginning of the 12th century. Though their historicity was once debatable, now historians tend to consider them as actually existing rulers.
Mieszko I started his reign as leader of the
Polans, while other parts of future Poland were settled by other tribes, such as
Masovians,
Vistulans,
Lendians,
Silesians or
Pomeranians. During his reign, Mieszko united Polish lands and
adopted Christianity, connecting Poland with western Europe. His descendants ruled the state as natural lords and Poland was seen as their hereditary property. Because of that, the state was often divided between the sons of the deceased ruler and eventually united by one of them. Early Polish rulers were not considered equal to Western European kings, so their title is translated as a duke. Some of them managed to prepare a coronation and adopted the title of king, but the effects of those efforts were short lived.
Fragmentation of Poland (1138–1320) After a period of fights between brothers and unstable inheritance,
Bolesław III Wrymouth decided to formalize succession. According to his testament, the state was divided into provinces - one for every son and a
Senioral Province with the capital city
Kraków. The testament established two principles on which the new order in Poland was based: principate and seniorate. One duke, the princeps (also called in English high duke), had supreme authority over other dukes and ruled the senioral province. This princeps should be the oldest member of the dynasty, not necessarily the son of the predecessor. During the time of fragmentation, both principles were abolished. Seniorate was formally abolished in 1180 during the assembly of dukes and bishops in
Łęczyca, when
Casimir II the Just was made hereditary high duke. The Principate was
de facto ended in 1227 with the
assassination of Leszek I the White, after which local dukes no longer respected suzerainty of the high duke.
Attempt at restoration (1295–1296) In the 13th century, the idea of the reunification of Poland under a single ruler started to gain popularity. It was often connected with the coronation and establishment of the hereditary kingdom. First attempts were made by
Henry II the Pious and
Henry Probus, but both of them died before they managed to achieve their goals. The first duke, who became king in this period, was
Przemysł II. He ruled briefly as high duke but didn't manage to unite all Polish lands. He crowned himself when ruling in his hereditary province,
Greater Poland, and in the province of
Eastern Pomerania. His assassination in 1296 delayed the unification of Poland by 20 years. == Přemyslid House ==