Treść książki
Przejdź do opcji czytnikaPrzejdź do nawigacjiPrzejdź do informacjiPrzejdź do stopki
10
AgnieszkaTeterycz-PuzioRegencyofPiastDuchesses–Mothers’GovernmentonTheirSonsBehalf
transformedthisperspective.ThechangewastriggeredbythespreadofGerman
Law
3
andthereceptionofnewtrends,whichweredisseminatingwiththepres-
enceofthePiasts’foreignwivesfromBohemiaandHungary.Theperceptionof
saintsalsoaltered.Accordingtothelivesofsaints,holinessallowedamedieval
womantoattainmoreindependentstanding.Duchessesconsideredassaint-
lypersonswhilestillalive(forinstance,JadwigaofSilesia,AnnaPřemyslid,
KunegundaÁrpád)appearedtointercedebetweenthefaithfulandGod;
thus,theywerealsoinapositiontosometimesresistthewilloftheirduke-
consorts.
4
Inthe13
th
century,duringthepoliticalfragmentationofthePolishlandsafter
in1138BolesławWrymouthhaddividedanddistributedtheduchyofPoland
amonghissons,aso-farrareformofgovernmenttookshape:regencyheldby
mothersintheirminorsonsstead.Thismodeofmotherlyguardian-rulebecame
aregulartypeofgovernmentthroughouttheentireMiddleAges.Thatis,ifaduke
diesandhissuccessorisaminor,theson’smothertakesoverandruleswiththe
assistanceofthedeceasedduke’sadvisors.Whywasitthisway?
InthePolishlandstheperiodoffragmentationwasarestlesstime.Politically
speakingtheunitywasgoneandindividualduchieswouldberecognizedas
sovereignstatesbyneighboringrulers.ThePiastdukes,rulinginthePolish
lands,wouldfightoneanother,thenstartnegotiations,neverknowingwhether
theywouldreturnfromameetingwithacousin(abductionsandimprisonment
werefrequentlyinusetoextortconcessions).Hence,thecontinuityofgovern-
mentwasmenacedandafearofremovingminorsonsfrompowerasafollow-
upoftheirfather’ssuddendeatharoused.Consequently,asystemwasintro-
duced,whichprescribedthatinthecaseofaduke’sprematuredeathandthe
minorityofhissuccessor,powerwouldbetransferredtothemother,whowould
sometimesrulewiththehelpofherhusband’scousins.
Widow-regencycanbeobservedintheduchyofCracowandSandomierz,in
GreatPoland,andinCuiavia(untilintheearly14
th
centuryWładysławtheEl-
bowunifiedtheselands,andthekingdomofPolandreemerged).Thisformof
governmentsurvivedoutsidethekingdominotherlandsruledbythePiasts,
thatis,inWesternPomerania,SilesiaandMazovia(aslongastheoutsetofthe
16
th
century).
11111111
3
J.Wiesiołowski,ZmianapozycjispołecznejkobietywśredniowiecznejPolsce,[in:]Kobietawkultu-
rześredniowiecznejEuropy.PraceofiarowaneProfesorAlicjiKarłowskiej-Kamizowej,ed.A.Gąsio-
rowski,Poznań1999,p.42.
4
M.Michalski,Kobietyiświętośćwżywotachtrzynastowiecznychksiężnychpolskich,Poznań2004,
p.310.
