Przemyślidzi między Henrykiem II a Bolesławem Chrobrym, czyli o okolicznościach, które zapoczątkowały zależność lenną czeskich książąt od władców Rzeszy
The House of Přemyslid between Henry II and Boleslaus the Brave or the circumstances which commenced an oath of fealty taken by Czech dukes to the rulers of the Reich

Summary/Abstract: The article summarises in a synthetic form the political circumstances which resulted in a habit where a Czech ruler assumed the Bohemian throne as fealty held by the ruler of the Reich. Between the early 11th and the late 12th centuries, it was standard behaviour for the Přemyslid dukes to confirm their rule over Bohemia via the German king. However, not all Přemyslids addressed the ruler of the Reich to complete the act. This article discusses the political situation in the late 10th and the 11th centuries with special emphasis placed on Czech issues. The key task here was to present the political situation in Bohemia following Boleslaus II’s death. In Bohemia it was a time of a power crisis and therefore weakening the position of Czech rulers against their powerful neighbours: Bolesław the Brave and king Henry II. The turmoil accompanying the assumption of the throne in Prague and the political games played by Bolesław the Brave and Henry II led to an oath of fealty sworn by Vladivoy, duke of Bohemia, to Henry in 1002. This act, stemming from impromptu political circumstances, became a precedence referred to in the subsequent years not only by rulers of the Reich but also Czech dukes who intended to secure the throne from their relatives’ designs.

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