ZBIGNIEW DALEWSKI BOLESŁAW WRYMOUTH’S PENANCE AND GALLUS ANONYMOUS’ CHRONICLE 1 Gallus Anonymous’ chronicle contains a relatively lengthy account of the tragic events which took place in 1111. According to the chronicler’s description, the older stepbrother of duke Bolesław III Wrymouth of Poland, Zbigniew, whom Bolesław had sent to exile several years earlier, had eventually despaired of ever regaining the throne through military intervention or the help of the emperor, the Czechs or the Pomeranians, and decided to seek agreement with his victorious brother. Hearing that Bolesław had forced the Czech duke to allot his younger bro- ther a separate province, Zbigniew humbly asked Bolesław to do alike and return him, too, some part of the patrimony taken away from him. At the same time he assured Bolesław that he did not want to equal him in anything, but “would always obey him as a knight his lord in every regard”. Bolesław answered his brother’s humble plea and decided to forgive him the offences he had committed and hand him over a certain number of strongholds. Soon, however, it became clear that Zbigniew did not intend to keep the agreement with Bolesław and did not renounce the plans to reach for princely power. He gave voice to these aspirations already during the celebrations accompanying his arrival. According to Gallus’ argument, the sword carried before him and the presence of musicians playing drums and cythers in his retinue, were to indicate clearly that Zbigniew “would not be coming to serve but to rule” and “would not be a knight at his brother’s command but his brother’s lord and master”. In this situation the vio- lent reaction of Bolesław should not be surprising. Zbigniew’s arrogant behaviour could arouse suspicion as to his future plans. The duke had grounds for believing the rumours about Zbigniew’s plot and for taking a resolute action against his treacherous brother. To be sure, Gallus dissociated himself from accusing Zbigniew of conspiracy to murder Bolesław, blaming not so much the duke’s brother as his 1 This text is based of one the chapters of my book Ritual and Politics. Writing History of a Dyna- stic Conflict in Medieval Poland published by Brill.