Warcisław II Świętoborzyc
- Style
- Renaissance
- Date
- 1598
- Material and technique
- Tempera on canvas
- Size
- 190 x 694 cm
- Location
- The National Museum in Szczecin
- Description
- Warcisław II Świętoborzyc (born before 1135, died 1196 - castellan of Szczecin, son of Świętobor the Elder from the Świętoborzyc clan. First mentioned as castellan of Szczecin in 1168. Five years later he was in charge of the defence of the city during the invasion of the Danish king Valdemar I, from whom he received Szczecin as a fief in exchange for ransom, hostages and for bringing Cistercians from the abbey in Esrum in Denmark, whom he founded and endowed the monastery in Kołbacz. Saxo Grammaticus describes Warcislaw as a devout Christian. As a Danish fief, Warcislaw probably ruled over quite a large area and his position was probably equal or almost equal to that of a duke. In documents from this period he usually appears at the head of the list of lay witnesses. After the death of Boguslaw I in 1187, he became regent of the Duchy of Pomerania on behalf of his minor sons. He probably sought an attempted alliance with the Duchy of Poland, which resulted in the intervention of the Danish King Canute VI in 1189. Warcislaw was deposed, and the new regent was appointed as the Rugian Prince Jaromar I. Warcislaw died in 1196, according to tradition, during a pilgrimage to Palestine.
