ABSTRACT
The idea of converting the Prussians arose as early as the late tenth century. In 997, Bishop Adalbert of Prague made a trip to Poland where the Polish ruler, King Boleslaw I, contributed a boat and 30 armed guards to the missionary journey. Poland having broken up into territorial principalities after Boleslaw’s death, the individual Polish princes wanted to strengthen their positions. A Cistercian monk of Oliva, Christian, also joined the missionary work of the Lekno monastery. The work of Christian, who enjoyed a great deal of support, began to show some results in the western and south-western Prussian territories. The increasing frequency of Christian attacks resulted in an increased intensity of Prussian raids. A larger number of princes took part in the following year’s crusade: besides Prince Henry I of Silesia, there were Prince Conrad of Masovia, Prince Leszek the White of Smaller Poland, and Prince Mestwin of Danzig with his two sons, Swantopolk and Wratislaw.
