Konrad the Curly was a Polish prince member of the Piast dinasty in his Silesian branch

Dukes of Silesia

The Dukes of Silesia were the sons and descendants of the Polish Duke Bolesław III Wrymouth. In accordance with the last will and testament of Bolesław, upon his death his lands were divided into 4-5 hereditary provinces distributed among his sons, and a royal province of Kraków reserved for the...

.

He was the third son of Henry I the Bearded

Henry I the Bearded

Henry I the Bearded , of the Silesian line of the Piast dynasty, was Duke of Silesia at Wrocław from 1201 and Duke of Kraków and thus High Duke of all Poland - internally divided - from 1232 until his death.-Heir of Wroclaw:...

, Duke of Wroclaw

Wroclaw

Wrocław , situated on the River Oder , is the main city of southwestern Poland.Wrocław was the historical capital of Silesia and is today the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. Over the centuries, the city has been part of either Poland, Bohemia, Austria, Prussia, or Germany, but since 1945...

, by his wife (and later Saint) Hedwig

Hedwig of Andechs

Saint Hedwig of Silesia , also Saint Hedwig of Andechs from the comital House of Andechs was Duchess of Silesia from 1201 and of Greater Poland from 1231 as well as High Duchess consort of Poland from 1232 until 1238.-Life:...

, daughter of Berthold IV, Duke of Merania

Berthold IV, Duke of Merania

Berthold IV was the Count of Andechs and first Duke of Merania , that is, the seacoast of Dalmatia and Istria of the House of Andechs...

.

Life

Little is known about his early years. The death of his older brother Bolesław in 1208 left him in the second place over the Silesian inheritance, after his brother and new heir Henry II the Pious

Henry II the Pious

Henry II the Pious , of the Silesian line of the Piast dynasty was Duke of Silesia at Wrocław and Duke of Kraków and thus High Duke of all Poland as well as Duke of Southern Greater Poland from 1238 until his death. During 1238–1239 he also served as a regent of two other Piast duchies: Sandomierz...

. He died very young after a fall from his horse during a hunt

Hunting

Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...

 and was buried in Trebnitz

Trebnitz

Trebnitz is a village and a former municipality in the district Burgenlandkreis, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2011, it is part of the town Teuchern....

, where his sister Gertrude was the Abbess.

Prince Konrad was the hero of the first alleged ethnic conflict between the Polish

Poles

thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...

 and Germans

Germans

The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....

 in Silesia

Silesia

Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...

. According to an anonymous Silesian monk, the author of the "Polish-Silesian Chronicles" from the 13th and 14th century, Henry I the Bearded tried to leave all his inheritance to Henry II the Pious. This led in a quarrel between the brothers, who degenerated in an open conflict with the passive attitude of their parents. In this dispute, the young Konrad had the support of the Polish, and Henry II gained the favour of the Germans. As a result, both forces crushed in the Battle of Studnica near Opole

Opole

Opole is a city in southern Poland on the Oder River . It has a population of 125,992 and is the capital of the Upper Silesia, Opole Voivodeship and, also the seat of Opole County...

 in 1213, were the Germans under the leadership of Henry II defeated the Polish troops of Konrad. The chronicles suggests that Konrad's fatal accident shortly after wasn't coincidence.

Thanks to this information, by the 19th and early 20th century, Prince Konrad became in a Polish national hero. Historiography

Historiography

Historiography refers either to the study of the history and methodology of history as a discipline, or to a body of historical work on a specialized topic...

 recognized the Battle of Studnica as a breakthrough event for the Polish Silesia

Silesia

Silesia is a historical region of Central Europe located mostly in Poland, with smaller parts also in the Czech Republic, and Germany.Silesia is rich in mineral and natural resources, and includes several important industrial areas. Silesia's largest city and historical capital is Wrocław...

. The Silesian writer Jan Mikołaj Jaroń created a 1920 drama with the title Konrad the Curly. In 1928, Leon Schiller

Leon Schiller

Leon Schiller de Schildenfeld was a Polish theater and film director, critic and theoretician. He was also a composer and wrote theater and radio screenplays....

 developed the Silesian Drama at the beginning of the 13th century in five acts. As a defender of the Prince, Zofia Kossak-Szczucka

Zofia Kossak-Szczucka

Zofia Kossak-Szczucka was a Polish writer and World War II resistance fighter. She co-founded the wartime Polish organization Żegota, set up to assist Poland's Jews in escaping the Holocaust...

wrote Legnickie Pole in 1931. Konrad's brother and antagonist, Henry II the Pious, was recognized as pro-German.