Sobeslav II, called Prince of the Peasants or King of the Peasants, was the duke of Bohemia from 1173 to 1179. He was the second son of Sobeslav I

Sobeslav I of Bohemia

Sobeslaus I was Duke of Bohemia from 1125 until his death. He was a member of the Přemyslid dynasty, the youngest son of Vratislaus II , the first Bohemian duke to also rule as king, with his third wife Svatava of Poland.-Life:...

. Supported by neither noblesse nor emperor, he was backed solely by the lowest classes.

In 1172, Frederick

Frederick of Bohemia

Frederick was the duke of Olomouc from 1164 and then duke of Bohemia from 1172 to 1173 and again from 1178 to his death. He was the son of King Vladislaus II, who abdicated in 1172 in his favour...

, son of Ladislaus II, succeeded his abdicating father. Frederick Barbarossa, the Holy Roman Emperor

Holy Roman Emperor

The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...

, held a diet at Hermsdorf

Hermsdorf

Hermsdorf may refer to the following places:*in Germany:**Hermsdorf, Brandenburg, in the Oberspreewald-Lausitz district, Brandenburg**Hermsdorf, Saxony-Anhalt, in the Börde district, Saxony-Anhalt**Hermsdorf, Saxony, in the Weißeritzkreis district, Saxony...

 in September 1173 and deposed Frederick, nominating Oldrich, son of Sobeslav I. Oldrich immediately abdicated in favour of his elder brother Sobeslav II. Sobeslav had been imprisoned since 1161.

Sobeslav granted a charter to the town of Prague

Prague

Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...

, but he entered into a fight with Henry II, Duke of Austria

Henry II, Duke of Austria

Henry II , Count Palatine of the Rhine, 1140–1141, Margrave of Austria from 1141 to 1156 and, as Henry XI, also Duke of Bavaria from 1141 to 1156, Duke of Austria, 1156–1177, was a prince of the Babenberg dynasty....

, in 1175. In Summer 1176, an army led by the Duke Conrad Otto of Znojmo

Conrad II of Bohemia

Conrad II Otto was a member of Přemyslid dynasty, son of Duke Conrad II of Znojmo. He was the duke of Znojmo from 1177 until he was made margrave of Moravia from 1182 to 1186. He was then duke of Bohemia from 1189 to his death...

 devastated the country to the north of the Danube

Danube

The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....

. Churches and monasteries were attacked and Pope Alexander III

Pope Alexander III

Pope Alexander III , born Rolando of Siena, was Pope from 1159 to 1181. He is noted in history for laying the foundation stone for the Notre Dame de Paris.-Church career:...

 excommunicated the duke. Barbarossa intervened in 1177 and recognised Frederick as duke. By 1179, Sobeslav was removed and he died in "some part of a foreign land" on January 29, 1180, without heirs from his union with Elisabeth

Elisabeth of Greater Poland (1152–1209)

Elisabeth of Greater Poland was a Polish princess of the House of Piast and, by her two marriages, Duchess of Bohemia and Margravine of Lusatia....

 (d.1209), daughter of Mieszko III of Poland.