Władysław II Jagiełło SZKO Ł A PODSTAWOWA INTEGRACYJNA NR 21 KOSZALIN | POLAND

Władysław II Jagiełło  was Grand Duke of Lithuania (1377–1434), King of Poland (1386– 1399) alongside his wife Jadwiga, and then sole King of Poland.  Born a pagan, in 1386 he converted to Catholicism and was baptized as W ł adys ł aw.

Władysław II Jagiełło  He married the young Queen Jadwiga, and was crowned King of Poland as W ł adys ł aw II Jagie łł o.  In 1387 he converted Lithuania to Christianity. His own reign in Poland started in 1399, upon death of Queen Jadwiga, and lasted a further thirty-five years and laid the foundation for the centuries-long Polish–Lithuanian union.  He was the founder of the Jagiellonian dynasty in Poland that bears his name and was the heir to the already established house of Gediminids in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

Władysław II Jagiełło  royal dynasties ruled both states until 1572, and became one of the most influential dynasties in the late medieval and early modern Central and Eastern Europe. During his reign, the Polish- Lithuanian state was the largest state in the Christian world

Union of Krewo

 4 August 1385 by Jogaila, Grand Duke of Lithuania, in exchange for marriage to the underage reigning Queen Jadwiga of Poland. The act was very limited in scope and in the historiography the term "Union of Krewo" often refers not only to the particular document but to the events of 1385–1386 as a whole.  After the negotiations in 1385, Jogaila converted to Christianity, married Jadwiga, and was crowned King of Poland in The union was a decisive moment in the histories of Poland and Lithuania; it marked a beginning of the four centuries of shared history between the two nations.

Władysław II Jagiełło  Jogaila was the last pagan ruler of medieval Lithuania. After he became King of Poland, as a result of the Union of Krewo, the newly formed Polish-Lithuanian union confronted the growing power of the Teutonic Knights.

Polish–Lithuanian– Teutonic war  The Battle of Grunwald was one of the largest battles in Medieval Europe and is regarded as the most important victory in the histories of Poland, Belarus and Lithuania.

The Battle of Grunwald  It has been used as a source of romantic legends and national pride, becoming a larger symbol of struggle against foreign invaders. During the 20th century, the battle was used in Nazi and Soviet propaganda campaigns. Only in recent decades have historians moved towards a dispassionate, scholarly assessment of the battle, reconciling the previous narratives, which differed widely by nation.

The Battle of Grunwald Commanders and leaders W ł adys ł aw II Jagie łł o, supreme commander. Vytautas the Great, Lithuanian commander. Grandmaster Ulrich von Jungingen † Strength 16,000–39,000 men11,000–27,000 men Casualties and losses 4,000–5,000 dead 8,000 wounded 200–400 Teutonic Knights killed 8,000 dead 14,000 captured

Golden Age  The allied victory at the Battle of Grunwald in 1410, followed by the Peace of Thorn, secured the Polish and Lithuanian borders and marked the emergence of the Polish– Lithuanian alliance as a significant force in Europe. The reign of W ł adys ł aw II Jagie łł o extended Polish frontiers and is often considered the beginning of Poland's Golden Age.

Władysław II Jagiełło

Succession  W ł adys ł aw's second wife, Anna of Celje, had died in 1416, leaving a daughter, Jadwiga. In 1417, W ł adys ł aw married Elisabeth of Pilica, who died in 1420 without bearing him a child, and two years later, Sophia of Halshany, who bore him two surviving sons. The death in 1431 of Princess Jadwiga, the last heir of Piast blood, released W ł adys ł aw to make his sons by Sophia of Halshany his heirs, though he had to sweeten the Polish nobles with concessions to ensure their agreement, since the monarchy was elective.

Succession  W ł adys ł aw finally died in 1434, leaving Poland to his elder son, W ł adys ł aw III, and Lithuania to his younger, Casimir, both still minors at the time. The Lithuanian inheritance, however, could not be taken for granted. His death in 1434 ended the personal union between the two realms, and it was not clear what would take its place