This is my very first AAR. In fact, after purchasing Hearts of Iron 2, and reading the AAR's on this forum, I was spurned to purchase all Paradox Interactive titles on alternative history (Save for EU3, alas, my coputer can't handle it!). I hope this is enjoyable, and I would appreciate any support I can get, seeing the immense support for other AAR's as I 'ghosted' these forums until finally deciding to create my own AAR. Enjoy!
On another note, I would like to give thanks to thrashing mad and his excellent blank map, which proved to be invaluable in the creation of this AAR, as well as literAARy influences from several prominent members of these boards.
Under the Eagle’s Wings
Part 1- The Legacy of Boleslaw II Piast
Part 1- The Legacy of Boleslaw II Piast

When Boleslaw II Piast (Also known as Boleslaw Bardzo or Boleslaw the Mighty) inherited the title of the King of Poland in 1066 from his father Kazimierz, Poland was less of a country and more of a dream. It was at this time that the newly crowned king of the “Pearl between the Two Rivers” decided that it would be his mission to fully free himself, as well as his posterity, from the yoke of the heavy-handed Holy Roman Emperor, and to form an empire under the wings of the Great White Eagle that would rival the other European powers as one of the greatest dominions ever created on European soil.
As a child, Boleslaw adored his father, who took his time to teach the young Piast the lessons necessary to rule an empire. In particular, he focused on the martial aspects of kinghood, versing the child with active and brutal lessons in combat that would one day prove to be invaluable against the enemies of the Polish. It was the birth of a power that would be feared across the whole of Europe. His constant focus on his martial prowess would lead to his training at the hands of his father’s best soldiers. Before accepting the crown of King he would prove to be invaluable as an officer on the field of battle, earning his place as one of the best commanders in his time.
All of this, however, would have its detriments, as he displayed an unusual temper against slights and insults. He was not a man to be crossed. His saving grace may have been, in fact, the heavy-handedness in which his father forced the young Boleslaw to study the scripture. Despite this, Boleslaw would not be known for his mind, but he learned the value of generosity and valour on the field of battle, where he consorted with other members of the Druzhina, forming strong bonds that would allow him to understand the toil and suffering of combat and the bounds of human intolerance.
Upon the death of his father, the title of King passed to Boleslaw, as the title of Duke of Mazovia passed on to his brother. The two were not very close, as Boleslaw was the favored son, but the succession passed without incident. The stage was set for a period of rapid advancement onto the forefront of the European stage.
Seeing his brother as a possible threat, and armed with the knowledge that only through his children would his line continue, Boleslaw married Eufemia von Steutzlingen from Brandenburg in February of 1067. Ignoring warnings against her supposed “unchaste” nature, Boleslaw couldn’t resist her wiles, despite her unusual outward appearance. Boleslaw wasted no time, and his first son, Janislaw Piast, was born in March of 1068. At about the same time, Boleslaw was approached by the Republic of Venice in order to form an alliance. Impressed by the mercantile prowess of the Venetians, Boleslaw accepted.
Seeing the rich Pommeranian lands to the north, Boleslaw could not help but recall to his mind his ancestors, who in times past had the very same lands he wanted for himself. He declared war in June of 1068, sending a force of 6,500 men north to attack and sieze Danzig, an important port on the Baltic sea. He reached the city in July of 1068.
He sent his forces in pursuit of the fleeing Pommeranians, scoring decisive victories against the numerically overwhelmed enemies, finally meeting with Domenico of Venice and his 4,000 men in Stettin. Despite the harsh winter, The combined Venetian-Polish alliance forced the city to surrender, claiming the Count titles of Danzig, Slupsk, and Stettin for himself, while rewarding the Venetians with remunerations for their assistance. He later divided the titles amongst his court, granting Slupsk and Stettin to Janusz Odrowaz and Danzig to Eufrozyna Wlostowic, Countess of Opole.

The time afterwards was relatively peaceful for a few years, despite localized revolts in the newly conquered provinces. Boleslaw immediately regretted his decision to hand out the titles of Slupsk and Stettin, but preferred to maintain the status quo to avoid insurrection by his vassals. The Pope sent Czibor Grot to be the Diocese Bishop in King Boleslaw’s court and Boleslaw’s first and only daughter, Scholastyka Piast, was born in January 1070.
In August of 1070, the King’s trusted marshal and close friend Bogumil died of natural causes from his battle wounds, and against the church’s best efforts, he appoints Czibor Grot to his former friend’s position. The change is short lived, as Czibor dies the next year. In his place, the king has no choice but to appoint the terribly inadequate Sulislaw Gryf in his place.
Shortly after the appointing of Sulislaw, Boleslaw was approached by an attractive woman seeking his “comforts.“ He declined the offer, but saw the instance as part of a greater plot. In April of 1071, his second son, Zbigniew Piast was born. Seeing the birth as a herald of greater power, coinciding with the northeasterly Prussian armies heading off to war in foreign lands to the east. Boleslaw quietly mobilizes 6,000 men and heads north to the western banks of the Vistula River. Boleslaw declares war in late May of 1071 and marches into Marienburg. At the request of his brother, Wladislaw Herman Piast mobilizes the Duchy of Mazovia and heads north to Chelminskie with 1,200 men.
Shortly into the siege of Marienburg, Eufemia is revealed to have sponsored a plot to force an excommunication of Boleslaw by dispatching a young woman to force Boleslaw to commit “infidelities.” At this same time, Zbigniew is revealed to be a bastard. His pride slighted, Boleslaw has Eufemia arrested and brought to the siege, where she is executed in mid-July. He marries Gunhild Banner from Denmark in late July, before the completion of the siege in early August.
Rather than wait for the campaigning Prussians in Polotsk to return, Boleslaw travels across foreign lands, meeting a force of 500 Lithuanians who aid in defeating the much smaller Prussian force. Boleslaw gives chase for over 300 miles, wiping out any resistance he encounters. Meanwhile, despite repeated attempt to lift the siege, Wladislaw causes the garrison in Chelminskie to surrender in April in 1072, ending the Pole-Prussian War.

In October of 1072, Dobromir Piast was born. His birth forced the king’s bloodlust to subside, as he instead worked to lift his country out of the immense war debt he had incurred during his campaigning. Aware of the growing might of the Lithuanians to the north, the king focused on technological advancement of his people, as well as expanding the economic base in his personal lands. With great success, King Boleslaw Bardzo advanced the Polish kingdom to the point where it stood as great a threat as any other on continental Europe.
This time of peace, however, was not without strife. Internal revolts were commonplace, progressing to the point where Boleslaw made concessions to the peasants in exchange for their conversion to Christianity in Danzig. Meanwhile, in the Holy Roman Empire, internal schisms led to its splintering as Bohemia declared its independence, along with Bavaria. The French, siezing the opportunity, declare war on a weakened Emperor, seizing the core German lands, replacing the Emperor’s demense with lands directly under the King of France.
On a different note, Boleslaw’s fourth son, Przeclaw, was born in September of 1077, but died days later from an unknown illness. This time, Boleslaw took it as an omen, changing his ways from utter warlord to caring father, personally raising his sons and training them in the ways of war. While acting as a personal role model for his children, his fifth and favourite son Wszebor Piast was born in March of 1079.
At the urging of the church, Boleslaw, against his better judgement, sent Zbigniew to learn scripture at the Bishopric of Krakow. Zbigniew would never fully forgive his father, and even Boleslaw’s own brother, Wladislaw Herman Piast, pleaded with his brother for another solution. The call of the church was too strong, and Zbigniew was sent away.
Meanwhile, incessant warfare amongst the Russian Principalities split Kiev in two permanently, as the Lithuanians conquered vast tracts of territory in former Kiev and Polotsk lands. In February of 1080, Wladislaw Poraje, a former aid of the Duchy of Mazovia and former personal war advisor to Wladislaw Herman Piast arrived in King Boleslaw’s court. Spurned to action by the weakened state of a war-weary Kiev, Boleslaw set his sights on Vladimir Volynsky and Peremshyl. The gears began to turn as the shadow of the White Eagle’s wings began their eastern creep into Russia…
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