Duchy of Belz
| Duchy of Belz constituent part of Kingdom of Rus, then Kingdom of Hungary, later Duchy of Masovia |
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 Map of Kingdom of Poland (1333–1370). Duchy of Belz visible as part of the Kingdom of Poland (Księstwo Chełmsko-Bełskie - light pink in the center-east portion of the Kingdom)
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| Capital | Belz | |||||||||
| Languages | Old East Slavic | |||||||||
| Religion | Orthodoxy | |||||||||
| Government | Monarchy | |||||||||
| History | ||||||||||
| • | Established | 1170 | ||||||||
| • | passes from Duchy of Volhynia to Duchy of Galicia–Volhynia | 1234 | ||||||||
| • | passes from Duchy of Galicia–Volhynia to Grand Duchy of Lithuania | 1340 | ||||||||
| • | passes from Grand Duchy of Lithuania to Kingdom of Hungary | 1377/1378 | ||||||||
| • | passes from Kingdom of Hungary to Kingdom of Poland | 1387 | ||||||||
| • | Disestablished | 1462 | ||||||||
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Coat of arms
Duchy of Belz or principality of Belz was a petty duchy, formed in the late 12th century in Kievan Rus. During its history the duchy was a constituent part of some other political entities such as the Kingdom of Rus, the Kingdom of Hungary, Duchy of Masovia when eventually in the late 14th century was incorporated into Poland becoming later the Bełz Voivodeship.
The duchy formed in 1170 because of the feudal fragmentation of Kievan Rus' when the Volhynia region (centered at Volodymyr-Volynsky) was passed to Mstislav II of Kiev who later split it between his sons. Mstislav was married to Agnes of Poland and in a fierce opposition to Yuri Dolgoruki. Being exiled to Poland for a short period of time Mstislav was able to drive the Suzdal's Prince out of Volhynia.
With time the city of Belz with its surrounded territories was passed to Vsevolod Mstislavich who in turn passed it to his son Alexander. In the early 13th century, Alexander, a nephew of Roman the Great, was deposed in 1234 from Belz by Daniel of Galicia who incorporated Belz into the Duchy of Galicia–Volhynia (later the Kingdom of Rus) which would control Belz till 1340. Soon afterwards, in 1240 and 1241, it was ravaged by the Mongols, as were most other Rus principalities; the town was burned, the local castle destroyed and locals had to recognize the Mongol suzerainty. The Mongol influence waned in the following decades, because of the decline of the Mongol Empire and Pax Mongolica.
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Wikipedia