Duchy of Legnica

Duchy of Legnica
Księstwo Legnickie (pl) Herzogtum Liegnitz (de) Lehnické knížectví (cs)
Silesian duchy
1248–1675
Coat of arms
Greatest extent of territory of the Duchy during the reign of Henry V (orange)
Capital		Legnica
Government		Duchy
Historical era		Middle Ages Early modern period
•	Battle of Legnica	1241
•	Partitioned from     Lower Silesia	1248
•	Split off     Duchy of Głogów	1251
•	Vassalized by     Bohemia	1329
•	Inheritance treaty     with Brandenburg	1537
•	Seized by Habsburg	1675
•	Annexed by Prussia	1742
Preceded by Succeeded by Duchy of Silesia Kingdom of Bohemia

Coat of arms

The Duchy of Legnica (Polish: Księstwo Legnickie, Czech: Lehnické knížectví) or Duchy of Liegnitz (German: Herzogtum Liegnitz) was one of the Duchies of Silesia. Its capital was Legnica (Liegnitz) in Lower Silesia.

Legnica Castle had become a residence of the Silesian dukes in 1163 and from 1248 was the seat of a principality in its own right, ruled by the Silesian branch of the Piast dynasty until 1675. Formed by Bolesław II the Bald, Duke of Lower Silesia at Wrocław, Legnica shared the fate of most of the others Silesian duchies, falling into Bohemian, Austrian and eventually - after the First Silesian War - Prussian spheres of influence.

Legnica became famous for the Battle of Legnica (or Battle of Wahlstatt) that took place at the nearby village of Legnickie Pole (Wahlstatt) near the city on 9 April 1241, during the Mongol invasion of Poland. The Christian army of the Polish High Duke Henry II the Pious, supported by the feudal nobility, included Poles, Bavarian miners and military orders, was decisively defeated by the Mongols. Although the Mongols killed Henry and destroyed his forces, their advance into Europe was halted when they turned back to attend to the election of a new Khagan (Grand Khan) following the death in the same year of Ögedei Khan. Minor celebrations are held annually in Legnica to commemorate the battle.