Battle of Zawichost The Battle of Zawichost ( 1205 ) was a skirmish fought between Roman the Great of Galicia - Volhynia and Leszek I the White of Lesser Poland , along with his brother , Konrad I of Masovia . After declaring war and invading Lesser Poland , Roman and his forces ( druzhina ) were ambushed by the Poles in the vicinity of Zawichost by the Vistula ( Visla ) River . In the tumult that followed , Roman was killed and the Polish victory would lead to Poland ' s growing power and the weakening of Rus ' . Background . In the 11th century , Poland and Rus ' entered a border dispute and the lands of Lesser Poland and Rus ' ( called " Ruthenia " in Latin ) were changing hands constantly . In the early Middle Ages , the area of what later would become Galicia was scarcely populated , as the region was settled by Rus ' peoples from the east and by Poles from the west . Border - clashes took place in the lands of Przemyśl , Sanok , Drohiczyn and Vladimir - in - Volhynia . The decline of Kievan Rus ' gave Poland the opportunity to seize control of the regions . In 1199 , an armed campaign led by Leszek the White helped to install Roman the Great on the throne in Vladimir - in - Volhynia . In 1205 , however , Roman declares war on Poland . The Polish chronicle , Jan Długosz , tried to give reasons for Roman ' s declaration of war : Długosz further explains that before crossing the Polish frontier , Roman sent emissaries to the Bishop of Vladimir and asked for his blessing , as he intended to campaign in Poland for three years . The Bishop declined Roman ' s gifts and denied him any blessing , explaining that " he cannot bless Roman or his enterprise , since he has previously started unjust and wicked wars and is again embarking on one that is quite unjustified , considering that the Poles have so often exposed their bodies to danger and death to defend the Ruthenians against the barbarians . " Roman responded by telling the bishop that he will cut his head off when he returns from his victory . Battle . In the early spring , Roman invaded the land of Lublin and laid siege to the city . The Polish garrison was successful in defending the city , but the Rus ' ian caused great destruction to the local population , as they captured and raped the wives of the knights of Lublin . Leszek then started recruiting a force of knights and peasants from Sandomierz , Kujawy , and Mazovia , which ws reinforced with a force of volunteers from Kraków . When Roman learned of the Polish force that was advancing towards him , he raised the siege and advanced deep into Poland by pillaging and threatening with devastation and eradication of the Latin rite . Several bishops and nobles approach Roman and asked for peace , promising to pay compensation ; Roman accepted , but continued with the war . He captured some priests and had them shot at with arrows , hoping to disclose the location of Leszek . Długosz gives a detailed description of the battle : Other accounts mention the same turn of events . The Suzdal Chronicle of the Laurentian Codex ) mentions that " Roman of Halych took on Poles and conquered cities . And stopped at the Vistula River with his small druzhina . Poles then attacked and killed him with the druzhina . And people from Halych came , took their dead prince and carried him to Halych and buried him in a church . " According to the later " Chronica Poloniae Maioris " ) Roman " refuses to pay the tribute to Leszek , bravely challenges him and with amassing the large force unexpectedly invades into the Polish lands . As Leszek found that out , he assembled a small troop rushed to meet him in Zawichost , fiercely attacks him , captures and defeats . Of the Ruthenians , that initially came arrogantly , many were wounded , very many killed with prince Roman , and the others , seeing [ that ] tried to find the rescue escaping , and many pathetically ended their lives in the Vistula [ . . . ] And so happened in 1205 AD . " " kh sosediakh , XI - XIII vv . ] " ( The Great Chronicle of Poland , Rus ' and their neighbours ) . Many of the Rus ' drowned and many more died at the hands of the local population , as Polish troops chased them all the way to Vladimir . Few survived the massacre and at the order of Leszek and Konrad , Roman ' s body was buried in Sandomierz . The two factions came to an agreement and the Russians released all their prisoners and paid 1 , 000 silver marks to recover the body of Roman , which was then buried in Vladimir . Aftermath . After his triumph , Leszek ' s reputation took a positive turn , earning him credibility and the trust of Kraków , which would give him temporary power over the city . Konrad , coming of age , asks for his share of power and at the meditation of their mother and a selected group of aristocrats , the two brothers divide the country under their authority . Rus ' turned unstable from its internal conflicts and the country is invaded by Lithuanians , this being the first time the Poles hear of that name . The Ruthenians suffered great casualties , but managed to defeat the invaders . In 1208 , the country falls in civilwar .