Bezprym

Bezprym (Old Polish: Bezprzym [ˈbɛspʂɨm]; c. 986–1032) was the duke of Poland from 1031 until his death. He was the eldest son of the Polish king Bolesław the Brave, but was deprived of the succession by his father, who around 1001 sent him to Italy in order to become a monk at one of Saint Romuald's hermitages in Ravenna. Expelled by his half-brother Mieszko II Lambert after the death of their father, Bezprym became ruler of large areas of Poland in 1031 following a simultaneous attack by German and Kievan forces and Mieszko II's escape to Bohemia. His reign was short-lived and, according to some sources, extremely cruel. He was murdered in 1032 and Mieszko II returned to the throne of Poland. It is speculated that a pagan reaction began during his short reign.