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The Battle of Zawichost (1205) between Roman the Great of Halych-Volhynia and Leszek I the White of Lesser Poland is an event with rather contradictory accounts. While mentioned in several chronicles, the chroniclers agree only on the year, the opposing parties and that Roman with his force (druzhina) was ambushed and killed by the Poles in the vicinity of Zawichost by the Vistula (Visla) River. Although both Leszek I the White and his younger brother Konrad I of Masovia took part in the battle, the commander of the Polish forces was Krystyn, the voivod of Masovia.

Different historians and different chroniclers give contradictory accounts on the size of the opposing forces, the reason and the scale of Roman's campaign. Even the date of the skirmish is cited as June 19 or October 14, 1205, depending on the source.

According to the Suzdal Chronicle of the Laurentian Codex (cited by ):

"The same year (1205)... Roman of Halych took on Poles (Liahs) and conquered cities. And stopped at the Visla 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" (cited by ):

"At this time 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 tried to find the rescue escaping, and many pathetically ended their lives in the Vistula And so happened in 1205 AD."

It is difficult to understand how Roman, one of the greatest and most powerful Ruthenian princes, was in homage dependency to Leszek, a prince of the Lesser Poland, in order to refuse to pay the tribute at the first place. On the basis of Albert of Stade chronicles, some historians speculate that Roman could have been passing through Poland on his way to Saxony to assist Philip of Swabia, the son of Frederick Barbarossa, in the latter's quest for the Emperor's Crown. On his way Roman was met by Leszek, who was allied with the Saxon Welfs against Frederick and wished to prevent the Ruthenian prince from reaching the Saxony.

References

1. *Suzdal Chronicle Laurentian Codex
2. ^ Template:Ru icon V. L. IAnin; L. M. Popova, N. I. Shchaveleva, "Velikaia khronika" o Polshe, Rusi i ikh sosediakh, XI-XIII vv. (The Great Chronicle of Poland, Rus' and their negbours), Moscow, Moscow University, OCLC 22324865
3. Пашуто В. Т. Внешняя политика... — p. 165, LCC DK73 .I83 1988; Щавелева Н. И. Древнерусские известия Великопольской хроники // Летописи и хроники. — М., 1976. — С. 59 — 62, ISBN 5884511353; Chronica Alberici Monachi Trium fontium / Ed. P. Scheffer — Boichorst // MGH. SS. — Hannoverae, 1874. — Т. XXIII. — P. 885; Wlodarski В. Polityka ruska Leszka Bialego. — Lwow, 1925. — S. 19 — 21).

• Dovidnyk z istoriï Ukraïny, 3-Volumes, Article "Roman Mstyslavych" (T.3), Kiev, 1993-1999, ISBN: 5770751908 (t. 1), ISBN 5770785527 (t. 2), ISBN 9665042378 (t. 3).
• Roman Mstyslavych in Encyclopedia of Ukraine
• Roman Mstyslavych in Енциклопедія українознавства (Encyclopedia of Ukrainian studies), 3-volumes, Kiev, 1994, ISBN 5-7702-0554-7
• "Chronica Poloniae Maioris" (The Cronicle of Greater Poland), Chapter 31 (Russian translation available online)
• Ivan Kryp'yakevych, Halych Volynian principality, Kiev, 1984
• Suzdal Chronicle of Laurentian Codex (Original text "Тогож̑ лѣт̑ . ходиша кнѧзи Рѧзаньскъıӕ В на Половци и взѧша вежѣ ихъ ❙ Тогож̑ . лѣт̑ . Иде Романъ Галичьскъıи на Лѧхъı и взѧ . в҃ . города Лѧдьскаӕ . и ставшю же ѥму над Вислою рѣкою . и ѿѣха сам̑ в малѣ дружинѣ ѿ полку своѥго . Лѧхове же наѣхавше оубиша и . и дружину ѡколо ѥго избиша . приѣхавше же Галичане взѧша кнѧзѧ своѥго мр҃тва . и несоша и в Галичь . и положиша и въ цр҃кви ст҃ъıӕ Бц҃а")

• 1205
• Battles of Kievan Rus
• Battles of Poland
• Galicia (Central Europe)