Jan Dlugosz

Długosz, Jan 

Born 1415, in the village of Brzeżnîca, Radomsko Powiat; died May 19, 1480, in Kraków. Polish historian and diplomat and canon of Kraków from 1436. Appointed archbishop of L’vov in 1480.

Długosz studied at the University of Kraków (1428-31), becoming secretary to Cardinal Z. Oleśnicki (1439-55) and, later, the tutor of King Casimir IV’s children. His History of Poland, consisting of 12 books written in Latin and covering events to 1480, represents the culmination of Polish medieval historical writing. Długosz used materials from state and church archives and Polish, Czech, Hungarian, Russian, and Lithuanian chronicles. A constant theme in Długosz’ works is the struggle for the unification of the Polish lands.

WORKS

Opera omnia, vols. 1-14. Kraków, 1863-87.
Griunva’ dskaia bitva. Moscow-Leningrad, 1962. (Translated from Latin.)
Roczniki czyli Kroniki slawnego Królestwa Polskiego, books 1-4. Warsaw, 1962-69.

REFERENCES

Bobrzynski, M., and S. Smolka. Jan Długosz. Kraków, 1893.
Rozbiór krytyczny Annalium Poloniae Jana Długosza, vols. 1-2. Wroclaw, 1961-65.