Polish Monarchs’ Sexuality in the Light of the Annals by Jan Długosz
Polish Monarchs’ Sexuality in the Light of the Annals by Jan Długosz

Summary/Abstract: The article presents Jan Długosz’s views on sexual inclinations and practices of the Polish medieval monarchs, seen in terms of sinful behaviours. Juxtaposing the chronicler’s statements on the intimate sphere’s pathologies of the representatives of the Piast and Jagiellon dynasties is the starting point of conducted argumentations. Then, on the basis of the gathered material, the chronicler’s attitude towards these offences – i.e. debauchery, adultery, rapes, and sodomy/peccatum contra naturam – was examined. Thus understood sexuality of the rulers was studied in specific contexts, in which it was referred to in the Annals. This approach results from the nature of the work, which is not a fully credible source of knowledge on the topic of sexual activity in factual sense. As a historiographic work, the Annals – the author of which aimed at giving a moralising and didactic dimension – are, in turn, an excellent foundation for recognising the pattern of monarchical customs, postulated by the representative of the 15th-century Polish clergy. The conducted analysis also allowed to comment on the significance which the author assigned to information on the rulers’ certain inclinations in order to justify historiosophic vision presented in the work.

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