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Instytut Historii
The Cistercian monastery in Ląd in the early 14th century sought confirmation of its assets and rights from the princes ruling in Poland and from the Teutonic Order. It obtained the privilege from Władysław the Elbow-high in 1314, a few months after he took power in Greater Poland. The abbey used the lawsuit with the peasants of one of its estates a few years later not only to strengthen very specific rights, but also to confirm the foundation document, which was in fact a forgery.
The monastery was traditionally an important political partner in Greater Poland and its position contributed to reconciling the local elite with Władysław's triumph. The Cistercians in Ląd were Germans and maintained contacts with Cistercian monasteries in Saxony and other parts of Germany. They had estates and contacts in the country of the Teutonic Order. This created an opportunity to use them in diplomatic activities. Another area worth analyzing is the formation of a new order after the unification of some of the Piast duchies: defining the scope of the monarch's power and its willingness to interfere in local relations. It is worth asking whether the monarch's chancellery could and wanted to verify the authenticity of the documents submitted by the Cistercians. Perhaps a decision was made to tolerate the fact of forgery.