White Eagle, Polish Legend

A long time ago, there were three brothers: Lech, Czech, and Rus. They lived peacefully in a village surrounded by dense forests and cut by many rivers. They hunted in the woods and fished in the streams.

As the families grew, the ambitions of each brother grew as well. Each of them wished to rule over their own land.  “Who should stay here and who should move?” the question pondered upon them.

After thinking hard and debating for some time, the brothers came with a decision that all of them would move. It was not the happiest decision for them, leaving their homes and wandering into the unknown. The brothers valued their strong bonds, so they came to a conclusion that this was the best solution. With their hearts sinking, they spent the next few weeks on packing their belongings.

They travelled for many weeks through tough terrains, covered with lush vegetation and strong water currents. All those obstacles were not only slowing them down, but also were adding to their exhaustion.  

Rus, the oldest brother, was probably the best fisherman. Upon seeing a valley with many streams full of fish, tranquility overtook him. He knew this was the right place for him announcing, “I will stay here with my people.” Holding their tears back they said their goodbyes. The people voted and named the new country Rus. (Today's Belarus and Ukraine.)

The two brothers continued the journey. They reached the base of a mountain. Czech, the middle brother, loved the sun. The beauty of the sunrise gave him energy for the day and the sunset made him very peaceful for the night. As he looked at the massif elevation stretching upwards, he knew he found his home. He said to his brother, “Lech from the mountain I’ll be closer to the sun.” So they said their farewells. The people agreed to name the newfound in honor of their leader Czech country.

Lech and his companions persisted with their search. Their pace was getting slower and slower. When they came to a lake with crystal clear waters settled in a peaceful meadow, they stopped to take a rest.

While resting a white eagle circled above them. The eagle spread his wings and the sun shone through them making the ends of his feathers look golden. The eagle perched on its nest on an oak tree.

Lech saw this as a good omen and a sign that they should settle here as eagle did on a tree. He declared, “We should build our settlement here.” The people agreed. Some of them asked, “What should we call our new state?” “We will name it Gniezno as this means nest.” “There is one more thing,” said another, “Now we have to find a name for ourselves.” It was agreed it would be Polonians, meaning 'people of field.'

Gniezno was the first capital of Poland and the white eagle with golden ending feathers was the country’s official emblem.

The archaeologists have proved that the legend of Lech is not far from the truth. Mieszko I was the first prince of Poland, who was a Slav chief.