Konrad was the fourth son of Henry II the Pious, Duke of Silesia and High Duke of Poland from 1238, by his wife Anna, daughter of the Přemyslid king Ottokar I of Bohemia. At the time of his father's death in the 1241 Battle of Legnica against the Golden Horde, he and his younger brotherWładysław were placed under the guardianship of their eldest brother Duke Bolesław II Rogatka. After Henry's sudden death, the Silesian Piasts were not able to maintain their dominant position: Bolesław II tried to succeed his father on the Polish throne at Kraków, but eventually could not prevail against his Piast cousin Konrad I of Masovia. In order to avoid further fragmentation of the paternal lands, the elder duke, with the approval of their mother, sent Konrad to study in Paris, where he was to be educated with the intention of becoming a priest in the future. However, in 1248, when the young man found out about the division of the family lands between his older brothers Bolesław II, ruling as a Duke of Legnica, and Henry III the White, Duke at Wrocław, he returned to the country and claimed his part of the Silesian inheritance. Soon an preliminary agreement was reached under which Konrad remained under the protection and care of his older brother, who gave him the title of co-ruler in Legnica. Bolesław II still proposed Konrad for spiritual posts: first, as Provost of Głogów Cathedral, and then Bishop of Passau in Bavaria. Though he had not reached the canonical age, he was elected by the Passau cathedral chapter to succeed the deposed bishop Rüdiger of Bergheim; however, without approval by the Roman Curia. Konrad, nevertheless, didn't have any intention of pursuing an ecclesiastical career. He never entered Passau and soon resumed his conflict with Bolesław II. In June 1249 Konrad fled to Greater Poland, where he could count on the support of Duke Przemysł I. In 1251 he campaigned Bolesław's ducal lands and he managed to conquer Bytom Odrzański. Konrad's bonds with the Piast dukes of Greater Poland were reinforced after his marriage with Przemysł I's sister Salome. His other brother Henry III the White soon became another ally in the fight against Bolesław II. With the help of his new allies, and thanks to the revolt of the townspeople of Głogów, the campaign against Bolesław II ended in complete success. The Duke of Legnica was forced to accept his defeat and give the Lower Silesian lands of Głogów up to Krosno Odrzańskie and Żagań to Konrad as a duchy in his own right. Until the end of his life Konrad's relations with his brother Bolesław II remain strained. In 1257 Konrad made a dangerous move and kidnapped Bolesław from his residence in Legnica. The duke regained his freedom after a few months, but it is unknown at what price. It can be said that after that the duke never left Bolesław II a moment of happiness, but in 1271 the Duke of Legnica managed to regain the town of Bolesławiec near the Bóbr river. From about 1260 Konrad established closer contacts with the Kingdom of Bohemia and became involved in the expansionist politics of King Ottokar II. Also he promoted the colonization in his lands, mostly by German settlers. This was a decisive contribution to the institution of the Magdeburg town law in his Głogów residence in 1253. In contrast to his brother Bolesław II, Konrad vigorously supported Bishop Thomas I of Wrocław in his defence of church rights. However, when the bishop died in 1268 Konrad began to violate the privileges conferred by him, which led to conflicts with the new Bishop Thomas II Zaremba. At the end of his life he founded a church inZielona Góra dedicated to his grandmother, St. Hedwig of Silesia. The church was completed only twenty years after his death by his son and heir Henry III.
Marriages and Issue
In 1249 Konrad contracted his first marriage to Salome, daughter of Duke Władysław of Greater Poland. They had six children:
