Bologna and the University of Bologna 117ALEXIOSI KOMNENOSand swore an oath of allegiance to
him. But this act only aggravated the rivalry between
Bohemond and Count RAYMONDIV OFSAINT-GILLESof
Toulouse for the position of supreme lay leader of the
Crusade. Charming when necessary, Bohemond was not
religious but ambitious, aggressive, and capable of
duplicity when it served his ends. Princess Anna KOM-
NENA, daughter of Alexios, was both attracted and
repelled by him, whom she described as blond, clean-
shaven, very tall, and well proportioned.
At the siege of ANTIOCHin the spring of 1098, Bohe-
mond was successful in breaching the city’s walls. Once
in control, he took the title of prince of Antioch, thus
ignoring his promise of 1097 to give the fortress to the
emperor. In August 1100 he was captured by the Turkish
emir of Sivas and held prisoner until he was ransomed
in the spring of 1103. When Bohemond’s small and
ill-equipped army was defeated in 1104 by the Turks at
Harran near the Euphrates River, he returned to FRANCE.
He married Constance, the daughter of King Philip I
(r. 1060–1108), and remained in France until 1107, when
he set out to lay siege to the Byzantine town of DURAZZO.
Emperor Alexios, however, defeated him and forced a
truce, making Bohemond his vassal for Antioch. Bohe-
mond returned to Italy and died on March 7, 1111, in
Canosa di Puglia in Apulia, where he was buried.
See alsoNORMANS.
Further reading:John France, Victory in the East: A
Military History of the First Crusade(Cambridge: Cam-
bridge University Press, 1994); Jonathan Riley-Smith, The
First Crusade and the Idea of Crusading (Philadelphia:
University of Pennsylvania Press, 1986); Jonathan Riley-
Smith, The First Crusaders, 1095–1131(Cambridge: Cam-
bridge University Press, 1997); Steven Runciman, A
History of the Crusades,Vol. 1, The First Crusade and the
Foundation of the Kingdom of Jerusalem(Cambridge: Cam-
bridge University Press, 1951); Ralph Bailey Yewdale,
Bohemond I, Prince of Antioch(1924; rpt. New York: AMS
Press, 1980).
Bojador, Cape The present Cape Bojador is located
on the northwestern coast of Africa. In 15th-century
Portuguese sources, it was represented as a limit to Euro-
pean navigation in that area. Its name in Arabic means
“father of danger.” These sources insisted that the Por-
tuguese could not sail beyond this point because of navi-
gational hazards and the inhospitable nature of the
supposedly uninhabited coast. There was also fear that
the return voyage might be impossible because of pre-
vailing winds and tides. It was finally passed in 1434 by
Gil Eanes, who, since his failure the previous year, was
under severe pressure from Prince HENRY THENAVIGATOR
to succeed.
The actual geographical location of this historic
15th-century Cape Bojador has not been unambiguously
identified. The modern Cape Bojador is easy to sail,
lacking the dangerous features listed by a captain in the
service of Kings John II (r. 1481–95) and Manuel I
(r. 1495–1521), who warned navigators to sail by the
cape at least 30 miles out to sea. The modern Cape Juby
or Yubi, located some 200 miles to the northeast, has
been suggested as the really dangerous place. It probably
symbolically embodied all the dangers of sailing by the
West African coast.
See alsoCANARYISLANDS.
Further reading: Bailey W. Diffie and George D.
Winius, Foundations of the Portuguese Empire, 1415–1580
(Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1977).Boleslav I the Great (the Brave, Chrobry)(ca.
966–1025)king of Poland, successful military commander
Born about 966 Boleslav continued from 992 the policy
of his father, Mieszko I (d. 992), to strengthen the state
and promote Christianity. With the help of the Emperor
OTTOIII, he obtained the quick canonization of Bishop
Adalbert (ca. 956–997) of Prague in 999 and the creation
in 1000 of new important bishoprics. Otto crowned him
in Griczno in 1000. He invited Benedictine monks to pro-
mote religious belief and help settle land. After Otto’s
death, he waged successful wars against Germans, ending
with the peace of Bautzen in 1018. Boleslav the Brave
enlarged the frontiers of the state by annexing to POLAND
a part of Slovakia and Moravia as well as, for a short
period, BOHEMIA. In the east, he pushed his frontiers to
the Bug River in 1018. Having transformed the small
duchy of Poland into a European power, he died in 1025.
See alsoPIASTDYNASTY.
Further reading:Norman Davies, God’s Playground: A
History of Poland,Vol. 1 (New York: Columbia University
Press, 1984); A. P. Vlasto, The Entry of the Slavs into
Christendom: An Introduction to the Medieval History of the
Slavs(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1970).Bologna and the University of Bologna Bologna is
a strategically located city in the province of ROMAGNA,
between northern and central ITA LY. During the fifth cen-
tury, the Roman city of Bononia was conquered by the
OSTROGOTHS. After the establishment of BYZANTINErule
in Italy in the middle of the sixth century, Bologna
became one of the cities of the exarchate of RAVENNA.
Allegedly given to the papacy by PÉPINIII the Short in
753 and CHARLEMAGNEin 774, Bologna was ruled by its
bishops until the 12th century. In the 11th century the
city grew as commerce thrived. Its law school founded by
IRNERIUS, the city and the nascent university became the
center for the study of Roman and canon law with stu-
dents and teachers from all over western Europe. In 1112
Bologna became a “free city” and joined the LOMBARD
League. During the struggles between the PAPACYand the
empire the city supported one, then the other. In 1159