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Stanisław Koniecpolski (XVII-1682)
Stanisław Koniecpolski (1591 – 11 March 1646) was a Polish military commander, regarded as one of the most talented and capable in the history of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. He was also a magnate, a royal official (''starosta''), a castellan, a member of the Polish nobility (''szlachta''), and the ''voivode'' (governor) of Sandomierz from 1625 until his death. He led many successful military campaigns against rebelling Cossacks and invading Tatars. From 1618 he held the rank of Field Crown Hetman before becoming the Grand Crown Hetman, the military commander second only to the King, in 1632. Koniecpolski's life was one of almost constant warfare. Before he had reached the age of 20, he had fought in the Dymitriads and the Moldavian Magnate Wars. Later, in 1620, he took part in the Battle of Cecora, during which he was captured by Ottoman forces. After his release in 1623, he defeated the Ottomans' Tatar vassals several times between 1624 and 1626. With inferior ...
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Hetman
( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders. Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military commander in the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from the 16th to 18th centuries. Throughout much of the history of Romania and the Moldavia, hetmans were the second-highest army rank. In the modern Czech Republic the title is used for regional governors. Etymology The term ''hetman'' was a Polish borrowing, probably from the German – captain or a borrowing of the comparable Turkic title ''ataman'' (literally 'father of horsemen'). Hetmans of Poland and Lithuania The Polish title ''Grand Crown Hetman'' ( pl, hetman wielki koronny) dates from 1505. The title of ''Hetman'' was given to the leader of the Polish Army. Until 1581 the hetman position existed only during specific campaigns and wars. After tha ...
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Battle Of Martynów
The Battle of Martynów of 20 June 1624 refers to the engagement between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth forces under hetman Stanisław Koniecpolski and the horde (organization), horde of Crimean Tatars under Khan Temir. Koniecpolski dealt a crushing defeat to Khan Temir's forces near Novyi Martyniv (Мартинів). The victory at Martyniów was the biggest Polish victory over the Tatar raiders in a century. Background In the spring of 1624 the Crimean Tatars began to organize another raid into the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth borderlands. The horde, led by Khan Temir, approached the Commonwealth in May, and hetman Stanisław Koniecpolski gathered forces to stop it. However, his army was numerically inferior, so that at first he could only carry out delaying actions. By 13 January when he received intelligence that the horde had begun to turn back, he had about 5,000 troops: 600 hussars, 1350 registered Cossacks cavalry, 650 additional Cossack cavalry, 1450 other light ...
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Voivode
Voivode (, also spelled ''voievod'', ''voevod'', ''voivoda'', ''vojvoda'' or ''wojewoda'') is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe since the Early Middle Ages. It primarily referred to the medieval rulers of the Romanian-inhabited states and of governors and military commanders of Hungarian, Balkan or some Slavic-speaking populations. In the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, ''voivode'' was interchangeably used with ''palatine''. In the Tsardom of Russia, a voivode was a military governor. Among the Danube principalities, ''voivode'' was considered a princely title. Etymology The term ''voivode'' comes from two roots. is related to warring, while means 'leading' in Old Slavic, together meaning 'war leader' or 'warlord'. The Latin translation is for the principal commander of a military force, serving as a deputy for the monarch. In early Slavic, ''vojevoda'' meant the , the military leader in battle. The term has als ...
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Szlachta
The ''szlachta'' (Polish: endonym, Lithuanian: šlėkta) were the noble estate of the realm in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth who, as a class, had the dominating position in the state, exercising extensive political rights and power. Szlachta as a class differed significantly from the feudal nobility of Western Europe. The estate was officially abolished in 1921 by the March Constitution."Szlachta. Szlachta w Polsce"
''Encyklopedia PWN''
The origins of the ''szlachta'' are obscure and the subject of several theories. Traditionally, its members owned land (allods),
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Castellan
A castellan is the title used in Medieval Europe for an appointed official, a governor of a castle and its surrounding territory referred to as the castellany. The title of ''governor'' is retained in the English prison system, as a remnant of the medieval idea of the castellan as head of the local prison. The word stems from the Latin ''Castellanus'', derived from ''castellum'' "castle". Sometimes also known as a ''constable'' of the castle district, the Constable of the Tower of London is, in fact, a form of castellan, with representative powers in the local or national assembly. A castellan was almost always male, but could occasionally be female, as when, in 1194, Beatrice of Bourbourg inherited her father's castellany of Bourbourg upon the death of her brother, Roger. Similarly, Agnes became the castellan of Harlech Castle upon the death of her husband John de Bonvillars in 1287. Initial functions After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, foreign tribes migrated into ...
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Starosta
The starosta or starost (Cyrillic: ''старост/а'', Latin: ''capitaneus'', german: link=no, Starost, Hauptmann) is a term of Slavic origin denoting a community elder whose role was to administer the assets of a clan or family estates. The Slavic root of starost translates as "senior". Since the Middle Ages, it has meant an official in a leadership position in a range of civic and social contexts throughout Central and Eastern Europe. In terms of a municipality, a ''starosta'' was historically a senior royal administrative official, equivalent to the County Sheriff or the outdated Seneschal, and analogous to a gubernator. In Poland, a ''starosta'' would administer crown territory or a delineated district called a '' starostwo''. In the early Middle Ages, the ''starosta'' could head a settled urban or rural community or other communities, such as a church starosta, or an ''artel'' starosta, etc. The starosta also functioned as the master of ceremonies. Poland Kingdom of ...
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Magnate
The magnate term, from the late Latin ''magnas'', a great man, itself from Latin ''magnus'', "great", means a man from the higher nobility, a man who belongs to the high office-holders, or a man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or other qualities in Western Christian countries since the medieval period. It also includes the members of the higher clergy, such as bishops, archbishops and cardinals. In reference to the medieval, the term is often used to distinguish higher territorial landowners and warlords, such as counts, earls, dukes, and territorial-princes from the baronage, and in Poland for the richest ''szlachta''. England In England, the magnate class went through a change in the later Middle Ages. It had previously consisted of all tenants-in-chief of the crown, a group of more than a hundred families. The emergence of Parliament led to the establishment of a parliamentary peerage that received personal summons, rarely more than sixty families. A similar cl ...
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History Of Poland In The Early Modern Era (1569–1795)
The early modern era of History of Poland, Polish history follows the History of Poland in the Middle Ages, late Middle Ages. Historians use the term ''early modern Europe, early modern'' to refer to early modern period, the period beginning in approximately 1500 AD and lasting until around 1800. The ''Nihil novi'' act adopted by the Poland, Polish Sejm, diet in 1505 transferred legislature, legislative power from the List of Polish monarchs, king to the diet. This event marked the beginning of the period known as the "Nobles' Democracy" ( pl, Demokracja szlachecka) or "Nobles' Commonwealth" ( pl, Rzeczpospolita szlachecka). The Sovereign state, state was ruled by the "free and equal" Polish nobility or ''szlachta'', albeit in intense, and at times destabilizing, competition with the Jagiellon dynasty, Jagiellon and then Royal elections in Poland, elective kings. The Union of Lublin of 1569 constituted the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, a more closely merged continuation of the ...
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Battle Of Trzciana
The Battle of Trzciana (also known as Battle of Honigfelde or Battle on the Stuhmer Heide or Battle of Sztum) took place on 25 June 1629 (usually said to be 27th in the New Style calendar) and was one of the battles of the Polish-Swedish War (1626–1629) or Second Swedish-Polish War.Tucker, 2010, A Global Chronology of Conflict, Vol. Two, Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, LLC, The Polish forces were led by Crown Field Hetman Stanisław Koniecpolski and imperial troops under Hans Georg von Arnim-Boitzenburg, sent by Emperor Ferdinand II to aid Sigismund III, met with troops commanded by Swedish King Gustav II Adolf, who supported the Protestant Lutherans of Germany and northern Europe. Gustav Adolf was almost killed or captured twice. Fighting in Prussia continued after the battle into July and August and ended with stalemate and finally a truce accepted by Sigismund III. History Swedish and Polish-Lithuanian king Sigismund III sought to hold on to the crown of Sweden, but was reje ...
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Battle Of Dirschau
The Battle of Dirschau (also known as Battle of Tczew) took place in the summer of 1627 (17–18 August) and was one of the battles of the Polish–Swedish War (1626–29). The Polish forces led by Crown Field Hetman Stanisław Koniecpolski met with troops commanded by Swedish King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden. Gustavus Adolphus was wounded in the battle, which ended inconclusively. Fighting in Prussia ended in a stalemate for that year, and would not resume until 1628. Background In the summer of 1626 the Swedes invaded Pomerania and the Duchy of Prussia, taking Pillau (Baltiysk, Piława). The fighting spread, marked by a number of Swedish successes that year against the forces of the Polish king Sigismund III Vasa. In October, the Polish forces in the region were reinforced by the army of Crown Field Hetman Stanisław Koniecpolski, relocated from the south-eastern border of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Koniecpolski was able to slow down the Swedes and retake some ter ...
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Battle Of Czarne
The Battle of Czarne, also known as Battle of Hammerstein or Hamersztyn, took place during the Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629), between April 12 and 17, 1627 at Czarne (Hammerstein), in the province of Royal Prussia, Poland. The Polish forces were led by Field Crown Hetman Stanisław Koniecpolski while the Swedes were led by Johann Streiff, Maximilian Teuffel, and Johann Friedrich von Kötteritz. The battle ended with a Swedish surrender mainly due to low morale of the German mercenaries in Swedish service. These troops started a mutiny and negotiated with the Polish command without Streiff's knowledge and prepared to switch sides to join the Polish army. Being unable to trust their mercenaries the Swedish troops were forced to surrender. Background In January 1627 Axel Oxenstierna developed a plan to destroy the Polish forces by flanking them from east and west. The western component was to come from new recruits in Germany; their recruitment however was significantly dela ...
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Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629)
The Polish–Swedish War of 1626–1629 was the fourth stage (after 1600–1611, 1617–1618, and 1620–1625) in a series of conflicts between Sweden and Poland fought in the 17th century. It began in 1626 and ended four years later with the Truce of Altmark and later at Stuhmsdorf with the Treaty of Stuhmsdorf. Course 1626 The first encounter of the war took place near Wallhof, Latvia, where a Swedish army of 4,900 men under Gustavus II Adolphus ambushed a Polish-Lithuanian force of 2,000 men under Jan Stanisław Sapieha. Polish-Lithuanian casualties amounted to between 500 and 1000 dead, wounded and captured. The Lithuanian commander later suffered a nervous breakdown. In May 1626 King Gustavus Adolphus launched his invasion of Polish Prussia. Escorted by a fleet of over 125 ships, Swedish forces numbering over 8,000 soldiers (including 1,000 cavalry) disembarked in Ducal Prussia near Piława (Pillau). The landings were a complete surprise to the Polish–Lithuan ...
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