:This article is about a historic Polish law. ''Incompatibilitas'' (a

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

term, meaning "incompatibility") was a principle instituted in the

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Królestwo Polskie; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a state in Central Europe. It may refer to: Historical political entities *Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom existing from 1025 to 1031 *Kingdom of Poland, a kingdom exist ...

(later, from 1569, in the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...

), which forbade an individual to hold two or more official

administrative Administration may refer to: Management of organizations * Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal ** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, administ ...

positions. The principle of ''incompatibilitas'' evolved in the 15th-16th centuries in response to a demand from middle and lesser nobility (''

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 ...

''), and it was designed to curtail the sway of more powerful high nobility/

aristocracy Aristocracy (, ) is a form of government that places strength in the hands of a small, privileged ruling class, the aristocracy (class), aristocrats. The term derives from the el, αριστοκρατία (), meaning 'rule of the best'. At t ...

plutocracy A plutocracy () or plutarchy is a society that is ruled or controlled by people of great wealth or income. The first known use of the term in English dates from 1631. Unlike most political systems, plutocracy is not rooted in any established ...

(the ''

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 ot ...

s''). The specific acts of law that constituted the ''incompatibilitas'' rule were bans on holding: * a district office simultaneously with a

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. Th ...

's office ( przywilej czerwiński, 1422); * two separate district offices; * a

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 me ...

's office simultaneously with a starosta's office ( przywilej nieszawski, 1454); * a

kanclerz Chancellor of Poland ( pl, Kanclerz - , from la, cancellarius) was one of the highest officials in the historic Poland. This office functioned from the early Polish kingdom of the 12th century until the end of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwea ...

's (chancellor's) office simultaneously with a starosta's, voivode's or

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 o ...

's office; * a voivode's or castellan's office simultaneously with a starosta's office (1538); * two or more city starosta offices (''starostwo grodowe'') (1562 or 1563); * a voivode's and castellan's offices simultaneously with another

minister Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

ial office other than that of

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 co ...

(1565, as each of those offices, except that of hetman, granted its holder a seat in the

Senate of Poland The Senate ( pl, Senat) is the upper house of the Parliament of Poland, Polish parliament, the lower house being the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, Sejm. The history of the Polish Senate stretches back over 500 years; it was one of the first co ...

, a

privy council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

rather than an upper chamber). Commonwealth ministers were the equivalents of modern central-government officials. There were 10 officials (5 for Poland, 5 for Lithuania): a ''Great Crown Marshal'', ''Great Lithuanian Marshal'', ''Great Crown Chancellor'', ''Great Lithuanian Chancellor'', ''Crown Deputy Chancellor'', ''Lithuanian Deputy Chancellor'', ''Great Crown Treasurer'', ''Great Lithuanian Treasurer'', ''Court Crown Marshal'' and ''Court Lithuanian Marshal''. The Court Marshals were considered subordinate to the Great Marshals.

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

n ministers, while enjoying the same powers as

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

ministers, were considered to be lower in the hierarchy. Hetmans were also considered "ministers" but had no seat in the ''Senat''.

References

INCOMPATIBILITAS
from Polish

PWN encyclopedia Encyklopedia PWN can refer to several encyclopedias published by Polish publisher Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe *Wielka Encyklopedia Powszechna PWN - published from 1962 to 1970 *Wielka Encyklopedia PWN - published from 2001 to 2005 *Internetowa en ...

(for pre-1565 laws), in Polish
Przemysław Bielewicz on Urzedy Staropolskie, Polish
for 1565 law), in Polish Legal history of Poland History of Poland during the Jagiellonian dynasty Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Legal rules with Latin names {{Poland-hist-stub

See also

References