Prince Krzysztof Radziwiłł (Christopher Radvila, lt, Kristupas Radvila) (22 March 1585,

Biržai Biržai (, known also by several alternative names) is a town in northern Lithuania. Biržai is famous for its reconstructed Biržai Castle manor, and the whole region is renowned for its many traditional-recipe beer breweries. Names The nam ...

– 19 November 1640) was a Polish–Lithuanian noble ( szlachcic), and a notable

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 ...

, politician and military commander of his epoch. Sometimes referred to as ''Krzysztof Radziwiłł II'', to distinguish him from his father, Krzysztof Mikołaj 'Piorun' Radziwłł.

Biography

Owner of

, he was

Field Hetman of Lithuania Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a gra ...

from 1615,

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 ...

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urba ...

from 1633,

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 ...

Vilnius Voivodeship pl, Województwo wileńskie , conventional_long_name = Vilnius Voivodeship , common_name = Vilnius , subdivision = Voivodeship , nation = Grand Duchy of Lithuania (part of the federative Polish–Lithua ...

from 1633,. Great Lithuanian Hetman from 1635,. starost of

Mahilyow Mogilev (russian: Могилёв, Mogilyov, ; yi, מאָלעוו, Molev, ) or Mahilyow ( be, Магілёў, Mahilioŭ, ) is a city in eastern Belarus, on the Dnieper River, about from the border with Russia's Smolensk Oblast and from the ...

, Bystrzyca,

Žiežmariai Žiežmariai () is a city in the Kaišiadorys district municipality, Lithuania. It is located south of Kaišiadorys. The center of Žiežmariai is a state-protected urbanistic monument. History Žiežmariai were mentioned for the first time i ...

and Seje. In 1632 he served as Marshal of the Sejm. He successfully fought in Lithuanian Livonia against Sweden from 1600s to 1617. He took part in the campaign against the Swedes in the

Baltic region The terms Baltic Sea Region, Baltic Rim countries (or simply the Baltic Rim), and the Baltic Sea countries/states refer to slightly different combinations of countries in the general area surrounding the Baltic Sea, mainly in Northern Europe. ...

in 1621–1622 ( Polish-Swedish War), where he agreed to a controversial truce (as he had no permission to negotiate it from the king or the

Sejm The Sejm (English: , Polish: ), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland ( Polish: ''Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej''), is the lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of ...

). Important commander of Lithuanian forces during the

Smolensk War The Smolensk War (1632–1634) was a conflict fought between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Russia. Hostilities began in October 1632 when Russian forces tried to capture the city of Smolensk. Small military engagements produced mix ...

, where he was instrumental in obtaining the capitulation of the Russian army in the relief of Smolensk. Afterwards, in 1635, he retired from his military career, concentrating on administering his estates. A

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John C ...

, he was a great protector of Protestants in Lithuania. He was an opponent of Catholic king

Sigismund III Vasa Sigismund III Vasa ( pl, Zygmunt III Waza, lt, Žygimantas Vaza; 20 June 1566 – 30 April 1632 N.S.) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1587 to 1632 and, as Sigismund, King of Sweden and Grand Duke of Finland from 1592 to ...

, but a supporter of his more tolerant son,

Władysław IV Władysław is a Polish given male name, cognate with Vladislav. The feminine form is Władysława, archaic forms are Włodzisław (male) and Włodzisława (female), and Wladislaw is a variation. These names may refer to: Famous people Mononym * ...

. An advocate of Władysław's marriage to a Protestant princess, he distanced himself from the king after Władysław declined this marriage proposal. He opposed an alliance between the Commonwealth and the

Habsburgs The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

. On his lands in Kėdainiai he founded a major Calvinist cultural and religious centre, which flourished till the 19th century as a center of the Lithuanian Reformed Church. His large horse stables were famous throughout Europe.

Collector

Radziwiłł collected various curiosities at the Lubcha Castle: minerals, mollusc shells, corals, hunting trophies, whale bones, elephant tusk, nut shells, and similar items. It is believed that at least three items (moose horn collection, a chair made of horns, and a jaw bone of

bowhead whale The bowhead whale (''Balaena mysticetus'') is a species of baleen whale belonging to the family Balaenidae and the only living representative of the genus '' Balaena''. They are the only baleen whale endemic to the Arctic and subarctic waters, a ...

) of the collection are preserved at the Zoological Museum of

Vilnius University Vilnius University ( lt, Vilniaus universitetas) is a public research university, oldest in the Baltic states and in Northern Europe outside the United Kingdom (or 6th overall following foundations of Oxford, Cambridge, St. Andrews, Glasgow and ...

References

External link

{{DEFAULTSORT:Radziwill, Krzysztof 1585 births 1640 deaths People from Biržai Secular senators of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Lithuanian Calvinist and Reformed Christians Polish Calvinist and Reformed Christians Krzysztof Polish people of the Polish–Muscovite War (1605–1618) Polish people of the Smolensk War Field Hetmans of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Great Hetmans of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Voivode of Vilnius 17th-century Polish landowners