The House of Movileşti, also Movilă or Moghilă (,

Cyrillic The Cyrillic script ( ) is a writing system used for various languages across Eurasia. It is the designated national script in various Slavic, Turkic, Mongolic, Uralic, Caucasian and Iranic-speaking countries in Southeastern Europe, Ea ...

: Могила), was a family of

boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Bulgaria, Kievan Rus' (and later Russia), Moldavia and Wallachia (and later Romania), Lithuania and among Baltic Germans. C ...

s in the

principality of Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially independent and later auto ...

, which became related through marriage with the Mușatin family – the traditional House of Moldavian sovereigns. According to legend, the family name is connected to the '' aprod'' Purice, a low-ranking boyar during the time of Prince

Stephen the Great Stephen III, better known as Stephen the Great (; ; died 2 July 1504), was List of rulers of Moldavia, Voivode (or Prince) of Moldavia from 1457 to 1504. He was the son of and co-ruler with Bogdan II of Moldavia, Bogdan II, who was murdered in ...

(ruled 1457–1504). Purice is said to have gained Stephen's recognition after kneeling down and helping the diminutive prince mount a fresh horse during battle. After emerging victorious, the ruler awarded him large estates, and told him that his family was to be known not by the rather crude ''Purice'' ("flea"), but as ''Movilă'' ("hill"). They rose to political prominence during the latter part of the 16th century. Several of the Movileşti were favourable to an alliance with the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...

, intermarried with the Potocki family, and took refuge to southern Poland after being faced with Ottoman reprisals (no longer present in the competitions for the throne after 1634). They survived as ''

szlachta The ''szlachta'' (; ; ) were the nobility, noble estate of the realm in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Depending on the definition, they were either a warrior "caste" or a social ...

'', being awarded a Polish coat of arms (the

Mohyła coat of arms Mohyła is a Polish coat of arms. It was used by the Movilești family in the times of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. History Blazon Notable bearers Notable bearers of this coat of arms include: * Mohyła family ( Movilești) S ...

Members

Princes

Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...

: * Ieremia Movilă **Regina/Raina Mohyła, married Prince Michał Wiśniowiecki h. Korybut **Katarzyna Mohyła, married Prince Samuel Korecki h. Pogoń Litewska **Maria Amalia Mohyła, married Stefan Potocki h. Pilawa **Anna Mohyła, married 1. Maksymilian Przerembski h. Nowina, 2. Jan Sędziwój Czarnkowski h. Nałęcz, 3. Władysław Myszkowski h. Jastrzębiec, 4. Stanisław "Rewera" Potocki h. Pilawa * Simion Movilă * Mihail Movilă * Constantin Movilă * Alexandru Movilă * Miron Barnovschi-Movilă * Moise Movilă In

Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ; : , : ) is a historical and geographical region of modern-day Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians. Wallachia was traditionally divided into two sections, Munteni ...

: * Simion Movilă * Gabriel Movilă

Others

* Petro Mohyla – Metropolitan of

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

. *

Grigore Ureche Grigore Ureche (; 1590–1647) was a Moldavian chronicler who wrote on Moldavian history in his ''Letopisețul Țării Moldovei'' ('' Chronicles of the Land of Moldavia''), covering the period from 1359 to 1594. Biography Grigore Ureche was th ...

– Chronicler and high-ranking

('' Logofăt'', ''Spătar'' and ''Great Vornic'') in Moldavia

Family tree

Gallery

File:Alex K Petro Mohyla.svg, Petro Mohyla coat of arms

External links