Szembek or originally von Schönbeck is the name of an old Polish noble family of German origin, whose members held significant positions 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 ...

History

First mentioned at the beginning of the 14th century, the family name was originally von Schönbeck and came to Krakow from the

Altmark :''See German tanker Altmark for the ship named after Altmark and Stary Targ for the Polish village named Altmark in German.'' The (English: Old MarchHansard, ''The Parliamentary Debates from the Year 1803 to the Present Time ...'', Volume 32. 1 F ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. Accepted into the nobility of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

in the 16th century, members of the family held numerous high secular and ecclesiastical offices, particularly under the

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

Kings of Poland Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of Royal elections in Poland, free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electab ...

. At the beginning of the 19th century, one branch elevated to the rank of

Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

in the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Re ...

Notable members

* Jadwiga Szembekówna (1883-1939), Polish

archeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts ...

and

ethnographer Ethnography (from Greek ''ethnos'' "folk, people, nation" and ''grapho'' "I write") is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. Ethnography explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject o ...

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

and

social activist Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived greater good. Forms of activism range fro ...

Jan Szembek Count Jan Sebastian Szembek''’ (1672-1731) was a Polish szlachcic. Recorder of the Crown since 1699, Vice-Chancellor of the Crown in 1703–1711, Grand Chancellor of the Crown since 1712. Starost of Łomża Marshal Marshal is a term us ...

(1672-1731), Grand Chancellor of the Polish Crown *

(1881-1945), Polish diplomat *

Krzysztof Antoni Szembek Krzysztof Antoni Szembek was born on 25 March 1667 in the village of Szczepanowo and died on 6 July 1748 in Łowicz. He was the Bishop of Livonia from 1711, the Bishop of Poznań from 1717 to 1719, the Kujawy Bishop from 1719 to 1739, the Archbis ...

(1667-1748), Archbishop of Gniezno and Primate of Poland *

Stanisław Szembek Stanisław II Szembek (Latin Stanislaus in Słupów Szembek), ("von Slupow-Szembek") (1650 – 3 August 1721) was a Catholic prelate. Career Szembek was born in Morawica. In 1678 he became canon of Przemyśl and archdeacon of Zawichost. He ...

(1650-1721), a

Catholic prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

History

Notable members

See also