Albrycht Stanisław Radziwiłł (1 July 1595 – 12 November 1656) was a Polish

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characteris ...

, a Reichfürst and a politician from 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 ...

, who served as the Lesser Lithuanian

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

from 1619, the Grand Chancellor of Lithuania and

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

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 1623. He was a member of the powerful Radziwiłł family, last of the Ołyka line, fourth to bear the name of Albrycht. During his life he was an influential

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 ...

and diplomat in the country. Radziwiłł was a vigorous

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

and staunch supporter of

Counter-Reformation The Counter-Reformation (), also called the Catholic Reformation () or the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) a ...

, but also the arch enemy of the

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

community.

Biography

He was born on 1 July 1595 in his family manor in Ołyka to Stanisław Pius Radziwiłł and Marianna née Myszka. During his life Albrycht held several important posts in the

, some of them hereditary. Apart from directing his family estate in Ołyka at

Volhynia Volhynia (also spelled Volynia) ( ; uk, Воли́нь, Volyn' pl, Wołyń, russian: Волы́нь, Volýnʹ, ), is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between south-eastern Poland, south-western Belarus, and western Ukraine. The ...

(''ordynacja ołycka''), he was in charge of foreign policies and internal affairs of the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was Partitions of Poland, partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire, Habsburg Empire of ...

, as he held the posts Lesser Lithuanian Chancellor of

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 ...

(since 1619),

Grand Chancellor of Lithuania 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 Commonweal ...

and

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 ...

(city foreman) of

(since 1623), as well as governor of

Kowel Kovel (, ; pl, Kowel; yi, קאוולע / קאוולי ) is a city in Volyn Oblast (province), in northwestern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Kovel Raion (district). Population: Kovel gives its name to one of the oldest runi ...

Tuchola Tuchola (german: Tuchel; csb, Tëchòlô) is a town in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship in northern Poland. The Pomeranian town, which is the seat of Tuchola County, had a population of 13,418 . Geographical location Tuchola lies about ...

Gniew Gniew (pronounced ; csb, Gméw, or ''Gniéw''; formerly german: Mewe) is a historic town situated on the left bank of the Vistula River, in the Pomeranian Voivodeship, in northern Poland. It has 6,870 inhabitants (2016). It is one of the ol ...

, Pinskas,

Wieluń Wieluń ( la, Velun) is a town in south-central Poland with 21,624 inhabitants (2021). Situated in the Łódź Voivodeship (since 1999), it was previously in Sieradz Voivodeship (1975–1998). Wieluń has a long and rich history. In the past, ...

, Daugpilis, Kobrynas and

Šiauliai Šiauliai (; bat-smg, Šiaulē; german: Schaulen, ) is the fourth largest city in Lithuania, with a population of 107,086. From 1994 to 2010 it was the capital of Šiauliai County. Names Šiauliai is referred to by various names in different la ...

Supporter of King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania

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 ...

, he often stood in opposition to his son and successor,

Władysław IV Vasa Władysław IV Vasa; lt, Vladislovas Vaza; sv, Vladislav IV av Polen; rus, Владислав IV Ваза, r=Vladislav IV Vaza; la, Ladislaus IV Vasa or Ladislaus IV of Poland (9 June 1595 – 20 May 1648) was King of Poland, Grand Duke of ...

on the matters of religion. Władysław was lenient towards Protestants and encouraged

religious tolerance Religious toleration may signify "no more than forbearance and the permission given by the adherents of a dominant religion for other religions to exist, even though the latter are looked on with disapproval as inferior, mistaken, or harmful". ...

, while Albrycht was an outspoken opponent of all non-Catholics, sometimes even refusing to stamp documents with his Chancellor's seal granting them rights and privileges. He was also a patriot of Grand Duchy: he always strived to ensure that there is no discrimination towards his compatriots and they have equal representation in the Commonwealth federal political structure, just as he tried to ensure that non-Catholics had as little of it as possible. In his opposition to '

heretic Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important relig ...

s' he was supported by Chancellor

Jerzy Ossoliński Prince Jerzy Ossoliński h. Topór (15 December 1595 – 9 August 1650) was a Polish nobleman ('' szlachcic''), Crown Court Treasurer from 1632, governor (''voivode'') of Sandomierz from 1636, ''Reichsfürst'' (Imperial Prince) since 1634, Cro ...

. He sympathized with the

Habsburg 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 ...

faction and supported Queen

Cecilia Renata of Austria Cecilia Renata of Austria (german: Cäcilia Renata, pl, Cecylia Renata; 16 July 1611 – 24 March 1644) was Queen of Poland as the wife of King Władysław IV Vasa. Selection and coronation Cecilia Renata was a daughter of Holy Roman Emperor Fe ...

, the Habsburg wife of King Władysław IV. Just like the other Radziwiłł family members, he was famous for the support given to his relatives: he did not fail to watch over the interests of his

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 ...

cousins, despite being renowned for his opposition to the "heretics". Despite being one of the most powerful

s in the

, both of his marriages (with Regina von Eisenreich in 1619, court lady of Queen Constance and after her death in 1637 with Anna Krystyna Działyńska-Lubomirska in 1638) were childless. During later stages of his life, Radziwiłł wrote a

diary A diary is a written or audiovisual record with discrete entries arranged by date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period. Diaries have traditionally been handwritten but are now also often digital. A personal ...

''Memoriale rerum gestarum in Polonia'' (''Memoir'' or ''Diary of the history of Poland'') covering the 1632–1656 period. This book is perhaps his most famous legacy. He died childless on 12 November 1656. His estates were inherited by Ordynat of Nesvyžius line of Radziwiłł family.

External links

Albrycht Stanislaw Radziwill at Dynastic Genealogy
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Radziwill, Albrycht Stanislaw Secular senators of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth 1595 births 1656 deaths 17th-century Latin-language writers Polish Princes of the Holy Roman Empire Albrycht Stanislaw Radziwill Grand Chancellors of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Grand Marshals of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Court Marshals of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania