Bogusław Leszczyński, count of Leszno (1614–1659) from the

Leszczyński The House of Leszczyński ( , ; plural: Leszczyńscy, feminine form: Leszczyńska) was a prominent Polish noble family. They were magnates in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and later became royal family of Poland. History The Leszczyński ...

Family of Holy Roman Empire counts, was a Polish noble (''

szlachcic 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 th ...

'') and politician from Wielkopolska region.

Biography

Traveled abroad from 1632-1636 with his tutor

John Jonston John Jonston or Johnston ( pl, Jan Jonston; la, Joannes or or ; 15 September 1603– ) was a Polish scholar and physician, descended from Scottish nobility and closely associated with the Polish magnate Leszczyński family. Life Jonston was ...

, studied under Comenius. Bogusław held the following official positions: *General

Starost 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 ...

Greater Poland Greater Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska (; german: Großpolen, sv, Storpolen, la, Polonia Maior), is a Polish historical regions, historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief and largest city is Poznań followed ...

in 1642 * Grand Treasurer of the Crown 1650–1658Robert I. Frost (2004) ''After the Deluge: Poland–Lithuania and the Second Northern War, 1655-1660'', Cambridge University Press, , p. xvii *

Deputy Chancellor of the Crown 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 ...

in 1658–1660 *Starost of

Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz ( , , ; german: Bromberg) is a city in northern Poland, straddling the meeting of the River Vistula with its left-bank tributary, the Brda. With a city population of 339,053 as of December 2021 and an urban agglomeration with more ...

, Sambor, Międzyrzecz, Ostrów, Człuchów and

Osiek Osiek may refer to: *Osiek, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, a town in south-central Poland *Osiek, Oświęcim County in Lesser Poland Voivodeship (south Poland) *Osiek, Lubin County in Lower Silesian Voivodeship (south-west Poland) *Osiek, Oława Co ...

. He was the son of Rafał Leszczyński, count of Leszno, and Anna Radzimińska.Jan Grzywiński (1938) (in Polish). ''Kalendarz Ilustrowany kuryer codzienny''. Krakow: Nakł. wydawn. "Ilustr. kuryera codziennego". Volume 11, p. 222. . After the death of his father in 1636 he inherited Leszno, Radzymin and part of Warsawian Praga. Bogusław married twice, first to Countess Anna

Dönhoff The House of Dönhoff (Polish: Denhoff, sometimes also Doenhoff) was an old and influential German noble family, which later also became part of the Polish nobility. History It was first mentioned in 1282, in the County of Mark in Westph ...

, from a prominent Pomeranian family, in 1629 and later to the daughter of Court and Grand Marshal Prince

Aleksander Ludwik Radziwiłł Prince Aleksander Ludwik Radziwiłł () (4 August 1594 – 30 March 1654) was a Polish–Lithuanian nobleman. He was the Ordynat of Nieśwież, Stolnik of Lithuania since 1626, Krajczy of Lithuania since 1630, governor of Brześć Litewsk ...

, princess Joanna Katarzyna Radziwiłł, in 1658. Bogusław Leszczyński was a Czech brethren. Converted to Catholicism in 1642 but always supported Protestants. He was a frequent deputy and known orator of the Sejm, the

lower house A lower house is one of two Debate chamber, chambers of a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house. Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide, the lower house has co ...

of the Polish parliament. He was a political rival of

Krzysztof Opaliński Krzysztof Opaliński (21 January 1611 – 6 December 1655) was a Polish szlachta (nobleman), politician, writer, satirist, and Voivode (Governor) of Poznań. A notable figure during the Swedish Deluge, Opaliński was a skilled diplomat who oppo ...

. Also, he was often in opposition to plans of king

Władysław IV Waza 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 * W ...

. During the

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

invasion of 1655 (" The Deluge"), he was committed by a chapter of the Sejm to defend the province of Greater Poland, but instead Bogusław began to negotiate with the Swedes and the Prussian elector. Although considered a great speaker, he was also criticised by many for being selfish and dishonorable. He was suspected of

defalcation Defalcation is misappropriation of funds by a person trusted with their charge; also, the act of misappropriation, or an instance thereof. The term is more specifically used by the United States Bankruptcy Code to describe a category of acts that t ...

of money and royal jewels. A telling story is that when he was offered a Chancellor's post, he bribed the members of the parliament to grant him " absolution", and when one of them later opposed him, he asked, curious: "Who's this son of a bitch that I failed to pay off?" After his death in 1659, deputies of the Sejm in 1662 were appointed to take matters up with his beneficiaries. Bogusław held the following Sejm positions in Warsaw: *

Marshal Marshal is a term used in several official titles in various branches of society. As marshals became trusted members of the courts of Medieval Europe, the title grew in reputation. During the last few centuries, it has been used for elevated o ...

of the ordinary Sejm on 20 July – 4 October 1641, *

Convocation sejm Royal elections in Poland ( Polish: ''wolna elekcja'', lit. ''free election'') were the elections of individual kings, rather than dynasties, to the Polish throne. Based on traditions dating to the very beginning of the Polish statehood, strengt ...

on 16 July – 1 August 1648 * Member of ordinary Sejm of 22 November 1649 – 13 January 1650 Bogusław's grandson Stanisław Leszczyński was King of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the father-in-law of Louis XV of France.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leszczynski, Boguslaw 1614 births 1659 deaths People from Busko County Counts of Poland Boguslaw Polish Calvinist and Reformed Christians Polish Roman Catholics Converts to Roman Catholicism from Calvinism Crown Vice-Chancellors