Ieremia Movilă ( ; c. 1555 – 10 July 1606) was a

Voivode Voivode ( ), also spelled voivod, voievod or voevod and also known as vaivode ( ), voivoda, vojvoda, vaivada or wojewoda, is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe in use since the Early Mid ...

(

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

) of

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 ...

between August 1595 and May 1600, and again between September 1600 and July 10, 1606. At the time, Moldavia was a vassal province of the Polish-Lituania CommonWealth.

Rule

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 ...

of the

Movilești The House of Movileşti, also Movilă or Moghilă (, Cyrillic: Могила), was a family of boyars in the principality of Moldavia, which became related through marriage with the Mușatin family – the traditional House of Moldavian sovereig ...

family, Ieremia was placed on the throne in

Iași Iași ( , , ; also known by other #Etymology and names, alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the Cities in Romania, third largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical ...

by Polish

Kanclerz The Chancellor of Poland ( - , from ), officially, the Grand Chancellor of the Crown between 1385 and 1795, was one of the highest officials in the historic Crown of the Kingdom of Poland. This office functioned from the early Polish kingdom o ...

(

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

) and

hetman ''Hetman'' is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders (comparable to a field marshal or imperial marshal in the Holy Roman Empire). First used by the Czechs in Bohemia in the 15th century, ...

Jan Zamoyski Jan Sariusz Zamoyski (; 19 March 1542 – 3 June 1605) was a Polish nobleman, magnate, statesman and the 1st '' ordynat'' of Zamość. He served as the Royal Secretary from 1565, Deputy Chancellor from 1576, Grand Chancellor of the Crown f ...

after the ousting of Ștefan Răzvan. Zamoyski's intervention had been prompted by Răzvan's acceptance of Imperial tutelage over Moldavia, after having received backing from

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

Sigismund Báthory and Emperor

Rudolf II Rudolf II (18 July 1552 – 20 January 1612) was Holy Roman Emperor (1576–1612), King of Hungary and Croatia (as Rudolf I, 1572–1608), King of Bohemia (1575–1608/1611) and Archduke of Austria (1576–1608). He was a member of the H ...

. The potential conflict with the country's Ottoman overlord was defused after the Poles negotiated an agreement with Sinan Pasha, although Moldavia was invaded by the Khan of

Crimea Crimea ( ) is a peninsula in Eastern Europe, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, almost entirely surrounded by the Black Sea and the smaller Sea of Azov. The Isthmus of Perekop connects the peninsula to Kherson Oblast in mainland Ukrain ...

and Ottoman

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain ...

Ğazı II Giray. Poland and the Turks signed the Treaty of Cecora after the defeat of Tatar troops in October, with the Porte agreeing to Ieremia's rule. Moldavia became a vassal of both countries, still owing

tribute A tribute (; from Latin ''tributum'', "contribution") is wealth, often in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance or respect. Various ancient states exacted tribute from the rulers of lands which the state con ...

to the Ottomans. Ştefan Răzvan tried to return on the throne, but he was faced with the ruthless resistance of Zamoyski and Movilă, being captured and impaled. Ieremia's rule faced a more formidable foe 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 ...

Michael the Brave Michael the Brave ( or ; 1558 – 9 August 1601), born as Mihai Pătrașcu, was the Prince of Wallachia (as Michael II, 1593–1601), Prince of Moldavia (1600) and ''de facto'' ruler of Principality of Transylvania (1570–1711), Transylvani ...

(Mihai Viteazul), who, after having crushed Andrew Báthory's armies in Transylvania and installed himself Prince in

Alba Iulia Alba Iulia (; or ''Carlsburg'', formerly ''Weißenburg''; ; ) is a city that serves as the seat of Alba County in the west-central part of Romania. Located on the river Mureș (river), Mureș in the historical region of Transylvania, it has a ...

, turned on Moldavia. Michael managed to conquer virtually all of the country (except for Polish-occupied Hotin) and sent his troops to fight the Commonwealth presence in

Pokuttya Pokuttia, also known as Pokuttya or Pokutia, (; ; ) is an historical area of East-Central Europe, situated between the Dniester and Cheremosh rivers and Carpathian Mountains, in the southwestern part of modern Ukraine. Although the historic hear ...

. The tide quickly turned, with

Stanisław Żółkiewski Stanisław Żółkiewski (; 1547 – 7 October 1620) was a Polish people, Polish szlachta, nobleman of the Lubicz coat of arms, a magnate, military commander, and Chancellor (Poland), Chancellor of the Polish Crown in the Polish–Lithuanian C ...

and

Jan Karol Chodkiewicz Jan Karol Chodkiewicz (; 1561 – 24 September 1621) was a Polish–Lithuanian identity, Polish–Lithuanian military commander of the Grand Ducal Lithuanian Army, who was from 1601 Field Hetman of Lithuania, and from 1605 Grand Hetman of Lit ...

obtaining crucial victories in Moldavia itself and taking the fighting into Wallachia (see Battle of Bukowo), briefly expanding Polish rule to the main section of the

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

and placing Ieremia on back on his throne, with his brother Simion the new Prince in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

. In the meanwhile, Michael was assassinated at

Câmpia Turzii Câmpia Turzii (; ; ) is a municipality in Cluj County, Transylvania, Romania, which was formed in 1925 by the union of two villages, Ghiriș (''Aranyosgyéres'') and Sâncrai (''Szentkirály''). It was declared a town in 1950 and a city in 1998. ...

in by his Imperial ally

Giorgio Basta Giorgio Basta, Count of Huszt, Gjergj Basta or Gheorghe Basta (1550 – 1607) was an Kingdom of Naples, Italian general, diplomat, and writer of Arbëreshë people, Arbëreshë Albanian origin, employed by the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II to com ...

, with Transylvania becoming an Imperial

fiefdom A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...

. With the start of the

Polish-Swedish War This is a List of wars between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to ...

, Poland had to retreat from Wallachia. Simion was deposed by the Ottomans, and replaced with Radu Şerban in 1601; Poland managed to keep control of Moldavia. During his rule, Ieremia rebuilt the Suceviţa Monastery, where he is now buried After his death, his sons attempted to ally with Poland.

Family

Ieremia's mother was Maria (d. between 1614 and 1616), daughter of Petru Rareş. He was married to the Hungarian lady Elzbieta Csomortany de Losoncz (d. in

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

cca. 1617), whose influence was instrumental in a rise in

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

ism in early 17th century Moldavia. His sons were all successive Moldavian rulers, while his daughters were married into Polish and Ruthenian noble

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 ...

families: Anna Mohyła (1579–1667) to Stanisław "Rewera" Potocki in 1658 or 1661, Maria (d. December 10, 1638) to Stefan Potocki, Raina Mohyła (d. ca.1619) to

Michał Wiśniowiecki Michał Wiśniowiecki (; died 1616) was a Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth szlachcic, prince at Wiśniowiec, magnate, son of Michał Wiśniowiecki (1529-1584), Michał Wiśniowiecki, grandfather of future Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth monarch, ...

, Catherina Movilă (died 1618) to prince Samuel Korecki.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Movila, Ieremia Monarchs of Moldavia 1606 deaths 16th-century Moldavian people Year of birth unknown People of the Long Turkish War History of Khotyn 17th-century Moldavian people

Rule

Family

See also

References