Janusz Radziwiłł (; 2 July 1579 – 3 December 1620) was a noble and magnate of 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 ...

. He was the deputy

cup-bearer A cup-bearer was historically an officer of high rank in royal courts, whose duty was to pour and serve the drinks at the royal table. On account of the constant fear of plots and intrigues (such as poisoning), a person had to be regarded as thor ...

of the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a sovereign state in northeastern Europe that existed from the 13th century, succeeding the Kingdom of Lithuania, to the late 18th century, when the territory was suppressed during the 1795 Partitions of Poland, ...

since 1599, the

castellan A castellan, or constable, was the governor of a castle in medieval Europe. Its surrounding territory was referred to as the castellany. The word stems from . A castellan was almost always male, but could occasionally be female, as when, in 1 ...

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

since 1619, and the starost of Borysów. Radziwiłł also held the title of '' Reichsfürst'' (Imperial Prince) of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

. He married Zofia Olelkowicz Słucka on 1 October 1600. She died in 1612, and was canonized by the Belarusian Orthodox Church as saint ''Sofia of

Slutsk Slutsk is a town in Minsk Region, in central Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Slutsk District, and is located on the Sluch (Belarus), Sluch River south of the capital Minsk. As of 2025, it has a population of 59,450. Geography ...

'' thanks to her charity and miracles on the grave. Zofia's large estate (seven castles and palaces and some thirty-two villages) contributed to the already significant Radziwłł's wealth.Peter Paul Baje
Short history of the Radziwill Family
His second marriage was to Elisabeth Sophia of Brandenburg, daughter of John George, Elector of Brandenburg, on 27 March 1613 in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. It was during Radziwiłł's life that the interests between his family and the Polish Crown began to drift apart, as the Radziwiłłs sought to increase their wealth and power, safeguard Protestantism and support ethnically Lithuanian culture. In 1606 he joined the opposition against King

Sigismund III Vasa Sigismund III Vasa (, ; 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 from 1592 to 1599. He was the first Polish sovereign from the House of Vasa. Re ...

and became one of the leaders of the Zebrzydowski's Rokosz. This '' confederatio'', an armed and legal rebellion, was aimed at weakening the king. Janusz Radziwiłł is one of the characters on the painting by

Jan Matejko Jan Alojzy Matejko (; also known as Jan Mateyko; 24 June 1838 – 1 November 1893) was a Polish painter, a leading 19th-century exponent of history painting, known for depicting nodal events from Polish history. His works include large scale ...

: '' Kazanie Skargi'' (The Sermon of Piotr Skarga).

Notes

External links

* Anastazja A. Skiepjan
Pogrzeb Janusza Radziwiłła (1579–1620)
Klio, Vol 40, No 1 (2017). {{DEFAULTSORT:Radziwill, Janusz 1579 births 1620 deaths People from Vilnius Secular senators of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Polish Calvinist and Reformed Christians Polish Princes of the Holy Roman Empire Polish rebels Lithuanian Calvinist and Reformed Christians Janusz 1579 17th-century Polish landowners