Krzysztof Opaliński (21 January 1611 – 6 December 1655) was a Polish
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 ...
(nobleman), politician, writer,
satirist
This is an incomplete list of writers, cartoonists and others known for involvement in satire – humorous social criticism. They are grouped by era and listed by year of birth. Included is a list of modern satires.
Early satirical authors
*Aes ...
, and
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 ...
(Governor) of
Poznań
Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...
. A notable figure during the
Swedish Deluge, Opaliński was a skilled diplomat who opposed King
John II Casimir and published many of his works concerning the daily political or social matters in 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 ...
.
Biography
He was the son of
Piotr Opaliński and married Teresa Czarnkowska on 28 May 1634, with whom he had two sons, Piotr Adam Opaliński II and
Jan Karol Opaliński, and four daughters.
Together with his brother
Łukasz Opaliński he studied in the
Lubrański Academy in
Poznań
Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...
(1620–1625), and later abroad at
Louvain
Leuven (, , ), also called Louvain (, , ), is the capital and largest city of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipality itself comprises the sub-municipalities of ...
(1626–1629),
Orléans
Orléans (,["Orleans"](_blank)
(US) and [Padua
Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...]
(1630). After returning to 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 ...
with the position of a
starost
Starosta or starost (Cyrillic: ''старост/а'', Latin: ''capitaneus'', ) is a community elder in some Slavic lands.
The Slavic root of "starost" translates as "senior". Since the Middle Ages, it has designated an official in a leadersh ...
he became active on the political scene. In February 1632, he was elected a deputy at the
election sejm which elected
Władysław IV Vasa
Władysław IV Vasa or Ladislaus IV (9 June 1595 – 20 May 1648) was King of Poland, Grand Duke of Lithuania and claimant of the thrones of Monarchy of Sweden, Sweden and List of Russian monarchs, Russia. Born into the House of Vasa as a prince ...
. In 1637, after his father's death, he became the
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 ...
of Poznań. Opaliński opposed most of Władysław's military proposals (from increasing the army to the war against the Ottoman Empire), although he supported his idea of sea tariffs. In 1645 he led a
diplomatic mission
A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually denotes ...
to Paris, where he was a proxy of king Władysław IV during his marriage to
Marie Louise Gonzaga, whom he escorted back to Poland afterwards.
In 1647 Opaliński purchased the town of
Sieraków
Sieraków () is a town in western Poland with 8,768 inhabitants (2012). Located by the Warta River, it is situated in the Międzychód County in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. Sieraków is known as a holiday destination with well-developed touris ...
from his brother Łukasz and, in 1650, opened the first modern school in Poland, using the
didactic
Didacticism is a philosophy that emphasises instructional and informative qualities in literature, art, and design. In art, design, architecture, and landscape, didacticism is a conceptual approach that is driven by the urgent need to explain.
...
materials prepared by
Jan Amos Komenski (''Komenský, Comenius''). A Catholic himself, Opaliński was critical of the zealous
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...
and supported religious tolerance. He was a patron of writers, scientists and a
bibliophile
A bookworm or bibliophile is an individual who loves and frequently reads or collects books. Bibliophilia or bibliophilism is the love of books.
Bibliophiles may have large, specialized book collections. They may highly value old editions, aut ...
s.
Opaliński was a lifelong political rival of
starost
Starosta or starost (Cyrillic: ''старост/а'', Latin: ''capitaneus'', ) is a community elder in some Slavic lands.
The Slavic root of "starost" translates as "senior". Since the Middle Ages, it has designated an official in a leadersh ...
Bogusław Leszczyński in
Greater Poland
Greater Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska (; ), is a Polish Polish historical regions, historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief and largest city is Poznań followed by Kalisz, the oldest city in Poland.
The bound ...
.
When in 1648 Poland elected
John II Casimir as king, Opaliński joined the opposition. The king had few friends among the
Polish nobility
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 ...
, as he openly sympathised with Austria and showed disregard and contempt for
Sarmatism, which has become part of
Polish culture
The culture of Poland () is the product of its Geography of Poland, geography and distinct historical evolution, which is closely connected to History of Poland, an intricate thousand-year history. Poland has a Catholic Church, Roman Catholic ma ...
. Due to this, thinking that John Casimir was too weak or for any other reasons, he encouraged King
Charles X Gustav of Sweden
Charles X Gustav, also Carl X Gustav (; 8 November 1622 – 13 February 1660), was King of Sweden from 1654 until his death. He was the son of John Casimir, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken-Kleeburg and Catherine of Sweden. After his father's ...
to claim the Polish Crown. During the Swedish invasion (
The Deluge) Krzysztof Opaliński and Bogusław Leszczyński were tasked with defence of the Greater Poland province. Dissatisfied with policies of John Casimir, they decided to surrender together with their
pospolite ruszenie to Charles Gustav at
Ujście on 25 July 1655. Many other voivodes of other voivodeships followed their suit, especially Prince
Janusz Radziwiłł in 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, ...
(although Krzysztof's brother,
Łukasz Opaliński, remained loyal to the Polish king). Almost the entire country was overrun by the Swedes, before the
Jasna Góra resistance and the
Tyszowce Confederation which turned the tide against the Swedes.
Opaliński died in 1655 at
Włoszakowice at the age of 44. He was buried next to his father in the catacombs of a local church in
Sieraków
Sieraków () is a town in western Poland with 8,768 inhabitants (2012). Located by the Warta River, it is situated in the Międzychód County in the Greater Poland Voivodeship. Sieraków is known as a holiday destination with well-developed touris ...
.
Works
He was the author of numerous works, including ''Satyry, albo Przestrogi do naprawy rządu i obyczajów w Polszcze należące'' (''Satires, or Warnings Related to the Reform of Government and Customs in Poland'') published in 1650, in the aftermath of the
Khmelnytsky Uprising
The Khmelnytsky Uprising, also known as the Cossack–Polish War, Khmelnytsky insurrection, or the National Liberation War, was a Cossack uprisings, Cossack rebellion that took place between 1648 and 1657 in the eastern territories of the Poli ...
that spelled the end of the
Golden Age of the Commonwealth. The satires, modelled on the
Satires of Juvenal
The ''Satires'' () are a collection of satirical poems by the Latin author Juvenal written between the end of the first and the early second centuries A.D.
Juvenal is credited with sixteen poems divided among five books; all are in the Roman g ...
, written in an unrhymed syllabic verse, are his most famous work. In his works, Opaliński denounced the oppression of peasants (increasing
serfdom
Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery. It developed du ...
) and corruption of
Golden Freedoms
Golden Liberty (; , ), sometimes referred to as Golden Freedoms, Nobles' Democracy or Nobles' Commonwealth ( or ''Złota wolność szlachecka'') was a political system in the Kingdom of Poland and, after the Union of Lublin (1569), in the Polish ...
, visible in the increasing anarchy which was to be found in political life. He also wrote on
witchcraft
Witchcraft is the use of Magic (supernatural), magic by a person called a witch. Traditionally, "witchcraft" means the use of magic to inflict supernatural harm or misfortune on others, and this remains the most common and widespread meanin ...
in one the satires, one of the few contemporary voices to correctly identify some of the motives behind the
witchcraft persecution and to denounce them. He wrote comedies and tragedies, however they were lost with time.
Quotes
Translated:
Translated:
References
*
Michael J. Mikoś, ''Polish Baroque and Enlightenment Literature: An Anthology''. Ed. Michael J. Mikoś. Columbus, Ohio/Bloomington, Indiana: Slavica Publishers. 1996. 104–108. (contains a short biography and "Satire III: On Burdens and Oppressions of Peasants in Poland." )
Further reading
* Kate Wilson, ''The Politics of Toleration Among the Szlachta of Great Poland: Rafał Leszczyński (1579–1636) and Krzysztof Opaliński (1609–55)'',
Slovo 14/2002
{{DEFAULTSORT:Opalinski, Krzysztof
1611 births
1655 deaths
17th-century Polish writers
17th-century Polish male writers
Critics of witch hunting
Krzysztof Opalinski
People from Sieraków
Polish male writers
Polish Roman Catholics
Secular senators of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
17th-century Polish politicians
17th-century Polish nobility