Lublin Voivodeship (; ) was an administrative region of the

Kingdom of Poland The Kingdom of Poland (; Latin: ''Regnum Poloniae'') was a monarchy in Central Europe during the Middle Ages, medieval period from 1025 until 1385. Background The West Slavs, West Slavic tribe of Polans (western), Polans who lived in what i ...

created in 1474 out of three eastern counties of Sandomierz Voivodeship and lasting until the

Partitions of Poland The Partitions of Poland were three partition (politics), partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place between 1772 and 1795, toward the end of the 18th century. They ended the existence of the state, resulting in the eli ...

in 1795. Together with Sandomierz Voivodeship and Kraków Voivodeship, it was part of historic

Lesser Poland Lesser Poland, often known by its Polish name ''Małopolska'' (; ), is a historical region situated in southern and south-eastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Kraków. Throughout centuries, Lesser Poland developed a separate cult ...

(see Lesser Poland Province). Lublin Voivodeship had two senators in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

of the Kingdom of Poland: the Voivode and 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 ...

of Lublin. Local

sejmik A sejmik (, diminutive of ''sejm'', occasionally translated as a ''dietine''; ) was one of various local parliaments in the history of Poland and history of Lithuania. The first sejmiks were regional assemblies in the Kingdom of Poland (before ...

s took place in Lublin.

History

The entire area of the voivodeship was located east of the

Vistula The Vistula (; ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest in Europe, at in length. Its drainage basin, extending into three other countries apart from Poland, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra i ...

river, and its boundaries did not change from the time of its creation (1474), until its dissolution by Austrian authorities in 1795, after the third and final partition of Poland. After 1795, the entire Lublin Voivodeship became part of Austrian province of West Galicia. After the Polish victory in the

Austro-Polish War The Austro-Polish War or Polish-Austrian War was a part of the War of the Fifth Coalition in 1809 (a coalition of the Austrian Empire and the United Kingdom against Napoleon's French Empire and allied states). In this war, Polish forces of ...

of 1809, the former Lublin Voivodeship was regained by Poles and included within the short-lived

Duchy of Warsaw The Duchy of Warsaw (; ; ), also known as the Grand Duchy of Warsaw and Napoleonic Poland, was a First French Empire, French client state established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1807, during the Napoleonic Wars. It initially comprised the ethnical ...

. After the duchy's dissolution, since 1815, it was part of the Russian-controlled

Congress Kingdom Congress Poland or Congress Kingdom of Poland, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland, was a polity created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna as a semi-autonomous Polish state, a successor to Napoleon's Duchy of Warsaw. It was established w ...

. Among major towns of contemporary Poland, which belonged to the voivodeship are

Biłgoraj Biłgoraj (, ''Bilgoray'', ) is a town in south-eastern Poland with 25,838 inhabitants as of December 2021. Since 1999 it has been situated in Lublin Voivodeship; it was previously located in Zamość Voivodeship (1975–1998). It is located sou ...

Kraśnik Kraśnik is a town in southeastern Poland with 35,602 inhabitants (2012), situated in the Lublin Voivodeship, historic Lesser Poland. It is the seat of Kraśnik County. The town of Kraśnik as it is known today was created in 1975, after the mer ...

, Lubartów, Leczna, Opole Lubelskie, Łuków,

Parczew Parczew is a town in eastern Poland, with a population of 10,281 (2006). It is the capital of Parczew County in the Lublin Voivodeship. Parczew historically belongs to Lesser Poland (''Małopolska'') region. The town lies 60 kilometers north o ...

, Puławy,

Radzyń Podlaski Radzyń Podlaski is a town in eastern Poland, about north of Lublin, with 15,808 inhabitants (2017). The town has been part of the Lublin Voivodeship since 1999, previously it was part of the Biała Podlaska Voivodeship (1975–1998). It is the c ...

Siedlce Siedlce () ( ) is a city in the Masovian Voivodeship in eastern Poland with 77,354 inhabitants (). The city is situated between two small rivers, the Muchawka and the Helenka, and lies along the European route E30, around east of Warsaw. It is ...

, and Świdnik.

Zygmunt Gloger Zygmunt Gloger (3November 184516August 1910) was a Polish historian, archaeologist, geographer and ethnographer, bearer of the Wilczekosy coat of arms. Gloger founded the precursor of modern and widely popular Polish Tourist and Sightseeing Socie ...

in his book ''Historical Geography of the Lands of Old Poland'' gives a detailed description of Lublin Voivodeship together with the Land of Łuków:

"The fact that the area between the
Vistula The Vistula (; ) is the longest river in Poland and the ninth-longest in Europe, at in length. Its drainage basin, extending into three other countries apart from Poland, covers , of which is in Poland. The Vistula rises at Barania Góra i ...
and the
Bug River The Bug or Western Bug is a major river in Central Europe that flows through Belarus (border), Poland, and Ukraine, with a total length of .Bolesław Chrobry, is confirmed by chronicles from the times of the
Piast dynasty The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented List of Polish monarchs, Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I of Poland, Mieszko I (–992). The Poland during the Piast dynasty, Piasts' royal rule in Pol ...
.
Jan Długosz Jan Długosz (; 1 December 1415 – 19 May 1480), also known in Latin as Johannes Longinus, was a Polish priest, chronicler, diplomat, soldier, and secretary to Bishop Zbigniew Oleśnicki of Kraków. He is considered Poland's first histo ...
writes that the Land of Lublin was densely inhabited by farmers and other settlers, but its population was decimated in 1244, during a raid carried out by the
Lithuanians Lithuanians () are a Balts, Baltic ethnic group. They are native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,378,118 people. Another two million make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the Lithuanian Americans, United Sta ...
, the
Old Prussians Old Prussians, Baltic Prussians or simply Prussians were a Balts, Baltic people that inhabited the Prussia (region), region of Prussia, on the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea between the Vistula Lagoon to the west and the Curonian Lagoon ...
, and the
Yotvingians Yotvingians, also called Sudovians, Jatvians, or Jatvingians, were a Western Baltic people who were closely tied to the Old Prussians. The linguist Petras Būtėnas asserts that they were closest to the Lithuanians. The Yotvingians contributed ...
, after which it turned into a desert (...) First castellans of Lublin were mentioned in 1230. They resided in a defensive castle, and this land was part of the Duchy of
Sandomierz Sandomierz (pronounced: ; , ) is a historic town in south-eastern Poland with 23,863 inhabitants (), situated on the Vistula River near its confluence with the San, in the Sandomierz Basin. It has been part of Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship (Holy ...
(...) King
Casimir IV Jagiellon Casimir IV (Casimir Andrew Jagiellon; ; Lithuanian: ; 30 November 1427 – 7 June 1492) was Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1440 and King of Poland from 1447 until his death in 1492. He was one of the most active Polish-Lithuanian rulers; under ...
, aware of the fact that Sandomierz Voivodeship was too large, separated parts of it located behind the Vistula and the San, creating Lublin Voivodeship. This was confirmed by the
Sejm The Sejm (), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland (), is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of the Third Polish Republic since the Polish People' ...
in
Piotrków Trybunalski Piotrków Trybunalski (; also known by #Etymology, alternative names), often simplified to Piotrków, is a city in central Poland with 71,252 inhabitants (2021). It is the capital of Piotrków County and the second-largest city in the Łódź Voi ...
in 1474. First voivode of Lublin was Dobieslaw Kmita of Wiśnicz (...) Total area of the voivodeship was 200 sq. miles, out of which Lublin County took 105 sq. miles, Urzedow County approximately 60 sq. miles, and the Land of Łuków – 35 sq. miles. In the 16th century, it had 34 towns, 663 villages and 82 Roman Catholic parishes (...) The voivodeship had two senators, which were the Voivode and the Castellan of Lublin. The sejmiks took place in Lublin, where six deputies were elected to the
Sejm The Sejm (), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland (), is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of the Third Polish Republic since the Polish People' ...
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 ...
, and two deputies to the Lesser Poland Tribunal. Local pospolite ruszenie met near Lublin, and the voivodeship several starostwos, located in Lublin, Łuków, Urzedow,
Parczew Parczew is a town in eastern Poland, with a population of 10,281 (2006). It is the capital of Parczew County in the Lublin Voivodeship. Parczew historically belongs to Lesser Poland (''Małopolska'') region. The town lies 60 kilometers north o ...
,
Kazimierz Dolny Kazimierz Dolny () is a small historic town in eastern Poland, on the right (eastern) bank of the Vistula river, from Lublin, in Puławy County, Lublin Voivodeship. Historically it belongs to Lesser Poland, and in the past it was one of the most i ...
, Wawolnica, Kakolewnica, Zbuczyn and others (...) Of the three parts of Lesser Poland proper, Lublin Voivodeship was conveniently located by three
navigable A body of water, such as a river, canal or lake, is navigable if it is deep, wide and calm enough for a water vessel (e.g. boats) to pass safely. Navigability is also referred to in the broader context of a body of water having sufficient under ...
rivers – the Vistula, the San, and the Wieprz. It also had fertile soil, and a number of historical monuments".

Seat and administrative division

Widok miasta Lublina Hogenberga i Brauna

Voivodeship Governor ( Wojewoda) seat: * Lublin Administrative division: * Lublin County (Powiat Lubelski),

Lublin Lublin is List of cities and towns in Poland, the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the centre of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin i ...

* Urzędów County (Powiat Urzędowski), Urzędów * Łuków County (Powiat Łukowski, also called the Land of Łuków), Łuków Main Lublin Voivodes: Neighboring voivodeships: *

Masovian Voivodeship Masovian Voivodeship or Mazowieckie Province (, ) and any variation thereof, is a Voivodeships of Poland, voivodeship (province) in east-central Poland, containing Poland's capital Warsaw. Masovian Voivodeship has an area of and had a 2019 po ...

* Brest Litovsk Voivodeship * Chełm Voivodeship * Bełz Voivodeship * Ruthenian Voivodeship * Sandomierz Voivodeship

References

Sources

Lublin Voivodeship with Łuków Land by Zygmunt Gloger''Central European Superpower''
Henryk Litwin, ''BUM Magazine'', October 2016. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lublin Voivodeship (1474-1795) Voivodeships of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth 1474 establishments in Europe 15th-century establishments in Poland 1795 disestablishments in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth