Count Marcin Kazimierz Kątski of Brochwicz (1636 – 1710) was a Polish nobleman, politician, diplomat, scholar, military commander, General of Artillery of the Crown (1667–1710), the Voivode of Kiev (1684–1702) and

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 ...

Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...

(1706–1710). Kątski took part in all campaigns led by King

John III Sobieski John III Sobieski ( (); (); () 17 August 1629 – 17 June 1696) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1674 until his death in 1696. Born into Polish nobility, Sobieski was educated at the Jagiellonian University and toured Eur ...

. Among others, he participated at the Battle of Chocim, Żórawne,

Battle of Vienna The Battle of Vienna took place at Kahlenberg Mountain near Vienna on 1683 after the city had been besieged by the Ottoman Empire for two months. The battle was fought by the Holy Roman Empire (led by the Habsburg monarchy) and the Polish–Li ...

and Parkany. He is often considered one of the greatest commanders of artillery in his time.

Biography

Early life and studies

King John II Casimir funded a scholarship for young Kątski, so that in the years 1653–1657 he would become familiar with the latest trends in the art of war by serving in the French army and commanding together with Marshal Prince Louis de Bourbon in the Netherlands. In the years 1663 to 1664 as a lieutenant colonel of infantry, he took part in a military expedition of John II Casimir to the

Dnieper The Dnieper or Dnepr ( ), also called Dnipro ( ), is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. Approximately long, with ...

river in

Ruthenia ''Ruthenia'' is an exonym, originally used in Medieval Latin, as one of several terms for Rus'. Originally, the term ''Rus' land'' referred to a triangular area, which mainly corresponds to the tribe of Polans in Dnieper Ukraine. ''Ruthenia' ...

Military career and politics

Kątski became the General of Artillery of the Crown in 1667. He Participated in all of the campaigns of chief captain,

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, ...

, and later King John Sobieski, including the siege of Vienna in 1683, when Kątski was only an artillery commander. However all of the armies of the Allies commanded by him managed to get through with 28 guns through the hills of the Viennese Woods. During the reign of

Augustus II the Strong Augustus II the Strong (12 May 1670 – 1 February 1733), was Elector of Saxony from 1694 as well as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1697 to 1706 and from 1709 until his death in 1733. He belonged to the Albertine branch of the H ...

he defeated the Turks near

Kamieniec Podolski Kamianets-Podilskyi (, ; ) is a city on the Smotrych River in western Ukraine, western Ukraine, to the north-east of Chernivtsi. Formerly the administrative center of Khmelnytskyi Oblast, the city is now the administrative center of Kamianets ...

and regained the fortress. During his military career, Kątski received merit for the development of Polish artillery and fortifications. His effort was visible at the confluence of the

Dniester The Dniester ( ) is a transboundary river in Eastern Europe. It runs first through Ukraine and then through Moldova (from which it more or less separates the breakaway territory of Transnistria), finally discharging into the Black Sea on Uk ...

and Zbrucz rivers where a neglected defensive castle developed into the famous fortress and stronghold called ''Okopy Św. Trójcy'' (lit. Trenches of Holy Trinity). In 1669 Kątski killed, in a

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...

, the

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Krosno Krosno (in full ''The Royal Free City of Krosno'', ) is a historical town and Krosno County, county in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in southeastern Poland. The estimated population of the town is 47,140 inhabitants as of 2014. The functional ...

Jan Karol Fredro. In 1674 he was the elector of King

. After the death of John III, Kątski was even considered as a potential heir to the throne. Following the election of

he was the steward and the governor of

Podolia Podolia or Podillia is a historic region in Eastern Europe located in the west-central and southwestern parts of Ukraine and northeastern Moldova (i.e. northern Transnistria). Podolia is bordered by the Dniester River and Boh River. It features ...

, the governor of

Przemyśl Przemyśl () is a city in southeastern Poland with 56,466 inhabitants, as of December 2023. Data for territorial unit 1862000. In 1999, it became part of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Subcarpathian Voivodeship. It was previously the capital of Prz ...

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 ...

Lwów Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

and provincial governor and castellan of

Marriage and issue

Marcin Kazimierz Kątski married Urszula Denhof, countess Denhof, daughter of

treasurer A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization. Government The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...

Teodor Denhof, count Denhof and Katharina Francis von Bessen and had three children: * Teresa Kątska (died 1746), married marshal and voivode of Pomorze and Mazowsze,

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 ...

Stefan Potocki h. Piława * Jan Stanisław Kątski (died 1727), general and miecznik of the Crown, married Wiktoria Szczuka h. Grabie, daughter of Sejm Marshal Stanisław Antoni Szczuka h. Grabie * Marianna Kątska (1697–1752), married

Trembowla Terebovlia (, ; ; ) is a small city in Ternopil Raion, Ternopil Oblast, western Ukraine. Terebovlia hosts the administration of Terebovlia urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Population: 13,661 (2001). History Terebovlia is one of ...

and Czehryń Michał Franciszek Potocki h. Piława

Bibliography

* Marcin Kątski, Diariusz wyprawy wiedeńskiej króla Jana III w roku 1683, 2003 * Polski Słownik Biograficzny, t. 12, s. 316 * Piotr Salamon, Marcin Kazimierz Kątski 1635–1710 zarys biograficzny, Kraków 2013 * Jan Wimmer: Generał Marcin Kątski, 1954

References

External links

* http://www.wilanow-palac.pl/portret_marcina_katskiego.html * http://www.wilanow-palac.pl/marcin_kazimierz_katski_uczestnik_bitwy_wiedenskiej.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Katski, Marcin Kazimierz 1636 births 1710 deaths Marcin Ruthenian nobility of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Secular senators of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Polish people of the Russo-Polish War (1654–1667) Castellans of Kraków Voivodes of Kiev