Mikołaj Struś (1577–1627) ( Korczak coat of arms) was a Colonel of the

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the Army, land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 110,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military histor ...

, a

starosta 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 ...

and commandant of the Polish garrison in the occupied

Moscow Kremlin The Moscow Kremlin (also the Kremlin) is a fortified complex in Moscow, Russia. Located in the centre of the country's capital city, the Moscow Kremlin comprises five palaces, four cathedrals, and the enclosing Kremlin Wall along with the K ...

. He was the last known member of the Strus family of Komarow-Osada. His father was Jakub Strus, and mother was Barbara Potocka. Strus began military service probably in 1590 or 1591. On 7 March 1591 he was granted royal permission to own real estate 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 ...

. In the following years, he took part in a number of wars and military conflicts in eastern areas 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 ...

, as well as in

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 ...

Livonia Livonia, known in earlier records as Livland, is a historical region on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. It is named after the Livonians, who lived on the shores of present-day Latvia. By the end of the 13th century, the name was extende ...

and the

Tsardom of Russia The Tsardom of Russia, also known as the Tsardom of Moscow, was the centralized Russian state from the assumption of the title of tsar by Ivan the Terrible, Ivan IV in 1547 until the foundation of the Russian Empire by Peter the Great in 1721. ...

. In 1595, he probably participated in a raid on Moldavia, carried out by Crown

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 ...

. In 1596, serving under Stanislaw Zolkiewski, he pacified the

Nalyvaiko Uprising The Nalyvaiko Uprising (, ) was a Cossack rebellion against the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Headed by Severyn Nalyvaiko, it lasted from 1594 to 1596. The second in a series of Cossack uprisings, the conflict was ultimately won by the Crown ...

. In 1600, he once again fought in Moldavia, fighting against

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 ...

. In 1601 - 1602, Strus fought against the

Kingdom of Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic country by both area ...

in the Polish–Swedish War (1600–29). Among others, he participated in the Siege of Wolmar, Siege of Fellin and the Siege of Weissenstein. On 19 January 1602 in

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 ...

, Strus, as an envoy of Polish cavalry, discussed delayed payments with King Zygmunt III Waza. By 1605, he already was a

Rittmeister Rittmaster () is usually a commissioned officer military rank used in a few armies, usually equivalent to Captain. Historically it has been used in Germany, Austria-Hungary, Scandinavia, and some other countries. A is typically in charge of a s ...

of a

Cossack The Cossacks are a predominantly East Slavic Eastern Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Ukraine and southern Russia. Cossacks played an important role in defending the southern borders of Ukraine and Rus ...

choragiew, with which he fought

Crimean Tatars Crimean Tatars (), or simply Crimeans (), are an Eastern European Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group and nation indigenous to Crimea. Their ethnogenesis lasted thousands of years in Crimea and the northern regions along the coast of the Blac ...

in the Battle of Udycz, on 28 January 1606. In the autumn 1609, Strus joined the Siege of Smolensk (1609–11), leading a unit of 150

Hussar A hussar, ; ; ; ; . was a member of a class of light cavalry, originally from the Kingdom of Hungary during the 15th and 16th centuries. The title and distinctive dress of these horsemen were subsequently widely adopted by light cavalry ...

s, 50 Cossacks and 100 infantry. On 4 July 1610 he fought in the

Battle of Klushino The Battle of Klushino, or the Battle of Kłuszyn, was fought on 4 July 1610, between forces of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Tsardom of Russia during the Polish–Russian War, part of Russia's Time of Troubles. The battle occu ...

, after which he rushed with Aleksander Zborowski and Mikolaj Scibor Marchocki to King Zygmunt III Waza, presenting to him captured flags of the enemy (July 17). In the spring of 1612, together with 1000 infantry and 3000 cavalry, Strus joined forces of Lithuanian Hetman

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 ...

, which was sent to reinforce Commonwealth garrison of the

. On 27 June 1612 Strus was named commandant of the garrison, and in September of the same year, under Russian pressure, he agreed for negotiations. On 7 November 1612 the Polish-Lithuanian garrison of the Kremlin capitulated: the Russians broke the conditions of the capitulation, and murdered some Polish soldiers. Strus himself was captured and imprisoned in the Chudov Monastery, where he stayed for seven years, despite numerous efforts of Polish authorities. He was released on 10 June 1619, half a year after the

Truce of Deulino The Truce of Deulino (also known as Peace or Treaty of Dywilino) concluded the Polish–Russian War of 1609–1618 between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Tsardom of Russia. It was signed in the village of on 11 December 1618 and t ...

, and immediately rejoined the Commonwealth army, fighting in the Battle of Cecora (19 September 1620). In this battle, he commanded a unit of 2000 men, and was listed among main leaders of the Polish troops. While fighting, Strus was wounded and captured by Crimean Tatars, who took him with them to Crimea. On 21 July 1621 the

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 ...

appealed to King Zygmunt III Waza to initiate negotiations to release Strus. The Tatars released him probably in early 1622: following this adventure, Strus withdrew from military service, and died in 1627. Mikolaj Strus owned the towns of Probuzna and Strusow, located near

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 ...

(today part of

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

), and the villages of Touste and Hrynkowce in Halych Land.

Sources

* Polski Slownik Biograficzny. Warszawa - Kraków: Polska Akademia Nauk, 2006. * Kazimierz Pulaski: Kronika polskich rodów szlacheckich Podola, Wolynia i Ukrainy. Brody: Ksiegarnia Feliksa Westa, 1911. {{DEFAULTSORT:Strus, Mikolaj 1577 births 1627 deaths Ruthenian nobility of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Polish people of the Polish–Russian War (1609–1618) Military personnel of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth Starost of Halych