The House of Potocki (; plural: Potoccy, male: Potocki, feminine: Potocka) was a prominent Polish noble family in 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 ...

and magnates 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 ...

. The Potocki family is one of the wealthiest and most powerful aristocratic families in Poland.

History

The Potocki family originated from the small village of Potok Wielki; their family name derives from that place name. The family contributed to the cultural development and history of Poland's Eastern Borderlands (today Western Ukraine). The family is renowned for numerous Polish statesmen, military leaders, and cultural activists. The first known Potocki was Żyrosław z Potoka (born about 1136). The children of his son Aleksander (~1167) castelan of Sandomierz, were progenitors of new noble families such as the Moskorzewski, Stanisławski, Tworowski, Borowski, and Stosłowski. Jakub Potocki (c. 1481–1551) was the protoplast of the magnate line of the Potocki family. The magnate line split into three primary lineages, called: * Hetman Line or Silver Pilawa, many members of which held the position of Hetman, the protoplast was Stanisław "Rewera" Potocki. The line divided into a number of branches, including Łańcut, Krzeszów, Tulczyn and Wilanów branches. * Primate Line or Golden Pilawa, named after the most prominent member Teodor Andrzej Potocki, Primate of Poland. * Iron Pilawa line The "Złota Pilawa" line received the title of

count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

from the Emperor 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 ...

in 1606. The entire family began using the Count title after 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 ...

. The title was recognized 1777 and 1784 in the

Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria The Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria, also known as Austrian Galicia or colloquially Austrian Poland, was a constituent possession of the Habsburg monarchy in the historical region of Galicia (Eastern Europe), Galicia in Eastern Europe. The Cr ...

and 1838, 1843, 1859, 1890 1903 in

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

and 1889 by the Pope and in the Kingdom of Poland (

Congress Poland 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 ...

). In 1631 Stefan Potocki, who started the "Złota Pilawa" lineage, died and was buried in Zolotyi Potik (pl. ''Złoty Potok'', ''Golden Potok'', a village owned by this lineage), his descendants started to use the Pilawa coat of arms in golden colour. Because of that the lineage is called the "Złota Pilawa" (Golden Piława). There are also four branches called: * "Gałąź łańcucka" (Branch of Łańcut) * "Gałąź krzeszowicka" (Branch of Krzeszowice) * "Gałąź tulczyńska" (Branch of Tulczyn) * "Gałąź wilanowska" (branch of

Wilanów Wilanów () is a dzielnica, district of the city of Warsaw, Poland. It is home to historic Wilanów Palace, the "Polish Palace of Versailles, Versailles," and second home to various List of Polish rulers, Polish kings. Wilanów is home to many v ...

) Named after the hubs of their respective constellations of properties. The family became prominent in the 16th and 17th centuries as a result of the patronage of

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

Jan Zamoyski and 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 ...

Notable family members

* Aleksander Stanisław Potocki (1778–1845), landowner, politician * Alfred Józef Potocki (1817–1889), Sejm Marshal, Minister-President of Austria * Alfred Wojciech Potocki (1785–1862), landowner, politician * Andrzej Potocki (1630–1692),

Field Crown Hetman Field may refer to: Expanses of open ground * Field (agriculture), an area of land used for agricultural purposes * Airfield, an aerodrome that lacks the infrastructure of an airport * Battlefield * Lawn, an area of mowed grass * Meadow, a gras ...

* Andrzej Potocki (1618–1663), Obozny 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 ...

* Antoni Protazy Potocki (1761–1801), banker and voivode * Artur Potocki (1787–1832), landowner, officer * Ewa Józefina Julia Potocka (1818–1895), married to Prince Franz de Paula of Liechtenstein * Feliks Kazimierz Potocki (1630–1702), Field and Great Hetman of the Crown * Franciszek Salezy Potocki (1700–1772), Krajczy, Field Clerk of the Crown * Ignacy Potocki (1750–1809), politician, writer and office holder. * Jan Potocki (1761–1815), writer ('' The Manuscript Found in Saragossa'') * Jerzy Józef Potocki (1889–1961), diplomat, officer * Józef Potocki (1673–1751), Great Hetman of the Crown * Józef Potocki (?-1723), Great Guard of the Crown * Józef Mikołaj Kazimierz Marian Alfred Jakub Potocki (1862–1922) * Katarzyna Potocka (?–1642), was married to Janusz Radziwiłł * Konstancja Potocka (1781–1852), was married to Jan Potocki and Edward Raczyński * Mieczysław Ludwik Potocki (1810-1878), Polish '' zemianin'' associated with the discovery of the Zbruch Idol * Mikołaj Potocki (1595–1651), Field and Great Crown Hetman * Mikołaj Bazyli Potocki (1712–1782), Starost of Kaniv, benefactor of the Pochayiv Lavra * Natalia Potocka (1810–1830), was married to Roman Sanguszko * Roman Ignacy Potocki (1750–1809), co-author of the Polish Constitution of May 3, 1791 * Roman Potocki (1852–1915), landowner * Seweryn Potocki (1762–1829), curator of

Kharkov Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

educational district in

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

* Stanisław Kostka Potocki (1755–1821), writer, publicist, collector and patron of art * Stanisław "Rewera" Potocki (1579–1667), Field and Great Hetman of the Crown * Stanisław Potocki (1659–1683), starost of Halicz and Kołomyja, rotmistrz and

pułkownik (; ) is a military rank used mostly in Slavic peoples, Slavic-speaking countries which corresponds to a colonel in English-speaking states, ''coronel'' in Spanish and Portuguese-speaking states and ''oberst'' in several German-speaking and Scan ...

of cavalry * Stanisław Szczęsny Potocki (1753–1805), Marshal of the Targowica Confederation. * Stefan Potocki, voivode of Bratslav (1568-1631), starosta of Fellin * Stefan Potocki (1624–1648), starosta of

Nizhyn Nizhyn (, ; ) is a city located in Chernihiv Oblast of northern Ukraine along the Oster River. The city is located north-east of the national capital Kyiv. Nizhyn serves as the capital city, administrative center of Nizhyn Raion. It hosts the ...

* Stefan Aleksander Potocki (? — 1726/1727), the founder of the Basilian Buchach basilian monastery * Teodor Potocki (1664–1738), Primate of Poland and interrex in 1733 *

Wiktoria Elżbieta Potocka The House of Potocki (; plural: Potoccy, male: Potocki, feminine: Potocka) was a prominent szlachta, Polish noble family in the Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569), Kingdom of Poland and magnates of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Po ...

(died c. 1670), was married to Adam Hieronim Sieniawski and Andrzej Potocki

Other relatives

*Count Geoffrey Potocki de Montalk (1902–1997), an accomplished New Zealand poet, has been erroneously described as a "feigned member" of the Pilawa Potocki family. In fact, he is a direct descendant of the Bocki Potocki line, until recently believed to have died out with the death of Count Jozef Franciszek Jan Potocki, his great-grandfather, in Paris.

Purported members

* Avraham ben Avraham, birth name Valentin Potocki. Purportedly converted to

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

, moved to Vilna to hide his identity but was executed for heresy on May 23, 1749 (the second day of the Jewish holiday of

Shavuot (, from ), or (, in some Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi usage), is a Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday, one of the biblically ordained Three Pilgrimage Festivals. It occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan; in the 21st century, it may ...

). His remains are believed to have been secretly buried next to the

Vilna Gaon Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, ( ''Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman''), also known as the Vilna Gaon ( ''Der Vilner Goen''; ; or Elijah of Vilna, or by his Hebrew acronym Gr"a ("Gaon Rabbenu Eliyahu": "Our great teacher Elijah"; Sialiec, April 23, 172 ...

, with a monument to that effect first erected in 1927. Though his existence is generally accepted among Orthodox Jews, many secular scholars contest his existence due to a lack of primary sources. He was first mentioned in writing by Rabbi Yaakov Emden in 1755, six years after he would have died. * Maria Patocka: said to be the mother of Crimean khan Adil Giray. * Princess Teresa Potocki Benvenuto 1839 -1909 was the daughter of count Alfred Józef Potocki and Charlotte Bonaparte.

Coat of arms and motto

The Potocki family used the Piława coat of arms, and their motto was ''Scutum opponebat scuto'' (Latin for "Shield opposing shield"; literally "He opposed shield to shield"). Image:POL COA Pilawa.svg, Silver Pilawa Image:POL COA Pilawa Złota.svg, Golden Pilawa Image:POL COA Potocki Hrabia.svg, Arms of the Counts Potocki Image:Wilanow herb Pilawa na mauzoleum.jpg, Pilawa at the Potocki mausoleum at Wilanów Park Image:Pilawa CoA in Lezajsk monastery.JPG, Pilawa at Leżajsk monastery

References

External links

Family album from about 1860-1875(Public Domain)
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