Original act of Warsaw Confederation

The Warsaw Confederation (January 28, 1573), an important development in the history of Poland and Lithuania, is considered the formal beginning of religious freedom in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. While it did not prevent all conflict based on religion, it did make the Commonwealth a much safer and more tolerant place than most of contemporaneous Europe, especially during the subsequent Thirty Years' War. The Warsaw Confederation was a confederation against King of Poland August II the Strong. ... is the 28th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1573 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. ... Humans have lived on the lands of todays Poland for the past half a million years or more, highly developed agricultural people for the last 7500 years, the Slavic people have settled in this territory for over 1500 years. ... Freedom of religion is the individuals right or freedom to hold whatever religious beliefs he or she wishes, or none at all. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Combatants Sweden  Bohemia Denmark-Norway[1] Dutch Republic France Scotland England Saxony  Holy Roman Empire Catholic League Austria Bavaria Spain Commanders Frederick V Buckingham Leven Gustav II Adolf â€  Johan Baner Cardinal Richelieu Louis II de Bourbon Vicomte de Turenne Christian IV of Denmark Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar Johann Georg I...

History

Religious tolerance in Poland had had a long tradition (e.g. Statute of Kalisz) and had been de facto policy in the reign of the recently deceased King Zygmunt II. However, the articles signed by the Confederation gave official sanction to earlier custom. In that sense, they may be considered either the beginning or the peak of Polish tolerance. The General Charter of Jewish Liberties known as the Statute of Kalisz was issued by the Duke of Greater Poland Boleslaus the Pious on September 8, 1264 in Kalisz. ... De facto is a Latin expression that means in fact or in practice. It is commonly used as opposed to de jure (meaning by law) when referring to matters of law or governance or technique (such as standards), that are found in the common experience as created or developed without... Louis XIV, king of France and Navarre (Painting by Hyacinthe Rigaud, 1701). ... Reign From April 1, 1548 until July 6, 1572 Coronation On September 15, 1697 in the Wawel Cathedral, Kraków, Poland Royal House Jagiellon Parents Zygmunt I Stary Bona Sforza Consorts Elżbieta Habsburzanka Barbara Radziwiłł Katarzyna Austriaczka Barbara Giżycka Children with Barbara Giżycka Barbara Date of Birth... A confederation is an association of sovereign states or communities, usually created by treaty but often later adopting a common constitution. ...

Following the childless death of the last king of the Jagiellon dynasty, Polish and Lithuanian nobles (szlachta) gathered at Warsaw to prevent any separatists from acting and to maintain the existing legal order. For that it was necessary to make all citizens unconditionally abide by any decision taken by a body, and the confederation was an important proof that two states stand together. The Jagiellons were a royal dynasty which reigned in some Central European countries between the 14th and 16th century. ... Stanisław Antoni Szczuka, a Polish nobleman Szlachta ( ) was the noble class in Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the two countries that later jointly formed the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. ... For other uses, see Warsaw (disambiguation) and Warszawa (disambiguation). ... Political separatism is a movement to obtain sovereignty and split a territory or group of people (usually a people with a distinctive national consciousness) from one another (or one nation from another; a colony from the metropolis). ...

In January the nobles signed a document in which representatives of all the major religions pledged each other mutual support and tolerance. The confederation created a legal basis for a new political system and at the same time secured the unity of the state which had been inhabited for generations by communities from different ethnic backgrounds (Poles, Lithuanians, Ruthenian, Germans, Armenians, Wlachians, Dutch, Tatars, Scotts and Jews) and of different denominations (Catholic, Protestant, Eastern Orthodox, Jewish, and Muslim).

This act is remarkable in that it was not imposed by a government or by consequences of war, but rather resulted from the good will of members of Polish-Lithuanian society. It was also influenced by the 1572 French St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre, which prompted the Polish-Lithuanian nobility to see that no monarch would ever be able to carry out such an act in Poland. January 16 - Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk is tried for treason for his part in the Ridolfi plot to restore Catholicism in England. ... Painting by François Dubois (born about 1529, Amiens, Picardy) The St. ...

The people most involved in preparing the articles were Mikołaj Sienicki (leader of the "execution movement"), Jan Firlej and Jan Zborowski. Their effort was opposed by many dignitaties of the Roman Catholic Church. MikoÅ‚aj Sienicki of BoÅ„cza (ca. ... Execution(ist) movement (Polish language: Ruch egzekucyjny, also egzekucja praw (execution of laws), egzekucja dóbr (execution of lands), popularyÅ›ci (popularists), zamoyszczycy (Zamoyskis faction) was a political movement of lesser and middle nobility (szlachta) in the Kingdom of Poland (and later, Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth) in the 16th century. ... Nobel Family Firlej Coat of Arms Lewart Parents Piotr Firlej Katarzyna Teczynska Consorts Zofia Boner (Bonarowa) Zofia Dzik (Doliwa) Barbara Mniszech Children with Zofia Boner Mikolaj Firlej Andrzej Firlej Jan Firlej Piotr Firlej with Zofia Dzik Anna Firlej Henryk Firlej Date of Birth abt. ... Catholic Church redirects here. ...

They were opposed by most of the Catholic priests: Franciszek Krasinski was the only bishop that signed them (Szymon Starowolski claimed he did so under the "threat of the sword"), and the future legal acts containing the articles of the Confederation were signed by bishops with the stipulation: "excepto articulo confoederationis." Another bishop, Wawrzyniec Goslicki, was excommunicated for signing the acts of the Sejm of 1587. Szymon Starowolski (15851-16502) (Simon Starowolski, Simonis Starovolsci) was a writer, scholar, and historian in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. ... Wawrzyniec Grzymała Goślicki (Latin: Laurentius Grimaldius Gosliscius; 1530-1607) was a Polish bishop, political thinker and philosopher best known for his book De optimo senatore (1568; English translation: The Accomplished Senator, 1598). ... Excommunication is religious censure which is used to deprive or suspend membership in a religious community. ...

The articles of the Warsaw Confederation were later incorporated into the Henrician Articles, and thus became constitutional provisions alongside the Pacta conventa also instituted in 1573. Henrician Articles, also known as Henrykian Articles (Polish Artykuły henrykowskie), contained the most important ideals of governance in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in form of 21 Articles written and voted for by the szlachta in 1573 during the times of interregnum in the town of Kamien near Warsaw. ... The Constitution of the Republic of Poland of 2 April 1997 was Polands first post-communist constitution. ... The first pacta conventa, acceded to by Henryk Walezy (Henri de Valois), 1573. ... Year 1573 was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. ...

Importance

Religious life in late 16th century Poland, situated between Orthodox Muscovy, Muslim Ottoman Empire and Western Europe, torn between reformation and counterreformation, was of an exceptional character. This country became what Cardinal Stanislaus Hosius called “a place of shelter for heretics”. It was a place where the most radical religious sects, trying to escape persecution in other countries of the Christian world, sought refuge. All religious sects in Poland enjoyed tolerance as such was the King’s will. The confederation officially legalized this situation and introduced the rule of peaceful co-existence for nobles of all denominations. Muscovy (Moscow principality (княжество Московское) to Grand Duchy of Moscow (Великое Княжество Московское) to Russian Tsardom (Царство Русское)) is a traditional Western name for the Russian state that existed from the 14th century to the late 17th century. ... Motto دولت ابد مدت Devlet-i Ebed-müddet (The Eternal State) Anthem Ottoman imperial anthem Borders in 1683, see: list of territories Capital Söğüt (1299–1326) Bursa (1326–1365) Edirne (1365–1453) Ä°stanbul (1453–1922) Government Monarchy Sultans  - 1281–1326 (first) Osman I  - 1918–22 (last) Mehmed VI Grand Viziers  - 1320... The Protestant Reformation was a movement which began in the 16th century as a series of attempts to reform the Roman Catholic Church, but ended in division and the establishment of new institutions, most importantly Lutheranism, Reformed churches, and Anabaptists. ... The Counter-Reformation or the Catholic Reformation was a strong reaffirmation of the doctrine and structure of the Catholic Church, climaxing at the Council of Trent, partly in reaction to the growth of Protestantism. ... Stanislaus Hosius (May 5, 1504 - August 5, 1579, born in Cracow, legate to Poland, cardinal and Ermland Warmia Prince-Bishop. ...

There is debate as to whether the religious freedom was intended only for the nobility or also for the peasants and others; most historians favour the latter interpretation. Freedom of religion is the individuals right or freedom to hold whatever religious beliefs he or she wishes, or none at all. ...

Quotes

• “Certainly, the wording and substance of the declaration of the Confederation of Warsaw of 28th January 1573 were extraordinary with regards to prevailing conditions elsewhere in Europe; and they governed the principles of religious life in the Republic for over two hundred years.” - Norman Davies

Norman Davies, Warsaw (Poland), October 7, 2004 Norman Davies (born June 8, 1939 in Bolton, Lancashire) is an English historian of Welsh descent, noted for his publications on the history of Poland, Europe and the British Isles. ...

See also

• Edict of Nantes
• Statute of Kalisz
• Warsaw Confederation (1704)

This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The General Charter of Jewish Liberties known as the Statute of Kalisz was issued by the Duke of Greater Poland Boleslaus the Pious on September 8, 1264 in Kalisz. ... The Warsaw Confederation was a confederation against King of Poland August II the Strong. ...

References

• PWN Encyclopedia entry (in Polish)
• UNSECO:The General Confederation of Warsaw

Further reading

• Bob Scribne, Tolerance and Intolerance in the European Reformation, Cambridge University Press, 2002, ISBN 0-521-89412-3, Google Print, p.264+

External links

• Photo
• Original text in Polish Same here
• (Polish) DWA BEZKRÓLEWIA — KONFEDERACJA WARSZAWSKA by ks. dr Tadeusz Wojak