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Jagiellonian Dynasty

Jagiellonian dynasty

The Jagiellons were a royal dynasty which reigned in some Central European countries between the 14th and 16th century. Members of the dynasty were grand dukes of Lithuania 1377–1392 and 1440–1572, kings of Poland 1386–1572, kings of Hungary 1440–1444 and 1490–1526, and kings of Bohemia 1471–1526. The family was a branch of the Lithuanian Gediminids dynasty. The name (other variations used in English include: Jagiellonians, Jagiellos, Jogailos) comes from Jogaila (Polish Jagiełło), the first Polish king of that dynasty. In Polish, the dynasty is known as Jagiellonowie (singular: Jagiellon); in Lithuanian it is called Jogailaičiai (sing.: Jogailaitis), in Belarusian Ягайлавічы (Jagajłavičy, sing.: Ягайлавіч, Jagajłavič), in Hungarian Jagellók (sing.: Jagelló), and in Czech Jagellonci (sing.: Jagellonec; adjective: Jagellonský). In all variations of that name, the letter J should be pronounced as in "Hallelujah" (or as Y in "yes"), and G – as in "get". Czech to the Adriatic Sea.]] The dynastic union between the two countries (converted into a full administrative union only in 1569) is the reason for the common appellation "Poland-Lithuania" in discussions about the area from the Late Middle Ages onwards. Two Jagiellonians also ruled Hungary and Bohemia, which briefly (1440–44) shared their king with Poland. Jogaila, Grand Duke of Lithuania and the founder of the dynasty in Poland, became king of Poland as Ladislaus II after converting to Christianity and marrying Jadwiga, second of Poland's Angevin rulers. The former Polish ruling house of Piast (c.962–1370) had ended with the death of Casimir III. Jagiellons were hereditary rulers of Poland and Lithuania. The Jagiellon rulers of Poland-Lithuania (with dates of ruling in brackets) were:
- Ladislaus II (in Lithuania 1377–1401; in Poland 1386–1434)
- Ladislaus III (1434–1444)
- Casimir IV (1447–1492)
- Jan Olbracht (1492–1501)
- Alexander (1501–1505)
- Sigismund the Elder (1506–1548)
- Sigismund Augustus (1548–1572) 1572 Sigismund's heir was his sister, Catherine Jagiellonica, who married Duke John of Finland the later king John III Vasa of Sweden; as a result, the main branch of the Jagiellons merged with the House of Vasa, which ruled Poland from 1587 until 1668. The Jagiellons at one point also established dynastic control over the kingdoms of Bohemia and Hungary, with Ladislaus Jagiello followed by his son Louis Jagiello. However, after Louis' sudden death, that royal line was extinguished.

External links

- [http://www.istorija.net/ Pages and Forums on the Lithuanian History] Category:Royal families Category:Lithuanian rulers Category:History of Lithuania Category:History of Poland ja:ヤギェウォ朝

Dynasty

A dynasty is a succession of rulers who are members of the same family for generations. The term is also used to refer to the period during which that family reigns. A ruler in a dynasty is sometimes referred to as a dynast. A series of dynasties dating back to the Xia (2033 BC) ruled China until the end of the Xinhai Revolution in 1912. Historians traditionally recount China's story within a framework of successive dynasties (See Dynasties in Chinese history). A similar pattern happened in Ancient Egypt and the Persian Empire, and dynasties such as the Carolingians, the Capetians, the Bourbons, the Habsburgs, the Stuarts, the Hohenzollerns and the Romanovs successively and together dominated much of European political history.

Political families in democracies

Though in democratic governments rule does not pass automatically by inheritance, political power often accrues to generations of related individuals. Influence, familiarity, tradition and even nepotism may contribute to this phenomenon. See, for example, the list of U.S. political families, which includes the Roosevelts, Kennedys, Bushes, and Adamses. Apart from the United States case, political dynasties also occur commonly in other former parts of the British empire, particularly in southern Asia. Note especially:
- The Nehru-Gandhi family in India
- Inheritance by Khaleda Zia from her late husband Ziaur Rahman; and by Sheikh Hasina from her late father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in Bangladesh
- The Zulfikar Ali Bhutto dynasty in Pakistan
- Lee Kuan Yew's family in Singapore
- Aung San Suu Kyi's political inheritance in Burma
- The extended family of Solomon Bandaranaike in Sri Lanka In Britain itself, the persistance of aristocratic families and their varying titles may serve to disguise some of the on-going influence of several political dynasties (as opposed to the royal dynasties which have provided monarchs of England and of Scotland):
- the Churchills (the family of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough)
- the Russells (such as John Russell, 1st Earl Russell)
- the Chamberlains (descendants of Joseph Chamberlain)
- the Greys (notably Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey)
- the Pitts (for example: William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham) Category:Kinship and descent ja:王朝

14th century

(on the left) and Uma (on the right). It is housed in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.]] As a means of recording the passage of time, the 14th century was that century which lasted from 1301 to 1400.

Events

- The transition from the Medieval Warm Period to the Little Ice Age
- Beginning of the Ottoman Empire, early expansion into the Balkans
- The Avignon papacy transfers the seat of the Popes from Italy to France
- The Great Famine of 1315-1317 kills millions of people in Europe
- Being forced out of previous locations, the Aztec found the city of Tenochtitlan in 1325
- The Hundred Years' War begins when Edward III of England lays claim to the French throne in 1337.
- Black Death kills about one third of European population (1347 - 1351)
- The end of Mongol Yuan Dynasty in China and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty (1368)
- The heresy of Lollardy rises in England
- The Great Schism of the West begins in 1378, eventually leading to 3 simultaneous popes.
- An account of Buddha's life, translated earlier in to Greek by St John of Damascus and widely circulated to Christians as the story of Barlaam and Josaphat had become so popular that Buddha was made a Catholic saint (Josaphat).
- Singapore emerges for the first time as a fortified city and trading centre of some importance.
- Reunification of Poland under Ladislaus I of Poland
- Peasants' Revolt in England
- Islam reaches Terengganu, on the Malay Peninsula.
- The Hausa found several city-states in the south of modern Niger.
- The Mali Empire expands westward and conquers Tekrur.
- The poet Petrarch coins the term Dark Ages to describe the preceding 900 years in Europe, beginning with the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 410 through to the renewal embodied in the Renaissance.
- The Scots win the Scottish Wars of Independence.
- Work begins on the Great Enclosure at Great Zimbabwe, built of uncemented, dressed stone. The city's population is now between 10 000 and 40 000.

Significant people

- Giovanni Boccaccio, Italian author
- Edward III, King of England
- Geoffrey Chaucer, English poet
- Don Juan Manuel, Spanish author
- Francesco Petrarch, Italian poet and writer
- William of Ockham, English Franciscan friar and philosopher
- Dante Alighieri, Italian poet and writer
- King Robert I of Scotland (Bruce)
- Charles Robert, knight king of Hungary

Inventions, discoveries, introductions

- The mechanical clock
- The technique of knitting

Decades and years

Category:14th century Category:Centuries ko:14세기 ja:14世紀 th:คริสต์ศตวรรษที่ 14

Grand Duchy of Lithuania

" in Lithuanian and "Pogoń" in Polish]] Pogoń The Grand Duchy of Lithuania (Lithuanian: Lietuvos Didžioji Kunigaikštystė, Belarusian: Вялі́кае Кня́ства Літо́ўскае (ВКЛ), Ukrainian: Велике Князівство Литовське (ВКЛ), Polish: Wielkie Księstwo Litewskie) was an Eastern European state of the 12th - 18th centuries. Founded by pagan, Baltic Lithuanians in the second half of the 12th century it soon expanded beyond the boundaries of the traditional area of Lithuanian settlement, acquiring large parts of former Kievan Rus. In this way it covered the territory of present-day Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Transnistria and parts of Poland and Russia during the period of its greatest extent in the 15th century. In the Union of Krewo in 1386, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania made a personal union with the Kingdom of Poland. Under the Lublin Union in 1569, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania became a sovereign State in the Federation of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. In this Federation, the GDL had a separate government, laws, army and treasury. In 1795, this Commonwealth was destroyed by partition among Imperial Russia, Prussia and Austria . The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a multinational state which initially expanded by largely peaceful means, into the power vacuum left by the collapse of Mongol power. The many ethnic and religious populations (Catholic Lithuanians and Poles, Orthodox and Uniate Eastern Slavs, Jews, Armenians, Germans etc.) contributed to a diverse cultural and political life. The multinational character of the state and the cosmopolitan philosophy of its cultural elite after the end of 14th century generated debate over the national legacy of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 19th - 20th centuries. This debate involved largely Polish, Russian, Lithuanian, and Belarusian historians and overflowed into national politics. The debate reached its peak during the wars for independence from 1917 to 1920, and contributed to very local disputes such as those involving the Curzon line and politics in Central Lithuania. The expansion of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania into modern White Ruthenia united peoples of very similar culture and language. Both peoples, the forefathers of modern Lithuanians and modern Belarusians, called themselves Lithuanians in their own tongue (respectively lietuviai in Lithuanian and litviny in Belarusian). At that time "Lithuanian" had a double meaning. One meant an inhabitant of the GDL, and the other meant a person of Lithuanian culture and language. Such Lithuanians lived in the region of modern Lithuania, but also East Prussia and large parts of modern Belarus. In East Prussia it was used refer primarily to the large Lithuanian minority (Lithuania Minor), while in the Slavic lands of GDL the first usage was more common. In Belarus, Belarusians (especially catholics) regarded themselves as Lithuanian, while other populations there such as Ukrainians, referred to themselves only as Ruthenians or by some other ethnonym. The usage of term "Lithuanian" and the number of people considering themselves to be Lithuanians dropped with time due to adoption of Polish culture and language, which was regarded as more sophisticated. Eventually most of the GDL nobility considered themselves to be Poles. Lithuanian nationalism and self-determination revived in the nineteenth century. By then however the term was only associated with cultural Lithuanians. Belarusians, who had a national revival at about the same time, started to see themselves as a different nation. This division has lead to border disputes between the Lithuania and Belarus regarding both political and cultural boundaries. ethnonym

History

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania began its rise to great power status under the reign of the king Mindaugas (or Mindoŭh in Belarusian) beginning in 1238. The duchy expanded both south and east, incorporating large quantities of former Rus lands in both directions. Expansion reached its height under Gediminas (Belarusian language: Hiedzimin) who created a strong central government and succeed in creating and empire that spread from the Black to the Baltic sea. The ease with which Lithuania built up an empire can be accredited to the diplomatic and tactical skill of Lithuanian grand dukes as well as to the Mongols and their weakening of all the Rus lands. Lithuania was in an ideal position to take advantage of the weakness of the other Eastern Slavs. While almost every other state around it had been pillaged or defeated by the Mongols, the hordes never reached as far north as Lithuania and its territory was left untouched. Lithuania's expansion was also accelerated because of the weak control the Mongols had over the areas they had conquered. (Ruthenia was never incorporated directly into the Golden Horde. Instead, it was always a vassal state with a fair degree of independence.) The rise of Lithuania occurred at the ideal time when they could expand while meeting very little Ruthenian resistance and only limited opposition from the Mongols. The Lithuanian Empire was not one built upon military aggression. The Grand Duchy's existence always depended upon diplomacy just as much as upon arms. Most cities it annexed were never defeated in battle but agreed to be vassals of Lithuania. Since most of them were already vassals of the Golden Horde or of Muscovy this decision was not one of giving up independence but rather of exchanging one master for another. This can be seen in the case of Novgorod, it was often brought into the Lithuanian sphere of influence and became an occasional dependency of Lithuania, but Lithuanian armies never attacked the city. Rather Lithuanian control was the result of internal factions within the city looking to escape domination by Muscovy. This method of empire building was, however, quite unstable. Changing internal politics within a city would often see it pull out of Lithuania's control, as happened on a number of occasions with Novgorod and other Rus cities. Teutonic Knights in 1387", oil on canvas by Jan Matejko, 1889, Royal Castle in Warsaw.]] Lithuania reached its height under Vytautas the Great (Vitaŭt, Vitovt, Witold) who reigned from 1392 to 1430. The territory spread from the Baltic to the Black sea. Muskovys speedy expansion soon put it into a position to rival Lithuania, however, and after the annexation of Novgorod in 1478 Muscovy was unquestionably the preeminent state in North East Europe. Between 1492 and 1508 Ivan III seized a part of the former Rus lands from Lithuania. The loss of land to Muscovy and the continued pressure from the expanding Russian state made a real threat of destroying the state of Lithuania, as it was forced to pursue ever closer alliances with Poland until it was united with its western neighbour in the Commonwealth of Two Nations (Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth) in the Union of Lublin of 1569. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania retained many rights in that federation (including separate government, treasury and army) until the May Constitution of Poland was passed in 1791. The chancery languages of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was Ruthenian (reffered to as Old Belarusian by Belarusians and as Chancery Slavic by Lithuanians) and Latin. First was used for correspondence to eastern countries and later also the local needs, such as writting laws (Lithuanian statutes). Latin and german was used for correspondence to western countries. The Ruthenian language was chosen for inner laws and such because of more developed Eastern Slavic culture and writting by the time; as Lithuanian nation was pagan for long, culturally, from a western standpoint, it was behind the orthodox Slavs. It is stated that King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania Alexander I could understand and speak lithuanian, after him there are no valid evidences. Also, at the time nationalism was not present, and the nobles who migrated from one place to another would adapt to a new locality and take local religion and culture. Therefore those Lithuanian nobles who moved to Slavic areas took up their culture. It is very hard to determinate what languages these nobles spoke in their lifes because there are no available information about that, therefore this is frequently disputed by Lithuanian, Belarusian and Polish historians. Ethnically at the start of the country Lithuanians made 70% of population. With the acquisition of new slavic populated territories, this part decreased to 50% and with the acquisition of even more lands to 30%. An other major nation were Tatars (by Dykra). By the time of late Grand Duchy, Slavs made overal majority. Because of this, as well as the usage of Slavic language to write laws, in some historical sources the late GDL is often called a Slavic country among Poland, Russia etc.

Military

Despite Lithuania's mainly peaceful conquest of much of its Rus holdings it could call upon potent military strength if needed and were the only power in Eastern Europe that could contend with the Golden Horde as equals. While very few armies in the world could oppose the Mongols at their height, the Golden Horde was an easier rival, and one Lithuania could match. When the Golden Horde did try to prevent Lithuanian expansion they were often rebuffed. In both 1333 and 1339 the Lithuanians defeated large Mongol forces attempting to regain Smolensk from the Lithuanian sphere of influence. Even when victorious the Mongols rarely had the power to stop Lithuania for long. A large victory in 1399, for instance, only briefly delayed Lithuanian control spreading all the way to the Black Sea. Due to of Lithuanian power the Mongols could not exert military dominance over northwestern Russia, and partially for this reason Smolensk, Pskov, Novgorod, and Polacak were some of the few major cities never to be ravaged by the Mongols.

Religion

Until 1387 Lithuanians professed their own religion, which was non-Christian (pagan) and was somewhat different than any other religion in the world, though clearly a polytheistic religion based on deification of natural phenomena. Lithuanians were also a nation very dedicated to its faith. The pagan beliefs needed to be firmly entrenched to survive strong pressure from missionaries and foreign powers. Lands of modern-day Belarus and Ukraine, as well as local dukes (princes) in said regions, were firmly Orthodox Christians (Greek Catholic after the Union of Brest), though. Crusades were also launched against the Lithuanians, most notably by the Teutonic Knights. While pagan beliefs in Lithuania were strong enough to survive centuries of pressure from crusaders and missionaries, they did eventually succumb. After its union with Poland, Lithuania converted to Catholicism, while most of the Belarusian lands stayed Greek Catholic. The Teutonic Knights were crushed by the Poles and Lithuanians at the battle of Tannenberg in 1410.

Culture

One of the oldest universities in Eastern Europe, Vilnius University, was founded by Stefan Batory, Grand duke of Lithuania and king of Poland, in 1579. Due to the work of the Jesuits during the Counter-reformation the university soon developed into one of the most important scientific and cultural centres of the region and the most notable scientific centre of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

Legacy

Counter-reformation According to some historians (especially in Russia) one of the most crucial effects of Lithuania's power was upon ethnic divisions amongst inhabitants of former Kievan Rus'. From this point of view creation of Grand Duchy of Lithuania played a major role in division of the Eastern Slavs. After the mongolian conquest of Rus' the Mongols attempted to keep the East Slavs unified and succeeded in conquering majority of the former Rus lands. Prussian tribes (one of the Balts) were attacking Masovia, and that was the reason for Masovian Duke (Konrad of Masovia) invited the Teutonic Knights to settle near Prussian border. Fight with Prusians gave time to unite the more distant Lithuanian gentes. Because of strong enemies south, and north, newly formed Lithuanian state concentrated most of its military and diplomatic effort on expantion east. The rest of former Ruthenian lands (Belarusian principalities) joined the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from the very beginning, some other lands in the Ukraine were vassalized by Great Lithuania later. This separation of the East Slavs among two powers created substantial differences that persist to this day. According to this claim while during Kievan Rus there were certainly substantial regional differences, it was the Lithuanian "annexation" of much of southern and western Rus that led to the permanent division between Ukrainians, Belarusians, and Russians. Kiev and other southern cities of Rus had not enough resources to avoid annexation to Russia like Novgorod, a city which also had strong regional differences to Vladimir-Suzdal', but ones that were erased by total Muscovite regional domination. However, presence of a strong empire prevented quick reunification of land of Rus before the separate national identities formed. This claim seems to be highly controversial as on the same basis it can be claimed that the reason of creation of separate Russian state was the fact that Muscovy remained under Mongol political and cultural influence. From this point of view the reason of divisions amongst inhabitants of Rus' was Mongolian influence on Muscovy rather than Lithuanian on other parts of Rus'. Besides, ethnic and linguistic divisions amongst inhabitants of Rus were not initiated by division of this area between Mongols and Lithuania, and are much older than creation of Grand Duchy of Lithuania. And finally ethnic and linguistic frontier between Ukrainians, Belarusians and Russians, until 20th century did not cover with any political borders.

Sources

- Rowell, S.C. Lithuania Ascending a pagan empire within east-central Europe, 1295-1345. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994.

External links

- [http://depts.washington.edu/baltic/papers/grandduchy.htm Cheryl Renshaw. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania 1253-1795]
- [http://www.stankiewicz.e.pl/index.php?kat=8&sub=78 Grand Duchy of Lithuania]
- [http://www.istorija.net/ Pages and Forums on the Lithuanian History] Category:Empires Lithuania, Grand Duchy of Category:History of Lithuania Category:History of Poland Category:History of Ukraine Category:History of Belarus ja:リトアニア大公国

1392

Events

- December 16 - Emperor Go-Kameyama of Japan abdicates in favor of rival claimant Go-Komatsu, ending the nanboku-cho period of competing imperial courts
- James of Jülich is boiled alive for pretending to be a bishop and ordaining his own priests
- Korean founder of the Joseon Dynasty General Yi Seonggye leads a coup d'état, overthrowing the kingdom of Goryeo and founding the kingdom of Joseon
- Afyonkarahisar in western Turkey is conquered by Sultan Beyazid I
- Louis de Valois is created the 1st Duke of Orléans, the second time this title was created
- Erfurt University is founded in Erfurt, central Germany

Births

- February 3 - Henry Percy, 2nd Earl of Northumberland (died 1455)
- Alain Chartier, French poet and political writer (approximate date; died c. 1430)
- Flavio Biondo, Italian humanist and historian (died 1463)
- John de Mowbray, 2nd Duke of Norfolk (died 1432)
- Filippo Maria Visconti, Duke of Milan (died 1447)

Deaths

- Abbot Methodius of Peshnosha, Eastern Orthodox saint
- Jeong Mong-ju, Goryeo diplomat and poet (born 1337) Category:1392 ko:1392년

1440

For alternative meanings, see number 1440.

Events

- October 22 - Gilles de Rais confesses and is sentenced to death
- Itzcóatl, Aztec ruler of Tenochtitlan dies and is succeeded by Moctezuma I, Moctezuma Ilhuicamina.
- End of term for Regent of Sweden Karl Knutsson Bonde.
- Murad II lays seige to Belgrade. The city is heavily damaged, but the defenders' use of artillery prevents the Turks from capturing the city.

Births

- January 22 - Ivan III of Russia (d. 1505)
- February 22 - King Ladislaus Posthumus of Bohemia and Hungary (died 1457)
- Pedrarias Dávila, Spanish colonial administrator (died 1531)
- Kabir, Indian mystic (died 1518)
- Jorge Manrique, Spanish poet (died 1479)

Deaths

- March 9 - St Frances of Rome, Italian nun (born 1384)
- March 20 - Sigismond Korybut, Grand Prince of Lithuania
- September 30 - Reginald Grey, 3rd Baron Grey de Ruthyn, English soldier and politician
- October 26 - Gilles de Rais, French soldier (born 1404)
- November 13 - Joan Beaufort, Countess of Westmoreland
- Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg (born 1371)
- Itzcóatl, Aztec ruler of Tenochtitlan
- Johann Schiltberger, German traveller and writer (born 1381)
- Giovanni Vitelleschi, Italian bishop and soldier
- Henry Wardlaw, Scottish church leader Category:1440 ko:1440년

1572

Events

- January 16 - Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk is tried for treason for his part in the Ridolfi plot to restore Catholicism in England.
- April 1 - The Sea Beggars, Netherlandish Calvinist rebels, capture the port city of Brielle. This leads to a wave of uprisings in Holland and Zealand, leaving most of those provinces (with the exception of Amsterdam), under rebel control.
- June 25 - The Sea Beggars capture the city Gorkum. Several Roman Catholic priests are put into a prison.
- July 9 - The Sea Beggars hang 19 previously imprisoned Roman Catholic priests at Brielle.
- August 18 - Wedding in Paris of the Huguenot King Henry III of Navarre with Marguerite de France, sister of King Charles, in a supposed attempt to reconcile Protestants and Catholics.
- August 24 - St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre in Paris. Catholics in Paris murder thousands of Protestants, including Gaspard de Coligny, at the order of King Charles IX. Henry of Navarre and the Prince of Condé barely escape the same fate. This brings about the Fourth War of Religion in France.
- November 9 - Siege of Sancerre Catholic forces of the king lay siege to Sancerre, a Huguenot stronghold in central France. The fortified city held out for nearly eight months without bombard artillery. It was one of the last time slings were used in European history.
- December - The Duke of Alva, Spanish commander in the Netherlands, lays siege to Haarlem.
- Ending of the Muromachi period in Japan
- Tycho Brahe observes the supernova SN 1572 in Cassiopeia
- Vilcabamba, last independent remnant of the Inca Empire, conquered by Spanish

Births

- February 27 - Francis II, Duke of Lorraine (died 1632)
- April 14 - Adam Tanner, Austrian mathematician and philosopher (d. 1632)
- June 11 - Ben Jonson, English dramatist (died 1637)
- December 31 - Emperor Go-Yozei of Japan (died 1617)
- Francis van Aarssens (died 1641)
- Sigismund Bathory, Prince of Transylvania and of the Holy Roman Empire (died 1613)
- Johann Bayer, German astronomer (died 1625)
- Alonso de la Cueva, Spanish diplomat (died 1655)
- Arend Dickmann, Dutch admiral in the Polish Navy (died 1627)
- John Donne, English writer and prelate (died 1631)
- John Floyd, English Jesuit (died 1649)
- Bartholomew Gosnold, English lawyer and explorer (died 1607)
- Cyril Lucaris, Greek prelate and theologian (died 1637)
- James Mabbe, English scholar and poet (died 1642)
- Johann Sigismund, Duke of Prussia (died 1619)
- Thomas Tomkins, English composer (died 1656) See also :Category: 1572 births.

Deaths

- February 23 - Pierre Certon, French composer
- February 28 - Aegidius Tschudi, Swiss historian (b. 1505)
- March 2 - Mem de Sá, Portuguese Governor-General of Brazil
- March 10 - William Paulet, 1st Marquess of Winchester
- May 1 - Pope Pius V (born 1504)
- June 9 - Jeanne d'Albret, Queen of Navarre (born 1528)
- August 5 - Isaac Luria, Palestinian-born Kabbalist (b. 1534)
- August 24 - Victims of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre:
- Gaspard de Coligny, French protestant leader (born 1519)
- Pierre de la Ramée, French humanist scholar (born 1515)
- Charles de Téligny, French soldier and diplomat (born 1535)
- August 27 - Claude Goudimel, French composer (killed) (born 1510)
- September 24 - Tupac Amaru, last of the Incas
- October 24 - Edward Stanley, 3rd Earl of Derby, English politician (born 1508)
- November 23 - Agnolo di Cosimo, Italian artist and poet (b. 1503)
- November 24 - John Knox, Scottish religious reformer (born 1513)
- December 23 - Galeazzo Alessi, Italian architect (born 1512)
- Francis Borgia, Italian Jesuit (born 1510)
- François Clouet, French miniaturist
- Longqing Emperor of China
- Matthias Flacius, Lutheran reformer (born 1520)
- Richard Grafton, English merchant
- James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran (born 1516)
- Moses Isserles, rabbi and Talmudist (born 1530)
- Denis Lambin, French classical scholar (born 1520)
- Miguel López de Legaspi, Spanish conquistador of the Philippines (born 1510)
- John Erskine, 1st Earl of Mar, regent of Scotland
- Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski, Polish scholar (born 1503)
- Francisco de Moraes, Portuguese author and writer (born 1500)
- Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk (born 1536)
- King Sigismund II of Poland (born 1520)
- Christopher Tye, English composer and organist (born 1505)
- Yasumi Naomasa, Japanese military commander
- Stanislaw Zamoyski, Polish nobleman (born 1519) See also :Category: 1572 deaths. Category:1572 ko:1572년

Kingdom of Poland

Kingdom of Poland was the name of several Polish states in the history of that nation:
- Kingdom of Poland, 1025-1795
- Kingdom of Poland of the first Piasts, 1025-1138
- Kingdom of Poland during period of fragmentation, 1138-1295
- Kingdom of Poland of the later Piasts, 1295-1370
- Kingdom of Poland of the Angevins, 1370-1385
- Kingdom of Poland of the Jagiellons, 1385-1569
- Kingdom of Poland as part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, 1569-1795
- Kingdom of Poland as an autonomous Polish state in personal union with Imperial Russia, 1815-1830
- Kingdom of Poland as a satellite of the Austro-Hungarian and German empires, 1916-1918

History of Poland (1385-1569)

The Jagiellon Era 1385-1569, was dominated by the union of Poland with Lithuania under the Jagiellon Dynasty, founded by the Lithuanian grand duke Jagiello. The partnership proved profitable for the Poles and Lithuanians, who played a dominant role in one of the most powerful empires in Europe for the next three centuries.

The Polish-Lithuanian Union

Poland's unlikely partnership with the adjoining Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Europe's last heathen state, provided an immediate remedy to the political and military dilemma caused by the end of the Piast Dynasty. At the end of the fourteenth century, Lithuania was a warlike political unit with dominion over enormous stretches of present-day Belarus and Ukraine. Putting aside their previous hostility, Poland and Lithuania saw that they shared common enemies, most notably the Teutonic Knights; this situation was the direct incentive for the Union of Krewo in 1385. The compact hinged on the marriage of the Polish queen Jadwiga to Jagiello, who became king of Poland under the name Władysław II. In return, the new monarch accepted baptism in the name of his people, agreed to confederate Lithuania with Poland. In 1387 the bishopric of Wilno was established to convert Władysław's subjects to Roman Catholicism. (Eastern Orthodoxy predominated in some parts of Lithuania.) From a military standpoint, Poland received protection from the Mongols and Tatars, while Lithuania received aid in its long struggle against the Teutonic Knights. The Polish-Lithuanian alliance exerted a profound influence on the history of Eastern Europe. Poland and Lithuania would maintain joint statehood for more than 400 years, and over the first three centuries of that span the "Commonwealth of Two Nations" ranked as one of the leading powers of the continent. The association produced prompt benefits in 1410 when the forces of Poland-Lithuania defeated the Teutonic Knights in battle at Grunwald (Tannenberg), at last seizing the upper hand in the long struggle with the renegade crusaders. The new Polish Lithuanian dynasty, called "Jagiellon" after its founder, continued to augment its holdings during the following decades. By the end of the fifteenth century, representatives of the Jagiellons reigned in Bohemia and Hungary as well as Poland-Lithuania, establishing the government of their clan over virtually all of Eastern Europe and Central Europe. This farflung federation collapsed in 1526 when armies of the Ottoman Empire won a crushing victory at the Battle of Mohács (Hungary), wresting Bohemia and Hungary from the Jagiellons and installing the Turks as a menacing presence in the heart of Europe.

The "Golden Age" of the Sixteenth Century

The Jagiellons never recovered their hegemony over Central Europe, and the ascendancy of the Ottomans foreshadowed the eventual subjection of the entire region to foreign rule; but the half century that followed the Battle of Mohács marked an era of stability, affluence, and cultural advancement unmatched in national history and widely regarded by Poles as their country's golden age.

Poland-Lithuania as a European Power

The Teutonic Knights had been reduced to vassalage, and despite the now persistent threats posed by the Turks and an emerging Russian colossus, Poland-Lithuania managed to defend its status as one of the largest and most prominent states of Europe. The wars and diplomacy of the century yielded no dramatic expansion but shielded the country from significant disturbance and permitted significant internal development. An "Eternal Peace" concluded with the Ottoman Turks in 1533 lessened but did not remove the threat of invasion from that quarter. A lucrative agricultural export market was the foundation for the kingdom's wealth. A population boom in Western Europe prompted an increased demand for foodstuffs; Poland-Lithuania became Europe's foremost supplier of grain, which was shipped abroad from the Baltic seaport of Gdansk. Aside from swelling Polish coffers, the prosperous grain trade supported other notable aspects of national development. It reinforced the preeminence of the landowning nobility that received its profits, and it helped to preserve a traditionally rural society and economy at a time when Western Europe had begun moving toward urbanization and capitalism.

The Government of Poland-Lithuania

In other respects as well, the distinctive features of Jagiellonian Poland ran against the historical trends of early modern Europe. Not the least of those features was its singular governmental structure and practice. In an era that favored the steady accumulation of power within the hands of European monarchs, Poland-Lithuania developed a markedly decentralized system dominated by a landed aristocracy that kept royal authority firmly in check. The Polish nobility, or szlachta, enjoyed the considerable benefits of landownership and control over the labor of the peasantry. Nobles were not the masters of life and death of the peasentry, but peasants could not leave the village without permission of village' s noble owner. The szlachta included 7 to 10 percent of the population, making it a very large noble class by European standards. The nobility manifested an impressive group solidarity in spite of great individual differences in wealth and standing. Over time, the gentry introduced a series of royal concessions and guarantees that vested the noble parliament, or Sejm, with decisive control over most aspects of statecraft, including exclusive rights to the making of laws. In 1505 Sejm concluded that no new law could be established without the agreement of the nobility (the Nihil Novi act). King Alexander Jagiellon was forced to agree to this settlement. The Sejm operated on the principle of unanimous consent, regarding each noble as irreducibly sovereign. In a further safeguard of minority rights, Polish usage sanctioned the right of a group of gentry to form a confederation, which in effect constituted an uprising aimed at redress of grievances. The nobility also possessed the crucial right to elect the monarch, although the Jagiellons were in practice a hereditary ruling house in all but the formal sense. In fact, Jagiellons had to give privileges to the nobles to encourage them to elect their sons to be the successors. Those privileges reduced king's power. King Sigismund II Augustus was the last of Jagiellon dynasty; he had no sons. The prestige of the Jagiellons and the certainty of their succession supplied an element of cohesion that tempered the disruptive forces built into the state system. In retrospect historians frequently have derided the idiosyneratic, delicate governmental mechanism of Poland-Lithuania as a recipe for anarchy. Although its eventual breakdown contributed greatly to the loss of independence in the eighteenth century, the system worked reasonably well for 200 years while fostering a spirit of civic liberality unmatched in the Europe of its day. The host of legal protections that the nobility enacted for itself prefigured the rights generally accorded the citizens of modern democracies, and the memory of the "golden freedoms" of Poland-Lithuania is an important part of the Poles' present-day sense of their tradition of liberty. On the other hand, the exclusion of the lower nobility from most of those protections caused serious resentment among that largely impoverished class, and the aristocracy passed laws in the early sixteenth century that made the peasants virtual slaves to the flourishing agricultural enterprises.

Poland-Lithuania in the Reformation Era

In modern eyes, the most saliently liberal aspect of Jagiellon Poland is its exceptional toleration of religious dissent. This tolerance prevailed in Poland even during the religious upheavals, war, and atrocities associated with the Protestant Reformation and its repercussions in many parts of sixteenth-century Europe. The Reformation arrived in Poland between 1523 and 1526. The small Calvinist, Lutheran, and Hussite groups that sprang up were harshly persecuted by the Roman Catholic Church in their early years. Then in 1552 the Sejm suspended civil execution of ecclesiastical sentences for heresy. For the next 130 years, Poland remained solidly Roman Catholic while refusing to repress contending faiths and providing refuge for a wide variety of religious nonconformists. Such broad-mindedness derived as much from practical necessity as from principle, for Poland-Lithuania governed a populace of remarkable ethnic and religious diversity, embracing Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Protestants, and numerous non Christians. In particular, after the mid-sixteenth century the Polish lands supported the world's largest concentration of Jews, whose number was estimated at 150,000 in 1582. Under the Jagiellons, Jews suffered fewer restrictions in Poland-Lithuania than elsewhere in Europe while establishing an economic niche as tradesmen and managers of noble estates.

The Polish Renaissance

The sixteenth century was perhaps the most illustrious phase of Polish cultural history. During this period, Poland-Lithuania drew great artistic inspiration from the Italians, with whom the Jagiellon court cultivated close relations. Styles and tastes characteristic of the late Renaissance were imported from the Italian states. These influences survived in the renowned period architecture of Kraków, which served as the royal capital until that distinction passed to Warsaw in 1611. The University of Kraków gained international recognition as a cosmopolitan center of learning, and in 1543 its most illustrious student, Nicolaus Copernicus (Mikolaj Kopernik), literally revolutionized the science of astronomy. The period also bore the fruit of a mature Polish literature, once again modeled after the fashion of the West European Renaissance. The talented dilettante Mikolaj Rej was the first major Polish writer to employ the vernacular, but the elegant classicist Jan Kochanowski (1530-1584) is acknowledged as the genius of the age. Accomplished in several genres and equally adept in Polish and Latin, Kochanowski is widely regarded as the finest Slavic poet before the nineteenth century.

The Eastern Regions of the Realm

The population of Poland-Lithuania was not overwhelmingly Catholic or Polish. This circumstance resulted from the federation with Lithuania, where ethnic Poles were a distinct minority. In those days, to be Polish was much less an indication of ethnicity than of rank; it was a designation largely reserved for the landed noble class, which included members of Polish and non-Polish origin alike. Generally speaking, the ethnically non Polish noble families of Lithuania adopted the Polish language and culture. As a result, in the eastern territories of the kingdom a Polish or Polonized aristocracy dominated a peasantry whose great majority was neither Polish nor Catholic. This bred resentment that later grew into separate Lithuanian, Belarusian, and Ukrainian nationalist movements. In the mid-sixteenth century, Poland-Lithuania sought ways to maintain control of the diverse kingdom in spite of two threatening circumstances. First, since the late 1400s a series of ambitious tsars of the house of Rurik had led Russia in competing with Poland-Lithuania for influence over the Slavic territories located between the two states. Second, Sigismund II Augustus (1548-1572) had no male heir. The Jagiellon Dynasty, the strongest link between the halves of the state, would end after his reign. Accordingly, the Union of Lublin of 1569 transformed the loose federation and personal union of the Jagiellonian epoch into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, deepening and formalizing the bonds between Poland and Lithuania.

Reference

- - [http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/pltoc.html Poland].

1572

Events

Births

Deaths

Kingdom of Hungary

The Kingdom of Hungary (Hungarian: Magyar Királyság) is the name of a kingdom that existed in Central Europe from 1000 to 1918. It arose in present-day western Hungary and subsequently spread to remaining present-day Hungary, to Transylvania (in present-day Romania), Slovakia, Carpatho-Ukraine, Vojvodina (in present-day Serbia and Montenegro), Croatia, and other smaller nearby territories. However, some of these areas were not part of the Kingdom of Hungary in certain historical periods. The term "Kingdom of Hungary" is often used to denote this long-lasting configuration of territories in order to draw a clear distinction with the modern Hungarian state, which is significantly smaller and more ethnically homogeneous. Prior to and in the 19th century, the term Hungarian often referred to any inhabitant of this state, regardless of his or her ethnicity as we would understand it today. 19th century The state was ruled by the kings of Hungary, the bearers of the Holy Crown of St. Stephen. The first kings of the Kingdom were from the Árpád dynasty. In the early 14th century, this dynasty was replaced by the Angevins, and later the Jagiellonians as well as several non-dynastic rulers, notably Matthias Corvinus. At the Battle of Mohács in 1526, the Hungarian army was defeated by the forces of the Ottoman Empire, and King Lajos II of Hungary was killed. Under the Ottoman attacks the central authority collapsed and a struggle for power broke out. Some Hungarian nobles proclaimed Ferdinand of Habsburg, who was ruler of neighbouring Austria and tied to Lajos's family by marriage, as King of Hungary; there had been previous agreements that the Habsburgs would take the Hungarian throne if Lajos died without heirs, as he did. However, other nobles turned to the Hungarian nobleman John Zápolya. Zápolya received the support of the Ottoman Sultan but no recognition from other Christian powers. A three-sided conflict ensued as Ferdinand moved to assert his rule over as much of the Hungarian kingdom as he could. By 1541, the former territory of the kingdom had been split into three parts, and remained so until the end of the 17th century. Although the borders were changing very frequently during this period, the three parts can be identified more or less as follows:
- Present-day Slovakia, north-western Transdanubia, Burgenland, western Croatia, and adjacent territories were under Habsburg rule. This area was referred to as Royal Hungary, and though it nominally remained a separate state, it was administered more or less as part of the Habsburgs' Austrian holdings, to which it was immediately adjacent. This was the continuation of the Kingdom of Hungary.
- The Great Alföld (i.e. most of present-day Hungary, incl. south-eastern Transdanubia and the Banat), partly without north-eastern present-day Hungary, became part of the Ottoman Empire.
- The remaining territory became the newly independent principality of Transylvania, under Zápolya's family. Transylvania was a vassal state of the Ottoman Empire. After a failed Ottoman invasion of Austria in 1683, the Habsburgs went on the offensive against the Turks; by around 1700, they had managed to conquer the remainder of the historical Kingdom of Hungary and the principality of Transylvania. At this point, the Royal Hungary terminology was dropped, and the area was once again referred to as the Kingdom of Hungary, although it was still administered as a part of the Habsburg realm. In the 18th century, the Kingdom of Hungary had its own Diet (parliament) and constitution, but the members of the Governor's Council (Helytartótanács, the office of the palatine) were appointed by the Habsburg monarch, and the superior economic institution, the Hungarian Chamber, was directly subordinated to the Court Chamber in Vienna. Vienna In 1867, following the Ausgleich, the Habsburg Empire became the so-called "dual monarchy" of Austria-Hungary. The historic Kingdom of Hungary was granted considerable internal autonomy and a share in the operation of the Empire as a whole. This arrangement was to last until 1918, when on the one hand the non-Magyar peoples of the Kingdom of Hungary joined new or neighbouring states (Czechoslovakia, Romania, and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes), and on the other Hungarians declared a Hungarian republic (within the old boundaries of the kingdom) as the Central Powers went down in defeat in World War I. This is generally seen as the end of the state that is referred to as the Kingdom of Hungary. Beset by a series of internal revolutions and occupied by the Entente and Romanian troops, Hungary accepted the radical reduction in the territorial extent of the previous kingdom (which reflected boundaries that were almost 800 years old) laid out by the Treaty of Trianon in 1920. However, it should be noted that Kingdom of Hungary was also the formal name of the Hungarian state that existed largely on the territory of present Hungary from 21 March 1920 until 21 December 1944. This state (which was also commonly referred to as the Hungarian Kingdom) was conceived of as a "kingdom without a king," since there was no consensus on either who should take the throne of Hungary, or what form of government should replace the monarchy. The kingdom was ruled in this period by Miklós Horthy, who had the title of regent. Hungary became a republic on 1 February 1946.

External links

- [http://3.1911encyclopedia.org/H/HU/HUNGARY.htm Hungary in the Encyclopadia Britannica (1911)] Hungary, Kingdom of Hungary, Kingdom of Hungary, Kingdom of Hungary, Kingdom of Hungary, Kingdom of Category:History of Slovenia Category:History of Austria Hungary, Kingdom of Category:History of Ukraine ja:ハンガリー王国 ko:헝가리 왕국

1440

For alternative meanings, see number 1440.

Events

Births

Deaths

1490

Events

- Tirant Lo Blanc by Joanot Martorell, Martí Joan De Galba is published.
- Yoshitane becomes Ashikaga shogun of Japan.
- Charles John Amadeus of Savoy becomes Duke of Savoy at age 1, mother Blanche of Montferrato is regent.
- Aldus Manutius moves to Venice.
- John Colet receives M.A. from Magdalen College, Oxford.
- Castle Church in Wittenberg is begun.
- Pedro de Covilham arrives in Ethiopia.
- Catholic missionaries arrive in the African kingdom of Kongo.
- Regular postal service connects the Habsburg residences of Mechelen and Innsbruck, the first in Germany.
- December 19 - Anne of Brittany married to Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor by proxy

Births

- February 17 - Charles III, Duke of Bourbon, Constable of France (died 1527)
- March 24 - Georg Agricola, German scholar and scientist (died 1555)
- May 16 - Duke Albert of Prussia (died 1568)
- June 28 - Albert of Mainz, German elector and archbishop (died 1545)
- October 12 - Bernardo Pisano, Italian composer (died 1548)
- November 10 - John III, Duke of Cleves (died 1539)
- Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus (died 1556)
- Vittoria Colonna, Italian poet (died 1547)
- Luca Ghini, Italian physician and botanist (died 1566)
- Adriaen Isenbrant, Flemish painter (died 1551)
- Jean Salmon Macrin, French poet (died 1557)
- Olaus Magnus, Swedish ecclesiastic and writer (died 1557)
- Kaspar Schwenkfeld von Ossig, German theologian (died 1561)
- Richard Rich, 1st Baron Rich, Lord Chancellor of England (died 1567)
- John Taverner, English composer and organist (died 1545)
- Marco Girolamo Vida, Italian poet (died 1566)

Deaths

- January 27 - Ashikaga Yoshimasa, Japanese shogun (born 1435)
- March 6 - Ivan the Young, Ruler of Tver (b. 1458)
- April 6 - King Matthias Corvinus of Hungary (born 1443)
- May 22 - Edmund Grey, 1st Earl of Kent (born 1416)
- Martí Joan de Galba, Catalan novelist
- Charles I of Savoy (born 1468) Category:1490 als:1490 ko:1490년

1526

Events

- January 14 - Treaty of Madrid. Peace between Francis I of France and Charles V. Francis agrees to cede Burgundy to Charles, and abandons all claims to Flanders, Artois, Naples, and Milan.
- May 22 - Francis repudiates the Treaty of Madrid and forms the League of Cognac against Charles, including the Pope, Milan, Venice, and Florence.
- July 24 - Milan is captured by the Spanish.
- August 29 - Battle of Mohács. The Turkish army of Sultan Suleiman I defeats the Hungarian army of King Louis II, who is killed in the retreat. Suleiman takes Buda, while Archduke Ferdinand of Austria and John Zapolya, Prince of Transylvania, dispute over the succession.
- Dubrovnik achieves independence, although acknowledges Turkish overlordship.
- First official translation of the New Testament of the Bible in Swedish (cf 1541).
- First battle of Panipat - Babur becomes Moghul (or Mughal) emperor of India, captures Delhi, and invades Northern India, beginning the Mughal empire which would last until 1857.
- Emperor Go-Nara ascends to the throne of Japan.
- First official translation of the New Testament in English by William Tyndale arrives in England from Germany about the spring of 1526.

Births

- February 19 - Charles de L'Ecluse, Flemish botanist (died 1609)
- April 12 - Muretus, French humanist (died 1585)
- May 21 - King Philip II of Spain (d. 1598)
- Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon (died 1596)
- Catherine Jagellonica of Poland, queen of John III of Sweden (died 1583)
- Ikoma Chikamasa, daimyo in the Azuchi-Momoyama period and Edo period (died 1603)
- Taqi al-Din, Muslim scientist (died 1585)
- Konstanty Wasyl Ostrogski, Lithuanian prince (died 1608)
- Henry Manners, 2nd Earl of Rutland, Lord Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire (died 1563)

Deaths

- January 19 - Isabella of Burgundy, queen of Christian II of Denmark (born 1501)
- February 1 - Charles Somerset, 1st Earl of Worcester (born 1460)
- February 23 - Diego Colón, Spanish Viceroy of the Indies
- March 30 - Konrad Mutian, German humanist (born 1471)
- April 21 - Ibrahim Lodi, last Sultan of Delhi (died in battle)
- May 19 - Emperor Go-Kashiwabara of Japan (born 1464)
- August 4 - Juan Sebastián Elcano, Spanish explorer (born 1476)
- August 29 - King Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia (killed in battle) (born 1506)
- Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad, sultan of Adal (assassinated)
- Lucas Vásquez de Ayllón, Spanish explorer (born 1475)
- Francisco Hernández de Córdoba, founder of the Spanish colony of Nicaragua
- Conrad Grebel, co-founder of the Anabaptist movement (born 1498)
- Conradus Mutianus Rufus, German humanist (born 1471) Category:1526 ko:1526년

Bohemia

:This article is about the historical region in central Europe; for other uses, see Bohemia (disambiguation). Bohemia (Czech: Čechy; German: Böhmen, Russian: Bogemiya) is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western and middle thirds of the Czech Republic. With an area of 52,750 sq. km. and 6.25 million of the country's 10.3 million inhabitants, Bohemia is bounded by Germany to the north-west, west and south-west, Poland to the north-east, the Czech province of Moravia to the east and Austria to the south. Bohemia's borders are marked with mountain ranges such as the Šumava, the Ore Mountains or Giant Mountains as part of the Sudeten mountains. Note: In the Czech language there is no d