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Confederation (Poland)
 
 
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A konfederacja (Polish
Polish language

Polish , an official language of Poland, has the largest number of speakers of any West Slavic languages. Polish-speakers use the language in a uniform manner through most of Poland, and it has a regular orthography....
 for "confederation") was an ad hoc association formed by Polish-Lithuanian nobility
Szlachta

Szlachta refers to the nobility social class in the Kingdom of Poland , the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the increasingly polonized territories under their control ....
, clergy
Clergy

Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. The term comes from the Greek language ?????? - kleros, "a lot", "that which is assigned by lot" or metaphorically, "heritage"....
 or cities in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

The Polish?Lithuanian Commonwealth was one of the largest and most populous countries in 16th and 17th-century Europe, formed by a Union of Lublin of Kingdom of Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1569....
 for the attainment of stated aims. Such "confederations" acted in lieu of state authority or to force their demands upon that authority. A "confederation", so understood, should not be confused with the modern senses of a "confederation
Confederation

Usually created by treaty but often later adopting a common constitution, confederations tend to be established for dealing with critical issues such as defense , foreign affairs, or a common currency, with the central government being required to provide support for all members....
".

In the late 13th century, confederations of cities appeared; in the mid-14th century, confederations of nobility, directed against the central authorities (1352, 1439); during interregna
Interregnum

An interregnum is a period of discontinuity of a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one monarch and the next , and the concepts of interregnum and Regent therefore overlap....
, confederations (essentially vigilance committees) formed to protect internal order, replace inactive royal courts, and defend the country from external dangers.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, confederations often came out against the king; a confederation unrecognized by him was considered a rebellion (rokosz
Rokosz

A rokosz [], originally, was a gathering of all the Poland szlachta , not merely of deputies, for a sejm. The term was introduced to the Polish language from Hungary, where analogous gatherings took place at a field called R?kos....
).






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A konfederacja (Polish
Polish language

Polish , an official language of Poland, has the largest number of speakers of any West Slavic languages. Polish-speakers use the language in a uniform manner through most of Poland, and it has a regular orthography....
 for "confederation") was an ad hoc association formed by Polish-Lithuanian nobility
Szlachta

Szlachta refers to the nobility social class in the Kingdom of Poland , the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the increasingly polonized territories under their control ....
, clergy
Clergy

Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. The term comes from the Greek language ?????? - kleros, "a lot", "that which is assigned by lot" or metaphorically, "heritage"....
 or cities in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

The Polish?Lithuanian Commonwealth was one of the largest and most populous countries in 16th and 17th-century Europe, formed by a Union of Lublin of Kingdom of Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1569....
 for the attainment of stated aims. Such "confederations" acted in lieu of state authority or to force their demands upon that authority. A "confederation", so understood, should not be confused with the modern senses of a "confederation
Confederation

Usually created by treaty but often later adopting a common constitution, confederations tend to be established for dealing with critical issues such as defense , foreign affairs, or a common currency, with the central government being required to provide support for all members....
".

In the late 13th century, confederations of cities appeared; in the mid-14th century, confederations of nobility, directed against the central authorities (1352, 1439); during interregna
Interregnum

An interregnum is a period of discontinuity of a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one monarch and the next , and the concepts of interregnum and Regent therefore overlap....
, confederations (essentially vigilance committees) formed to protect internal order, replace inactive royal courts, and defend the country from external dangers.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, confederations often came out against the king; a confederation unrecognized by him was considered a rebellion (rokosz
Rokosz

A rokosz [], originally, was a gathering of all the Poland szlachta , not merely of deputies, for a sejm. The term was introduced to the Polish language from Hungary, where analogous gatherings took place at a field called R?kos....
). Frequent "general confederations" were formed, taking in most or all the Palatinates of the Commonwealth. The executive branch of a confederation was headed by a Marshal
Marshal

Marshal is a word used in several official titles of various branches of society. The word derives from Old High German marah "horse" and schalh "servant", and originally meant "stable keeper"....
, and the confederation's supreme authority was a general council; the confederation's decisions were made by majority vote.

In 1717 and by the May 3rd, 1791, Constitution, adopted by the Four-Year Sejm of 1788-1792 (itself constituted as a confederated sejm
Confederated sejm

Confederated sejm was a form of sejm in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 18th century. After 1764, sejms were frequently confederated....
 so that it could not be disrupted by liberum veto
Liberum veto

Liberum veto was a parliamentary device in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. It allowed any member of the Sejm to force an immediate end to the current session and nullify all legislation already passed at it by shouting Nie pozwalam! ....
), confederations were proscribed, but in practice this prohibition was not observed. The May 3rd Constitution was overthrown after a year, in mid-1792, by the Targowica Confederation
Targowica Confederation

The Targowica Confederation was a Confederation of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth magnates agreed upon on 27 April 1792 in Saint Petersburg with the backing of Empress Catherine II of Russia of Russian Empire....
, formed by Polish magnates backed by Russian Empress Catherine II (the Great) and eventually joined, under extreme duress, by Poland's King Stanislaw II August (Poniatowski) (who in 1764 had become King thanks to his ex-mistress, the Empress Catherine), and by ensuing Russian military intervention leading (to the Confederates' surprise) to the Second Partition
Partitions of Poland

The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish?Lithuanian Commonwealth....
 of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

The Polish?Lithuanian Commonwealth was one of the largest and most populous countries in 16th and 17th-century Europe, formed by a Union of Lublin of Kingdom of Poland and Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1569....
 in 1793.

See also

  • Warsaw Confederation
  • Confederated sejm
    Confederated sejm

    Confederated sejm was a form of sejm in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 18th century. After 1764, sejms were frequently confederated....
  • Sejmik
    Sejmik

    A sejmik was a regional assembly in the Polish?Lithuanian Commonwealth, and earlier in the Jagiellon Poland. Sejmiks existed until the end of the Commonwealth in 1795 following the partitions of Poland....
  • Nobles' Democracy
    Nobles' Democracy

    Nobles' Democracy may refer to* History of Poland * Golden Liberty, the political system of that time in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth...
  • Rokosz
    Rokosz

    A rokosz [], originally, was a gathering of all the Poland szlachta , not merely of deputies, for a sejm. The term was introduced to the Polish language from Hungary, where analogous gatherings took place at a field called R?kos....