Jagiellonian Kings
Władysław II Jagiełło
1386 – 1434
Władysław II Jagiełło was the longest reigning king in Polish history. He was on the throne for 48 years! Having ascended the Polish throne by marriage with young Queen Jadwiga in 1386, he united the Polish and Lithuanian kingdoms and protected both lands from attacks by Teutonic Knights. Polish and Lithuanian forces won the Battle of Grunwald in 1410, a date that has since been remembered by every Polish child from their history lessons and by every Pole whenever and wherever he would live.
The Teutonic Knights was a military order that was brought to what is now the northern part of Poland, to help the Duke of Masovia defend his territories from the Prussians. The Order had quickly established itself on the land as a strong military force, controlled the land to which they had been invited and created their own Teutonic State. They wished to expand to more and more territories, bringing fear of attacks to the neighbouring towns and villages.
Władysław III of Poland
Władysław III Warneńczyk, 1434 – 1444
He became the King of Poland after the death of his father Władysław II Jagiełło at the age of 10, and for the next four years the country was ruled by the Royal Council. He died in the Battle of Varna when he was only 20 years old, but his body was never found, therefore the next King of Poland was only crowned after a delay of three years.
Casimir IV Jagiellon
Kazimierz IV Jagiellończyk, 1447 – 1492
Many historians praise Casimir IV Jagiellon for defending the country and the Prussian Confederation from the Teutonic Order. After a long and costly Thirteen Years War (1454 – 1466) Casimir and the Prussian Confederation defeated the Teutonic Order. In the Second Peace Treaty of Toruń (1466) Poland regained rule over Pomerania, gained parts of Prussian lands together with Malbork and Warmia and obliged the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order to pay homage to the Polish king. He will always be remembered in Polish history for this great victory.
John I Albert
Jan I Olbracht, 1492 – 1501
Jan I Olbracht, the son of Casimir IV Jagiellon, ruled as the King of Poland from 1492 to 1501. On the positive side, he managed to maintain and even to enlarge the borders of the country, which was constantly threatened by its neighbours from the East and by the Teutonic Knights. He did, however, sustain a great defeat in 1497 during his expedition to conquer Moldavia, where many of his knights lost their lives. Another sad consequence of this war were his efforts to gain the support of the nobility for his Moldavian Campaign. For this purpose townspeople were not allowed to become land owners, and peasants were tied to the land in land estates known as ‘folwarks’. This feudal system of serfdom was not only deeply hurtful to the conditions in which peasants lived and functioned for years to come, but it also in many ways limited the growth and development of towns and cities, especially when compared to those in Western Europe.
Alexander I Jagiellon
Aleksander Jagiellończyk, 1501 – 1506
Alexander Jagiellon ruled only for five years, but in this short time he was responsible for signing an act of the Sejm in 1505 called the Act of Nihil Novi that had consequences for Polish politics for years to come. According to the Nihil Novi Act new laws could be introduced only if they were agreed upon by the king, the senate and the parliament. This meant that the king could not issue laws without the consent of the nobility!
Sigismund I the Old
Zygmunt I Stary, 1506 – 1548
Polish kings are often known and associated with events that in some way shaped Polish history. Remember the Teutonic Knights with whom Poland had often been at war for a period of nearly 200 years? The predecessor of Zygmunt Stary, King Kazimierz IV Jagiellończyk (Casimir, the Jagiellonian) continued fighting with the Teutonic Knights, for despite the great victory of Polish and Lithuanian forces in the Battle of Grunwald in 1410, they still occupied Gdańsk Pomerania, Chełmno Land and Warmia. It is only after the Thirteen Years’ War (1454-1466) and the Toruń Peace Treaty in 1466 that these lands returned to Poland. The Teutonic Order was dissolved and their lands became a country known as the Duchy of Prussia.
Sigismund II Augustus
Zygmunt II August, 1548 – 1572
Zygmunt II August was the only son of Zygmunt I Stary, so it was quite obvious that he was to become the next king of Poland and the Duchy of Lithuania. But Queen Bona, his mother, was so fearful of what was to come that thanks to her efforts he was named the king at the age of 10! when his father was well and alive and was to rule for many years to come.
Anna Jagiellonka
Anna Jagiellon, 1575 - 1587
Little did Anna know as a child that of the five children of Zygmunt I Stary and Queen Bona, she would be crowned King of Poland in the Wawel Castle. Her brother King Zygmunt II August had died and the newly elected King Henry Walezy had abandoned the Polish throne. By 1575 Anna Jagiellonka was 50 years old, but she had not been married before and so it was possible to arrange a marriage between her and the Hungarian prince of the noble Báthory family. In 1575 Anna Jagiellonka and Stefan Batory were crowned the King and Queen of Poland in the Wawel. Anna, being the last descendant of the Jagiellonian dynasty, was given the title of king. Thus, as in the times of Queen Jadwiga and King Jagiełło, Poland had not one, but two kings on the throne.
