Zygmunt III Waza

Sigismund III Vasa was the son of the Swedish King Jan III Vasa and his wife, the Polish princess, Katarzyna Jagiellonka – yes, the sister of Anna Jagiellonka. It is perhaps then no wonder that he was a strong candidate for the throne of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. But this being the Poland of the 16^thcentury, not one, but two kings were elected to the throne! A war ensued that Sigismund won and thus he became the King of Poland and Lithuania for the next 45 years!

The turbulent times of Sigismund’s reign

Sigismund III was an educated, serious and hardworking monarch who in other times and circumstance would have achieved more and his reign would have been valued more both by historians and his contemporaries. Unfortunately, those were turbulent times with Sweden looking to extend its power from the north, and the Moscow rulers from the east. He fought both sides despite the fact that he himself was the son of Swedish royalty, but having been deprived of the Swedish crown, he came to understand that his loyalties lay with Poland. Thus, he managed to unite Estonia with Poland – a country over which Sweden and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth had been fighting for a long time.

The wars

Relations with the Moscow Kingdom were equally difficult. Some historians today question why the monarch would choose to organise a military expedition to the far-off country of the tsars and locate his son on the throne in Kreml (just for one year, though, as he was chased away by the local rulers), whilst matters of utmost importance such as much needed reforms at home seemed to be a low priority for him. The king also fought with Turkey and had to overcome a rebellion of the Cossacks in Ukraine, then ruled by Poland. His victories over foreign armies were often achieved by outstanding commanders of troops, such as Zamoyski, Żółkiewski, Chodkiewicz or Koniecpolski and thanks only to the skills of these men, the Polish-Lithuania Commonwealth remained one of the largest countries in Europe. But the country was seriously weakened by the wars. At the end of Zygmunt’s reign, it was no longer the strong and economically successful country it had been before.

The new capital in Warsaw

Yet during the long years of his reign, mostly seen as an aloof monarch distanced from the local gentry, the King did not gain great sympathy of his subjects. Except in one city – Warsaw. Sigismund III Vasa was the monarch who moved the capital of the country from Kraków to Warsaw. This meant that a new Royal Castle was built, new residences for the governing noblemen sprung up around the city and visitors from near and far made their way to the new abode. This in some way must have delighted the king for he was passionate about the arts and all things new – new architecture, new music and even new science that he, himself practised as an amateur alchemist.

Sigismund the hobbyist

One historian called Sigismund III Vasa a hobbyist. The king was known to play ball, conduct alchemical experiments, paint (he was actually a good artist) and compose music for the church. He strongly believed that music was a political issue for it brought prestige to the role of the king, the magnates and the church. With the backing of Pope Clement VIII, the king managed to bring Italian musicians to his court who formed a regular orchestra and his example was closely followed by other rich musical establishments of magnates. Regrettably, none of the scores of the operas performed at the Court of Sigismund III survived. The first opera was known to be staged in 1628, many new pieces in the baroque style were composed for the court and local musicians learned about baroque music from the Italian masters.

The reign of Sigismund III Vasa has been commemorated by the Sigismund Column. It was originally erected in 1644 and it is located in the Castle Square, Warsaw. The column was constructed on the orders of Sigismund’s son and successor Władysław IV Vasa. Today it is still a symbol of Warsaw and its royal beginnings in the 17^th century.