Vladislav IV was born on June 9, 1595. His father was Sigismund III. It was assumed that he would ascend to the royal throne in Russia in 1610. On August 27 (September 6), he swore allegiance to the Moscow court and people. Consider further what became known to the son of the Polish king, Prince Vladislav.
General information
In accordance with the treaty of 1610, concluded near Smolensk between the Moscow court and Sigismund, Prince Vladislav was to receive power. At the same time, coin minting on his behalf almost immediately began. In 1610, Vasily Shuisky was overthrown. However, the successor did not accept Orthodoxy and did not arrive in Moscow. Accordingly, he was not married to the royal throne. In October 1612, the boyar group that supported him was deposed.
Korolevich Vladislav: a brief biography
His mother passed away 3 years after his birth. Ursula Meyerin enjoyed great influence at the court at that time. She raised Vladislav. Around 1600, Ursula apparently lost some of its influence. Her pupil acquired new teachers, completely different mentors appeared around him. Among them, in particular, were Andrzej oldrski, Gabriel Prevantsiusz, Marek Lentkowski. In addition, the prince Vladislav made friendship with Adam and Stanislav Casanovsky. There is evidence that he was fond of painting, and subsequently began to patronize artists. The prince spoke only in Polish. However, he was able to read and write in Latin, Italian and German.
Diploma to Sigismund
The calling of Prince Vladislav was very formal. A special letter was sent to him and his father. It laid down the basic conditions for the election of his king. In particular, according to the document, power was transferred to him over all cities after the adoption of Christianity. Since he was a Protestant, he should have been baptized in Moscow. The future king was supposed to protect the church from ruin, worship the miraculous relics and honor them. It was not allowed to establish churches of a different faith in any city. Nor was it allowed to convert people to another religion by force. In no case was it allowed to take away land, money, and harvest from churches and monasteries. The prince was, on the contrary, to allocate funds for the life of ministers.
It was not allowed to introduce any changes to the ranks and positions that existed in the state, it was forbidden to put Lithuanian and Polish people to manage zemstvo affairs. It was not allowed to appoint them governors, clerks, elders and governors. The former estates and estates for the owners should have been preserved. Change of official salaries was allowed only with the consent of the Duma. A similar rule extended to the adoption of laws, the adoption of judicial decisions, especially death sentences.
The Commonwealth and Russia were to live in peace and conclude a military alliance. It was forbidden to avenge those killed in the overthrow of False Dmitry the First. The parties also pledged to return the prisoners without any ransom. Trade rules and taxes should not have changed. In addition, serfdom was to become mutual. A special decision was to be made regarding the Cossacks. Together with the Duma, it was supposed to decide whether or not to be it on Russian soil. After the wedding, it was necessary to clear the land of thieves and foreigners. The king was entitled to indemnity. The fate of False Dmitry the Second was also decided in a letter. He was supposed to either catch or kill. Marina Mniszek was supposed to be returned to Poland.
Semiboyarschina and prince Vladislav (Troubles)
1610 was quite difficult for the Moscow court. Vasily Shuisky was overthrown by the Seven Boyars. The 15-year-old descendant of Sigismund received power in absentia. However, his father put forward the conditions for the election of Prince Vladislav. First of all, Sigismund wanted the people to convert to Catholicism from Orthodoxy. The boyars, in turn, were asked to send Vladislav to Moscow to convert him to Christianity. Sigismund answered this with a resolute refusal. However, he offered himself to be the regent-ruler of the country. This proposal was not acceptable to the boyars. All this led to hostile actions of the parties. In particular, Vladislav IV organized a military campaign. In 1616, he is trying to regain power. He even managed to win several battles. However, he could not capture Moscow. Despite the invitation of Prince Vladislav to the Russian throne, he never occupied him. However, the title remained with him until 1634.
The overthrow of the Seven Boyars
Given the current situation, His Holiness Germogen began to dissuade the Duma from calling Vladislav. However, the boyars stood firm. The fact is that they were preparing a coup for a long time. Shuisky was overthrown pretty quickly, an agreement was signed almost immediately with Sigismund. It only remained to bring Vladislav, to baptize him and to marry. Hermogenes, realizing that the situation in the state does not develop as expected, begins to excite the people. He sends letters to cities with calls to go to Moscow and overthrow the power of the Poles. For this he was tortured. However, the unrest among the people did not stop, but, on the contrary, intensified. As a result, an uprising led by Pozharsky and Minin arose. The people went to Moscow and deposed the Boyar Duma. Romanov ascended the royal throne.
conclusions
It is worth saying that the 15-year-old Vladislav could not be any competent king. At that time he was still not able to make power decisions, and all actions for him were carried out by his father. Moreover, Sigismund set conditions against the proposals of the Boyar Duma. At the same time, the Polish ambassadors were already at court and influenced by not one or the other decisions. Of course, the Moscow people did not like this. Probably, the impetus for the uprising was the ignorance of traditions by Vladislav. It was said that not only was he young and still unable to rule the state, he also did not come to be baptized and married. Therefore, the proclamation of him king of Russia had no legal basis.
Military campaigns
Before starting to rule in the Commonwealth, Vladislav participated in several battles. Among them were trips to Moscow. In addition, he participated in the war with the Ottoman Empire in 1621, Sweden - in 1626-1629. During this time, as well as during his journey through the territory of Europe (1624-1625), he became acquainted with the specifics of military art. Korolevich Vladislav has always regarded military affairs as the most important. He was not distinguished by the special abilities of warfare, but proved to be a rather skilled military leader.
Politics
First, prince Vladislav refused close cooperation with the Habsburgs. In 1633, he promised equal rights for Orthodox subjects and Protestants, forcing the Catholic Radziwill to approve the law. The latter had no choice but to meet the threat of transferring key posts in the Commonwealth to the Protestants. In the same year, Vladislav appointed Krzysztof Radziwill to a high position of governor of Vilnius. In 1635, the latter became the great Lithuanian hetman. Protestant nobles blocked Vladislav’s attempt to start a war with Sweden. In 1635, the Stumsdorf Armistice was signed. In this regard, Vladislav renewed the alliance with the Habsburgs, concluded by his father.
Marriages
Polish prince Vladislav was twice married. He asked Pope Urban to promise to give him permission to marry a Protestant princess. However, he was refused. At the beginning of 1634, he sent Alexander Pripkovsky to Charles I on a secret mission. The messenger was to discuss matrimonial plans and assistance in the restoration of the Polish fleet. At a meeting on March 19, 1635, a discussion of marriage took place. However, then only 4 bishops were present, one of whom supported the plans. The first marriage took place in the spring of 1636. Vladislav married Cecilia Renate of Austria. They had Sigismund Casimir and Maria Anna Isabella. The first died at the age of seven from dysentery, and his daughter died in infancy. In 1644, Cecilia died. In 1646, Vladislav married a French princess Maria Louise de Gonzaga de Nevers. They had no children.
Success
In early November 1632, Vladislav became the Polish king after the death of Sigismund. At this time, Mikhail Romanov decides to go to the Commonwealth with the war. He expected to take advantage of the temporary confusion after the death of Sigismund. About 34.5 thousand people crossed the eastern borders of the Commonwealth. In October 1632, the army besieged Smolensk. Russia ceded it to the Deulin ceasefire in 1618. However, during the hostilities Vladislav managed not only to lift the siege, but also to encircle the army and force him to surrender on March 1, 1634. After that, a new ceasefire was concluded, favorable for the Commonwealth. His terms, among other things, involved the payment of 20 thousand rubles to Vladislav. in exchange for the rejection of claims to Moscow power and the return of signs transferred to him by the Semiboyarschina.
During the war of 1632-1634. in the Commonwealth there was an active modernization of the army. Vladislav paid special attention to improving artillery and infantry. After a short period of time, the Commonwealth began to threaten the Turks. Vladislav led the army south of the Russian borders. He forced the Turks to sign a truce on terms favorable to him. The participants in the war again agreed to keep the Tatars and Cossacks from campaigning over each other’s borders and the common condominium over Wallachia and Moldova.
After the completion of the southern campaign, it became necessary to protect the northern side of the Commonwealth. In 1635, Sweden, which was involved in the Thirteen Years War, agreed to the terms of the Sturmsdorf Armistice. The treaty was again beneficial to the Commonwealth. Some of the conquered territories of Sweden had to be returned.
Interesting Facts
According to many historians, Vladislav was very ambitious. He dreamed of great glory, which he planned to achieve with new conquests. In the last years of his reign, he expected to use units of the Cossacks to help provoke a war between Turkey and Poland. At different times, he sought to regain power over Sweden. Vladislav wanted to return the Russian crown several times. He even had plans to capture the Ottoman Empire. During the reign, he often managed to lure troubled Cossacks to his side. However, all his attempts failed due to insufficient support of foreign allies and gentry. Often, instead of major battles, cross-border unnecessary wars took place, dispersing the power of the state. Ultimately, this led to fatal consequences for the Commonwealth.
Some historians believe that Vladislav was very hot-tempered. Angry, he could begin to take revenge without thinking about the consequences. So, when the Protestants in the nobility blocked his plans to go to war against Sweden, he began to pursue a pro-Gabsburg policy. In particular, he provided military assistance to the allies, married Cecilia Renata. Vladislav had many plans, and dynastic, and military, and personal, and territorial. So, he assumed the capture of Livonia, Silesia, the annexation of the Prussian Duchy, the creation of his own hereditary principality. Some of his plans could well be realized. However, as a result of failures, or by a combination of objective circumstances, almost nothing happened of what was planned.
Dowry dispute
It began in 1638. Vladislav wanted the unpaid dowry of his stepmother and mother to be provided by the Silesian Principality, preferably Opole-Raciborz. He proposed in 1642 to the Habsburgs his right to power in Sweden. In exchange, Vladislav requested Silesia as a pledge. The ambassador sent to Vienna offered to exchange the proceeds from the Bohemian possessions of Treben for the Tesinsky or Opole-Raciborz principality. The trial dragged on, and Vladislav announced to the Habsburg envoy that he was uniting with Sweden. These words acted as a clear threat, since in this case Vladislav could capture Silesia by military means, without any consent of the emperor.
In April 1645, a new ambassador was sent to Warsaw to negotiate. They ended unsuccessfully for Vladislav, but it was quite favorable for the Habsburgs. As a result, it was decided to transfer the principality not as hereditary, but to use it for 50 years. The plot was supposed to be subsequently transferred to Casimir, the son of Vladislav. The latter could manage the lands until the successor came of age. In addition, Vladislav promised to give the Habsburgs a loan of 1.1 million gold.
Failures
Vladislav used the title of Swedish king. However, the country under his rule has never been. Moreover, he, as in the case of Russia, did not even set foot on its territory. Despite this, he nevertheless sought to take control of power in Sweden. However, all his efforts, like his father's attempts, were inconclusive. Vladislav's domestic policy was aimed at strengthening royal power. However, this was constantly hindered by the gentry, which valued its freedom and could not lose the right to participate in government. Vladislav had to overcome some difficulties all the time. Obstacles were created by the Sejm, which sought to control its power and pacify dynastic ambitions. The improvement of the army was regarded as a desire to strengthen royal positions in wartime. Because of this, the Sejm opposed most of Vladislav’s plans. He was denied funding, signing declarations about the start of battles. The situation was similar in foreign policy. Vladislav tried to calm the conflicting Germans and Scandinavians during the Thirteen Years War. However, all his actions did not lead to anything, and support from the Habsburgs yielded almost no results. To protect positions in the Baltic, Vladislav began strengthening the fleet. However, this plan also did not end with anything.
Conclusion
Vladislav died in 1648. His internal organs and heart were buried in the chapel of St. Casimir, in the cathedral of St. Stanislav in Vilnius. The death of Vladislav came a year after the death of his son Sigismund Kazimir. He could not realize all his plans, he was not able to rebuild the Commonwealth. However, he managed to avoid participating in the Thirteen Years War.
With the death of Vladislav, the golden age of the Polish state ended. After his death, the Cossacks began an uprising. They complained that all promises were never fulfilled. The uprising of the Cossacks was quite active and was directed at the current Polish government. The situation that has taken advantage of Sweden, which began the invasion of the state.