Historical calendar: November 10, 1700 – establishment of the Olkienice Confederation

Historical calendar – anniversary of the establishment by the Lithuanian noble of the Olkienice Confederation, which was aimed at a rich and influential home of Sapieh.

Today in our calendar we will look at the life and activities of an extraordinary person, specified as Fr Piotr Wawrzyniak.

While in 1700 the Swedes, after defeating the Danes, organized a shipment of troops to the east, the Saxons were trapped under Riga, which they besieged. due to the scarce forces, only 5,000 soldiers, they could block the fortress and control the area, waiting for reinforcements. These arrived only in July, but they were crucial due to the fact that they counted 14,000 Saxons and 2,000 Lithuanians under the leadership of the Hetman of the large Lithuanian Kazimierz Sapieha. crucial artillery forces – about 100 cannons and mortars were directed to break the city's walls.

It was at this point in Lithuania that the civilian war broke out. The Sapiehs, who occupied all the key offices in the Grand Duchy, grew themselves a considerable opposition. This 1 utilized the absence of the Hetmanian troops in the country. Under the cover of the concentration of the common decision force, in order to support the attack on Inflanty, the conspirators called the surrounding nobility and attacked the Sapieh estates. This diversion in the rear of Saxon forces, combined with news of the defeat and withdrawal from the war of Denmark resulted in the withdrawal of August II and Sapieha from Riga in August 1700.

This was not the end of the Lithuanian civilian War. It was due to the fact that the looting of the sapiezhno estates continued. To the news that the hetman returns with his forces and is eager for revenge, the terrified nobles pulled up on November 10, 1700 in the Olkieniki. There was an armed confederation, aimed at the hetman. The rebel leader was hailed Michał Serwacy Wiśniowiecki. That clever politician, he turned out to be not the worst leader either. Leading a common move, he crashed the Sapiehs and their supporters November 18 at the conflict of Olkiniki.

The winning Olympic confederation overturned the Hetman and handed over the Lithuanian army to the command of Wiśniowiecki, devoting it to the beds of the winter sapiezhny estates. It meant they were being looted further. Moreover, another members of the Sapieh household were sentenced to the failure of offices and exile.

A prominent household lost its influence, and the demolition of wealthy farms contributed to the expansion of a large economical crisis in this district.

Especially fierce was Louis Pociej, who, after the Olympic Battle, plundered and burned sapiezhny estates without saving the local innocent agrarian population. There was specified panic and demolition that armed peasant revolts broke out against him. He enjoyed extinguishing them in blood, leading the western Lithuanian provinces to a state of full decline.

Let us add that in the following years the same Pociej, being a paid Tsarist agent, and at the same time an Augustus II, gained influence on the collection of local taxes and beating of Lithuanian coin. Of course, this ended in gigantic theft and money counterfeiting. Lithuania was affected by an amazing civilization collapse.

Confederate actions prompted persecuted Sapiehs to search help. After a Polish king who did not have the power to reconstruct their power and offices, they could not anticipate much. Therefore, they went to the Swedish camp and supported Charles XII.

Previous entry from our calendar is available Here.