Anniversary of the death of the celebrated traitor Jerome Radziejowski.
Today, in our calendar, we will look at the life and activities of 1 of the traitors of Poland in the days of the Swedish Flood – Jerome Radziejowski.
Jerome was born in the household of Łeczycki voivode Stanisław Radziejowski and Katarzyna from the Sobieska house. He received careful education with peculiar emphasis on abroad languages and preparation for public service. From his youth, he displayed a tendency to grow up and debauchery. If he wasn't given anything voluntarily, he took it by force. Despite his bad character, he gained considerable state dignity due to his birth.
He began his political career with the post of the Sochaczewski governor. He has repeatedly spoken at the Parliament of Wall, and since 1645 he has been his marshal. He was part of the court koteria of Władysław IV, who organized a conspiracy to start a war with Turkey and the Crimean Khanate. In early 1646 the king sent him to Cossacks as his individual messenger. He was tasked with investigating the elders under the account of cooperating with the king in his war plans.
The talks proved fruitful. shortly Radziejowski brought six influential representatives of the Cossack (including Bohdan Chmielnicki) to Warsaw, who agreed with the monarch about further joint actions.
It shortly turned out that the magnate is simply a politically unstable cyclicalist. Although he was on his side at first, erstwhile he heard that the war task had no chance of success, he began to retreat his support. He shortly went to the opposition associated with the Protestant camp (Radziwillów, Opaliński, Lesszczyński). Interestingly, he continued to interact with Chmielnicki, which came to light after respective years.
After the outbreak of the civilian war, he was elected 1 of 30 – here the commissioners who were to pacify Ukraine. He was in a camp close the Sawers. There, he spread defetism and discouragement, reasoning more about returning to election councils than about fighting against goats and tartars. On his banner he had the inscription “Fugite” sewn, meaning “Escape”. erstwhile enemy troops went to the camp, he caused panic, and he was 1 of the first to dyla, dragging others along.
During the time of the kingless, he supported the candidacy of Protestant Sigismund Rakoczy. Constating that he had small chance of winning, he supported the settler Jan Kazimierz, against his more militant brother Charles Ferdinand. In 1650 he bought the office of the Crown Under Chancellor and married the heiress of the luck Elizabeth Kazanowska. Thus he became 1 of the richest and most influential people in the country.
A year later, he and his king set out to run against the Cossacks. During the conflict of Berestecka, he prevented the final suppression of the revolt and the immediate pursuit of the defeated, by causing discontent in the Polish camp. After his instigation, the nobles from Wielkopolska established a Sejm and refused to proceed their service. The origin was overblown rumors of peasant rebellion in western provinces (e.g. Rebellion of Kostka – Napierski). The common move, taking the example of Radziejowski, returned home, and only regular troops moved under the White Church, in addition to the inept and pacifist chiefs.
During his stay at the Berestace camp, Radajowski committed another act. He wrote a letter to the Queen in which he accused Jan Kazimierz of mistakes in command and an affair with his wife. This letter came into the hands of the monarch causing a sharp dispute with the sub-Chancellor. Since then, they've both become fierce enemies. Elizabeth abandoned Hieronim and lived in a monastery. She besides ordered Brother Bogusław to occupy the erstwhile Kazanów office in Warsaw, which she no longer owned.
Thus a conflict between the private armies of 2 magnates occurred in the capital just under the monarch's nose. Radajowski was accused of insulting the majesty and violating the safety of the royal person. In early 1652 he was sentenced to death, but fled the country.
He came to Sweden, where his cognition of the interior affairs of the Republic was used. Radajowski urged the Swedish elite to break the truce and attack Poland, claiming that the country is very weakened by the Cossack uprising. He besides argued about the severe illness of Jan Kazimierz and that in his opinion Poles would go to the side of Swedes. He referred to his contacts with the Cossack rebels and advised them to coordinate the military action with them.
Indeed, while in Stockholm, he was conducting correspondence with Chmielnicki and the national Protestant camp (e.g. with Krzysztof Opaliński). His emissary was, among others, the noble Jan Jasinski, who carried letters from Radziejowski to Chmielnicki. Jasinski was captured, and the letters read in the Polish parliament, for which the erstwhile conviction was upheld to Radziejowski, and he was additionally declared the enemy of his homeland.
In 1653 he went to England, where he discussed the Polish case with Oliver Cromwell himself. He had a crucial part in the assembly of the interior conspiracy of magnates, whose goal was to surrender the country to the Swedes. In July 1655 he urged by letter the nobility gathered in the camp at the mouth to betray and accept the protection of Charles Gustav. This happened, and the surrender and designation of Swedish power by the Poznań and Kaliskie provinces became a precedent for another lands of the Crown.
In 1656, Radejowski entered a dispute with Karol Gustav about the management of the conquered country and was arrested by him. Released in 1660, he sought pardon from the Polish king and parliament. The Dysmocratic Parliament of Wala rehabilitated it 2 years later, but with the ban on advanced state functions.
Radajowski doubled and tripled, but for the remainder of his life he failed to regain his position as Under Chancellor. In 1667 he was sent with a message to Turkey, nevertheless he died during the journey.
Hieronim Radziejowski was a large rabble and traitor who conspired against Poland with Cossacks, Swedes and Englishmen. He contributed to the defeat at Piławiec and the failure of the triumph at Berestek. It besides had a crucial influence on the formation of the Second Northern War. He frequently acted openly, making him more or little deserved, a symbol of national betrayal (besides Janusz Radziwił). In fact, his works were only the tip of the iceberg; a fraction of the secret game aimed at weakening and protestantizing Poland.
The dialality of Radziejowski shows that cooperation with the enemy can provoke the weakness of justice and the associated deficiency of fear of possible traitors from the inevitability of punishment. This was the case in his case – he was pardoned and restored to worship due to the fact that he was rich. This typically dysmocratic softness toward the traitor of the Homeland caused that later his followers were increasing.
Previous entry from our calendar is available Here.
