The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a confederativemixed monarchy of the period 1569–1795, comprising the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and their fiefs. The Commonwealth was governed by the Parliament (Sejm) consisting of the King, the King-appointed Senate (Voivodes, Castellans, Ministers, Bishops) and the rest of hereditary nobility either in person or through the Sejm proper (consisting of deputies representing their lands). The nobility's constitutional domination of the state made the King very weak and the commoners (burgesses and peasants) almost entirely unrepresented in the Commonwealth's political system.
Central offices
State offices
The division between public and court offices in the realities of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth is unclear, as all central offices originated from court positions. Some of them gained full autonomy, while others continued to perform service functions for the ruler.[1] The state and court hierarchies overlapped, and the officials' competencies were not clearly defined.[2] After 1565, the principle of "incompatibilitas" ("incompatibility") forbade Voivodes and Castellans to hold a second title as a Minister, except for the post of Hetman.
The system of offices in the Commonwealth was the result of equalizing the administrative hierarchies of both constituent parts of the state: the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Lithuania had its own separate court tradition, but after drawing closer to Poland at the end of the 14th century, there was a trend of copying Polish models and creating offices analogous to those existing in Poland.[3][4] This process culminated in the acts of the Union of Lublin, but it continued in practice until the 18th century as part of the so-called coequation of laws.[3] However, the direction of influence was sometimes reversed, such as in the case of the office of the court huntsman, which appeared in Poland later than in Lithuania.[3]
Essentially, almost every central office was dual, one for Poland and the other for Lithuania. This was reflected in the title, to which an appropriate adjective was added: Crown or Lithuanian. Thus, in the Commonwealth, there were two Grand Marshals: the Crown Grand Marshal and the Lithuanian Grand Marshal.[3]
Taking care of the king's security and the peace and quiet in his place of residence (marshal court).[7] Being master of royal ceremonies, managing the court and access to the sovereign.[8] Organising and presiding over the proceedings of the senate, security of the sessions of the parliament (marshal's articles), organising the election of the sovereign.[9][10]
Aide and alternate to the Grand Marshal, he acted independently only in his absence.[13]
Also a court office.
In Lithuania, there was a separate office of Court (Hospodar) Marshal in the 15th-16th century, which over time lost its importance and became a land office.[14]
Heading the greater chancellery. Directing the external policy of the state.[16] Guarding the observance of rights.[17] Announcement of new resolutions and laws.[18] Presiding over the assessor court.[19]
In the Crown, the office was alternately held by a lay person and a cleric.[20]
Command of the enlisted army, administration of army finances, judicial powers over the army. Hetman issued administrative and judicial regulations for the army (Hetman's Articles). Limited right to conduct foreign policy.[31]
Appointed only during the Sejm.[32] Since 1768 senatorial.[33] In 1717 the power of the hetmans was limited.[34] Also a military office.
Aide and alternate to the Grand Hetman. Originally in Poland the commander of the Obrona potoczna, until the early 17th century appointed on an ad hoc basis.[37]
Receiving requests and complaints from private individuals and referring them to the King and Chancellors. Sitting in assessor, report and Sejm's courts.[40]
In Poland, it rose to prominence after the court was moved to Warsaw.[51]
Both the Chancellor and the Sub-Chancellor stood at the head of the chancelleries (‘greater’ and ‘lesser’), which were headed by Regents.[52] Each chancellery employed a number of professionals: secretaries, scribes and clerks. Outside the chancellery were the Metricants, in charge of keeping the Metrics, i.e. the books in which all the documents arriving and departing from each chancellery were entered.[53] There were four chancelleries, four Metricants and two Metrics (Crown and Lithuanian) in the whole of the Commonwealth.[54] The Treasurers were also supported by a number of professional officials, the most important of whom were Treasury Scribes (two in the Crown, three in Lithuania).[55] He was assisted in matters of coinage issuance by a Mincer. In addition, a number of other functionaries: dispensers, superintendents, tax collectors, customs officers and toll collectors.[56]
Court offices
Originally, all central offices were simultaneously court offices. However, in the Kingdom of Poland, the concept of the Crown, representing the state itself, was distinguished relatively early from the person of the mortal monarch. Consequently, some offices lost their direct association with the monarch and his court, becoming state offices primarily responsible for state administration. This division was never complete, but there was a group of offices whose roles were essentially limited to serving the court and the monarch.[57] Among them, we distinguish between offices of the court (Polish: urzędy dworu) and the court offices (Polish: urzędy nadworne). The court offices attended to the king's service, while the offices of the court managed and administered the court as an institution. The court offices were further divided into the offices of the royal table and the representatives of royal majesty.[58]
Most of these offices were of a purely honorary nature, their holders did not perform the functions associated with them, or if they did, they did so very rarely, mainly during rare grand royal ceremonies (coronations, weddings, homages etc.). Apart from the aforementioned offices, the court included a significantly larger group of people, both honorary courtiers and servants.[59]
The highest military officials were the Hetmans, they could not be removed. Until the beginning of the 18th century, hetmans were not paid for their services.
With the emergence of a standing army in the Crown in the early 16th century and the office of Hetman, a staff of military officials formed around him to assist him in his tasks. The most important among them was the Field Scribe, closely followed by the Grand Warden.[95] Over time, the offices began to lose their professional character and became purely dignitaries, the earliest of which was the office of the Grand Oboźny, whose tasks were actually carried out by the Field Oboźny.[96] Other offices were still truly military in the 17th century, only becoming solely dignitaries in the 18th century.[96] The following list covers only military offices, apart from these there were a number of other posts which were not dignitaries and were usually filled by professionals, there was also a separate cadre of officers.[97]
Of secular Senators, the foremost was the Castellan (Kasztelan) of Kraków. Other Castellans, however, were considered to be lesser dignitaries than the Voivodes.
The power of the Voivodes had declined since that title had been introduced about the 12th century; in the 17th century, however, they were still the highest regional dignitaries. They were the highest representatives of their Voivodeships to the Senat. They were the leaders of the Land Parliaments (Sejmiki Wojewódzkie, Voivodeship Sejmiks). They were in charge of assembling local nobility's military forces in the event of a pospolite ruszenie (levée en masse). Each chose a Deputy Voivode, who was responsible for setting local prices and measures. Voivodes were chosen by the King, except for those of Połock Voivode and Vilnius Voivode, who were elected by (and from) the local nobility (but still had to be appointed by the King).
Except for the Castellan of Kraków Land (which has its seat in a privileged city, as the Commonwealth's capital until 1596), Castellans were often considered subordinate to Voivodes. A Castellan was in charge of part of a Voivodeship (till the 15th century called a Castellany, and thereafter divided into provinces for Major Castellans and powiats for Minor Castellans).
Land offices
A 1611 Constitution (amended 1633 and 1635) prescribed many officials. Exceptions to the rule, however, were the rule; Sejm rules were treated as mere recommendations. Thus Bełz Voivodeship had only 4 of the 15 prescribed dignitaries; most northern voivodeships had about 5; and in Wołyń and Bracław Voivodeships the hierarchical order was almost reversed. Each province or district had its own set of officials—a list of provinces may be found in the article on provinces and geography of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
District officials were appointed by the King, with a few exceptions (local parliaments—sejmiki—chose Chamberlains, District Judges, Deputy District Judges, District Clerks, and in Lithuania also Standard-bearers and District Marshals). Chamberlains, except for the name, had nothing in common with the Court officials of the same name. They administered a court of law (the Chamberlain's Court) which had jurisdiction over property disputes. The District Judge headed the District Court, which had jurisdiction over civil and some criminal matters involving local nobility.
The Starosta generalny ("General Starosta") was the official in charge of a specific territory. The Starosta grodowy ("City Starosta") was in charge of cities, while the Starosta niegrodowy ("Non-City Starosta") was responsible for administration of the Crown lands. These were to be kept in good financial and military order. While in time these administrative responsibilities became smaller (as Kings gave away more and more land), the Starosta remained in charge of the City Courts (sądy grodzkie), which dealt with most criminal matters and had jurisdiction over all local and visiting nobility. They dealt with the most severe cases (killings, rapes, robberies) and were quite harsh (highway robbery was punishable with death), which generally made Poland a safer country than its neighbors. The Starostas also held the "power of the sword", which meant that they enforced the verdicts of all other courts. Non-City Starostas had no juridical powers.
Standard-bearers carried the local banner during Royal ceremonies, and in war when local troops served in the Army. During war, Wojskis maintained order and security in their territories. In Lithuania, the responsibilities of Ciwuns were similar to those of non-city starostas (elders). District marshals presided over local parliaments (in the "Crown", District Marshals were chosen only for the duration of the parliament session, and so were much less powerful than those of Lithuania, who were chosen for life).
The most important official was the Starosta. He was supported by a Borough Substarosta (podstarości grodowy), Burgrave (Burgrabia), Notary (Notariusz) and Scriptor (Pisarz). The Borough Substarosta assisted the Starosta and in his absence acted in his name with all his powers. Lower city officials were the Borough Regent (rejent grodzki), Borough Notary (notariusz grodzki), Borough Scriptor (pisarz grodzki) and common clerks ("subclerks" — podpiskowie).
In the eastern territories bordering on Russia, from 1667, a "Border Judge" cooperated with Russian judges in cases involving parties from the two countries; his rulings were final.
Judges were chosen from among the local hereditary nobles and had little formal training; therefore the quality of the courts varied from judge to judge, and levels of corruption were high. Attorneys, on the other hand, were required to have professional training. Sometimes a court included an asesor, who assisted the judge and collected fines and fees. Prosecutors were extremely rare. Instygators maintained order and security on court grounds, and a court runner (woźny) delivered summons.
In 1717 the "Numb Diet" barred non-Roman Catholics from being elected Envoys (to the Parliament), and to any other land offices if there was another Roman Catholic contender. The rights of the "Dissidents", as they were called, were reinstated in 1768, and in 1772 their representation in the Diet was limited to a statutory of two members. These rules were finally abolished in 1792 by the 3rd May Constitution.
Town and village offices
These offices were very stable, having evolved about the 13th century and lasting almost unchanged to the end of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The administrative system had come from Germany together with Magdeburg law.
Every city (without exception) had a Council and a Bench, the Council being the administrative branch and the Bench the judicial branch. A new Council was chosen by the old one whose term had expired. The Council was responsible for administration, law, privileges, security, finances, guild oversight, and the like. The Council chose the Mayor, and its members' decision was final—even the Starosta or Voivode could only listen to the Mayor's swearing-in and could not refuse to give him his seal. The Council met daily in the larger cities, less often in smaller ones.
The Mayor headed the Council and controlled the executive branch. He was responsible for conciliation, the care of the poor, and maintaining order by suppressing alcohol abuse and games of chance. Second to the Mayor was the Council Clerk, who ran the City Chancellery. The City Clerk (Syndyk Miejski) collected city taxes and supervised the tax collectors. Security and order in the city were the responsibility of the Hutman. He also supervised the city jail and the keyman who unlocked and locked the city gates at dawn and dusk.
The Lonar was the city treasurer, who oversaw its finances. He supervised the officials who controlled marketplace scales to ensure fair trade. Large cities also had scores of less common officials, such as Pipemasters, responsible for pipes and wells; Fire Chiefs; and City Translators, who assisted foreigners and looked out for spies.
The Bench was chaired by a wójt. He and the other Bench members were chosen by the Council for a year's term from among lesser city officials (writers, clerks, etc.).
City Chief Executioners executed not only criminals sentenced by the Bench, but often criminals sentenced by other non-military courts in Poland. They were well paid, sometimes functioned as physicians, but were also often considered social outcasts and lived outside the city walls.
A village mayor was called the sołtys and was the administrative, executive and judicial chief for the village, responsible only to the village's owner.
List of town and village offices
Burmistrz – City Mayor;
Wójt – Advocate-Mayor;
Pisarz rady – Council Clerk;
Syndyk miejski – City Clerk;
Hutman – Constable;
Lonar – City Treasurer.
Other
Starosta grodowy, Starosta sądowy – City Starosta, Judicial Starosta;
Starosta generalny wielkopolski – General Starosta of Wielkopolska;
Starosta generalny małopolski – General Starosta of Małopolska;
Burgrabia zamku krakowskiego – Burgrave of Kraków Castle;
Despite the fact that these territories did not belong to the Commonwealth any longer, and were under foreign rule, their administration existed for further 100 years, until the Partitions of Poland, with a complex hierarchy of all kinds of regional offices. The existence of fictional titles was the result of the special role of offices in the minds of the Polish–Lithuanian nobility: even though these offices were only honorary, without any material privileges and salaries, they determined social status of their bearers. Furthermore, having a title, albeit fictional, emphasized the position of an individual nobleman as a keen citizen and co-creator of the Commonwealth.
Augustyniak, Urszula (2008). Historia Polski, 1572-1795 [History of Poland, 1572-1795] (in Polish). p. 61.
Frost, Robert (2015). The Oxford History of Poland-Lithuania. Vol. I: The Making of the Polish-Lithuanian Union, 1385–1569. Oxford.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
Gąsiorowski, Antoni, ed. (1992). Urzędnicy centralni i nadworni Polski XIV-XVIII wieku. Spisy [Central and Court Officials of Poland from the 14th to the 18th Century. Lists] (in Polish). Vol. 10. Kórnik.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
Lulewicz, Henryk; Rachuba, Andrzej (1994). Urzędnicy centralni i dygnitarze Wielkiego Księstwa Litewskiego XIV-XVIII wieku. Spisy [Central Officials and Dignitaries of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from the 14th to the 18th Century. Lists] (in Polish). Vol. 10. Kórnik.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
Wolff, Józef (1885). Senatorowie i dygnitarze Wielkiego Księstwa Litewskiego 1386-1795. Kraków.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
