Short history of the Radziwill Family
by Peter Paul Bajer

(Peter Paul Bajer "Een korte geschiedenis van de familie-Radziwill: Rijkdom, invloed en prestige")
in: "Oost-Europa Verkeningen", Amsterdam, Holland: Instituut voor Publiek en Politiek, December, 2000, p.39-53;
 
"Bog nam radzi" (The Lord is Our Counsel) is the famous family motto of one of the most prominent Polish aristocratic families of Lithuanian extraction-the Radziwills. Looking back at its history, it is clear that, apart from Providence, it has been Radziwills' notion of kinship and family solidarity that guided them throughout the often turbulent Polish history. While other families prospered only for three, four generations, Radziwills have not only kept their magnaterial profile for over five hundred years, but have done so 'in style', acquiring and maintaining great wealth and influence until the beginning of World War II. This family has produced many outstanding politicians, military commanders, clergymen, cultural benefactors and entrepreneurs who left a significant mark on the Polish and Lithuanian history and culture.

The eighteenth century genealogists, in accordance with the Baroque fashion, tried to glamourise Radziwills' pedigree by deriving their origins from mythical ancestors-the ancient Romans. In reality, however, the family had far more humble beginnings. The most recent research suggests that Radziwills descended from Lithuanian boyars-ducal courtiers, lesser nobility, who advanced considerably in the fifteenth century. [1]
 
The first, historically sourced, ancestor of the Radziwills was Oscik († 1442/44), a court official and Castellan of Vilnius. In 1413 in Horodlo he witnessed the signing of the Union between the Kingdom of Poland and the Great Duchy of Lithuania; a union which extended privileges thus far enjoyed by the Polish nobility, onto boyars.
 
Of Oscik's four sons, Radziwill († 1477) became the progenitor of the family, which in the subsequent generations adopted his first name as its surname. At the failed coup attempt (1452) against Kazimierz Jagiellonczyk, the Grand Duke of Lithuania, Radziwill's high social standing secured his candidature being put forward to replace the Grand Duke. While the estates he acquired, incontrovertibly helped to launch the grand career of his only son and successor-Mikolaj.
 
As the Palatine of Vilnius (1492) and later the Grand Chancellor of Lithuania, Mikolaj I Radziwill
(† 1510) became the head of the Council of Lords of the Grand Duchy, and as such exerted substantial influence on the appointments of Aleksander Jagiellonczyk, and later his brother Zygmunt, as the Grand Dukes of Lithuania. In this, Mikolaj displayed a trait so characteristic of the later Radziwills-favouritism towards his kin, helping them to obtain offices and grants of land from the Royal demesne. Mikolaj's own, increased fortune (through grants, dowry and acquisitions) elevated the family to new heights. While his daughter Anna married Konrad II Duke of Masovia, his third son Wojciech (*1476, †1519), became the Bishop of Luck, and eventually took up the highest position within the Church in Lithuania, as Bishop of Vilnius. Wojciech became famous for his munificence shown to the poor. His deeds earned him the nickname "Jalmuznik" (The Almoner). [2]
 
No less grandeur were the fortunes of the three remaining sons of Mikolaj. They all became forebearers of the three main branches of the Radziwill family: of Goniadz and Medele; of Birze and Dubinki; and of Olyka and Nieswiez.
 
Branch I-Princes Radziwill of Goniadz and Medele
 
Mikolaj II (*1470, †1522), the eldest son of Mikolaj I, succeeded him in both offices. As an advocate of closer ties between Lithuania and Poland, he supported the Court, and, as a Lithuanian envoy, was sent on a diplomatic mission to the Habsburg-Jagiellonian congress at Wien (1518). During this congress, Emperor Maximilian granted him a hereditary title of the Prince of the Holy Roman Empire (SRI). The new splendours bestowed on Mikolaj II, the head of this branch of the Radziwills, did not last. It became extinct in the male line by the very next generation. Of his sons, the most famous was Mikolaj III († 1529), Bishop of Samogotia.
 
Branch II-Princes Radziwill of Birze and Dubinki

This tension reached its peak with the coming of the next generation of the Radziwills. Janusz I's son Boguslaw (*1620, †1669) and nephew Janusz II (*1612, †1655) were, it seems, no longer satisfied with the magnatial status of the family and began craving for more power. Polish sources acknowledge that especially vain in this regard was Janusz II, son of Krzysztof (*1585, †1640), and grandson of Krzysztof the Thuderbolt. His voulty ambitions appeared early in his career. Upon marching into Kiev in 1651, he ordered a production of a commemorative medal on which he compared his victory to the taking of Kiev by the most powerful Polish King, Boleslaw Chrobry, some six hundred years earlier. Janusz II also used political intimidation against King Jan Kazimierz in order to secure the offices of the Pallatine of Vilnius and the Grand Hetman of Lithuania. In 1652 he paralysed the central government by evoking a Liberum Veto-a procedure whereby any single member of the Parliament could halt its proceedings by the simple expression of dissent-saying 'Veto' (Latin: I deny). [4] Later, in 1654, during the Swedish invasion of Poland, known as Potop (The Deluge), together with his cousin Boguslaw (son of Janusz I and his second wife Elzbieta Zofia von Hohenzollern, daughter of the Elector of Brandenburg), they began negotiations with Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden, aimed at breaking the union between Poland and Lithuania. As a result, they signed a treaty according to which they were to rule over two sovereign principalities carved up from the lands of the Grand Duchy, which were to remain under the Swedish protectorate. The Swedish retreat, however, sealed the fate of the proclaimed traitors and abruptly ended their plans. The nineteenth century Polish writer and Noble Prize winner, Henryk Sienkiewicz, bluntly commented on their treason in his historical novel entitled 'Potop'. This is what he wrote about Janusz's death in the besieged by the regalist forces, Tykocin: Earthly ruin, a fallen soul, darkness, nothingness-that is all he managed to attain as a reward for service to himself. [5]

Bogusław and Janusz Radziwiłł

All that Boguslaw and Janusz managed to achieve, it seems, was to tarnish the Radziwill family name for years to come. Their own lines became extinct by the next generation.

Branch III-Princes Radziwill of Olyka and Nieswiez
 
Jan Mikolaj (†1522), Castellan of Troki, was the ancestor of the third, and the most numerous branch of the Radziwill family-the Radziwills of Olyka and Nieswiez. This branch continued to play an important role in the Polish history well into the twentieth century.
 

Mikolaj also formed a political alliance with his cousin Mikolaj the Red against other magnates in the rivalry for the dominant status in the Great Duchy, which was manifested in his calls for the Lithuanian independence.

The remaining three sons of Mikolaj, apart from their personal talents and achievements, became important to their family history yet for another reason. In 1586 they signed a pact aimed at protecting the main parts of the estate inherited from their parents, and formed ordynacja, an institution modeled on the Western European right of primogeniture. According to the rules of ordynacja, which later became a statue approved by the Parliament, the estate was not to be divided between the heirs but inherited in full by the eldest son. Women descendants were excluded from inheritance, which meant that in case of a lack of male descendants in a particular line, the estate was to be given to the closest male cousin from a sub-branch of the family. The estate which formed a particular ordynacja was to be excluded from sales or mortgage. Apart from ordynacja, Mikolaj's sons, were to receive allodial estates which were to be governed by the universal (in Poland) legislation of ownership and inheritance. All this was designed to keep the main estates in the hands of the Radziwills and by doing so, help maintain the family splendour. Three such land holdings (ordynacjas) were formed by Mikolaj's sons: Stanislaw's-Orynacja of Olyka, Mikolaj Krzysztof's-Ordynacja of Nieswiez, and Albrycht's-Ordynacja of Kleck, which survived virtually intact until 1939.
 

Ordynacja of Olyka became extinct in the second generation. Of this line, the most famous representant was Albrycht Stanislaw (*1593, †1656), the 3rd Ordynat of Olyka who, as the Chancellor of Lithuania, was in charge of foreign policies and internal affairs of the Grand Duchy. Just like other Radziwills, he was famous for the support given to his relatives: he did not fail to watch over the interests of his Calvinist cousins, despite being renown for his opposition to the heretics. However, Albrycht's highest achievement was perhaps his lengthy Memoir which is an excellent source of information about the public life of Rzeczpospolita between the years of 1632 and 1653. With his heir-less death, his estate was inherited by the descendants of the 1st Ordynat of Nieswiez.

Upon Mikolaj's initiative, all of his siblings followed his example and converted back to Catholicism. The fame he acquired came mostly from his cultural and charity works. He was a founder of many castles, cloisters, hospitals and churches, of which the most splendid was the Jesuit church in Nieswiez. One of the chapels in this church became the family's mausoleum for the next two hundred and fifty years. For his son, Zygmunt Karol (*1591, †1642), a Confrere of the Knights Hospitallers, he found a Commanderie in Stwolowicze. In Nieswiez, which became his seat, he built a castle where he established a library and a gallery of the family portraits. Because of these works, he attracted many skillful artisans and tradesmen into his estate. Mikolaj also gained notoriety for a vivid account of his eventful pilgrimage to the Holy Land published in 1601.

In politics he supported the Court by aligning himself with the Saxon dynasty in its battles to keep the Polish throne, but he also maintained good relations with the opposition. His skills in trimming between the opposing camps demonstrated his strong political ability. Michal Kazimierz was also known for looking after his estates, where he continued the work begun by his mother, Anna Katarzyna Princess Sanguszko (*1676, †1746), who managed to make a variety of financial investments in, eg. textile workshops, pure-breed cattle-farming, road and bridge building. Michal's wife, Franciszka Urszula Princess Wisniowiecka (*1705, †1753), became the first Polish woman playwright.

After Poland's final partition in 1795, the Radziwills continued to play an important role in the Polish history. Many gained notoriety through establishing close ties with other European aristocratic families: Archdukes von Habsburg, Princes von Hohenzollern, Princes Blucher von Wahlstatt, Princes Clary et Aldringen, or Princes Sayn-Wittegenstein. Because of marrying into such families, some Radziwills came close to losing their Polish identity, (eg. the Berlin line of Radziwills). However, by the end of the nineteenth century, the strong Catholicism and piety towards their roots helped those Radziwillls not only to regain and crystallise their Polish identity, but also made them strongly patriotic. This is perhaps why some Radziwills joined in the Polish struggle for independence.
 
After the heir-less death of Karol Stanislaw, all his estate was inherited by his nephew Dominik Hieronim (*1786, †1813), who, as a colonel of the Napoleon Army, took part in the Russian Campaign in 1812 and later died from wounds after the battle of Hanau.
 
Under Napoleon's banners fought also Michal Gedeon (*1778, †1850), the Emperor's Chamberlain. As a colonel, he took part in the defence of Gdansk and was decorated with Legion d'Honneur. Later, he became Senator in the newly created Kingdom of Poland-a vassal state of Russia. In 1831 he joined the November Uprising against Russia and became one of its foremost commanders. After the collapse of the uprising, Michal, the then General of the Polish Army, together with other Polish patriots, was sent to Siberia.
 
His older brother, Antoni Henryk (*1755, †1833), after his marriage to Princess Luiza von Hohenzollern, cousin of the King of Prussia, became the governor of the Grand Duchy of Posen. His fame came about, however, not because he was a statesman, but as a result of his musical talents and cultural benefactions. A cello player, singer and composer, he organised concerts and meetings of music devotees in his different residences. Befriended by van Beethoven, Goethe and Zelter, he composed a series of musical compositions to Goethe's 'Faust'. Living mostly in Berlin, he became the ancestor of the Berlin line of the Radziwills.
 
Belonging to this line was also Antoni Wilhelm (*1833, †1904), the 14th Ordynat of Nieswiez, aide-de-camp to Wilhelm I, Frideric III and later Wilhelm II, Emperors of Prussia. His wife Maria Margrave de Castellane (*1840, †1915), became involved in the restoration of the ruined castle at Nieswiez. Her actions helped to save the priceless archives and the library. She was also able to recover many items looted from the castle's treasury during the times of war.
 
The end of World War I saw Poland regaining its independence in 1918. The famous Marshal Jozef Pilsudski became the second Rzeczpospolita's first chief of state. Among the men who fought for Poland's freedom was the son of Antoni Wilhelm-Stanislaw (*1880, †1920), aide-de-camp to Pilsudski during the Polish-Soviet War 1920-21. Stanislaw died during the Polish offensive in Ukraine and was decorated posthumously with the highest Polish military honour-the Cross of Virtuti Militari.

After the war and in the new political environment with the Communists taking to power, the aristocracy and landowners were sentenced to destruction. Following the Decree of 6 September 1944 their estates were nationalised and parceled out between the state and the peasants. Their family residences, if not looted or ruined, were turned into museums (this includes the Radziwill residences in Nieborow and Antonin), eg. their palace in Warsaw was nearly destroyed in 1944 but was subsequently rebuilt by the Communists as a museum of Lenin (sic!). All of this was done suddenly and without compensation to the Radziwill family. Also at that time, the Radziwills, like other members of the Polish aristocracy, were proclaimed 'bloodsuckers' and 'enemies of the working class', banned from working and persecuted in other ways-some even imprisoned by NKVD and sent into the Soviet camps. Among them was Janusz Franciszek, the famous pre-war politician together with his family: wife Anna neé Lubomirska (*1882, †1947), son Edmund (*1906, †1971), and his family: wife Izabella neé Radziwill and their two children: Ferdynand (*1935, †1992), and Krystyna (*1937) [9], all of whom were incarcerated in a camp in Krasnogorsk without trial or conviction until 1947.
 
Because of the situation in the Communist Poland, many Radziwills who emigrated West during the war, decided not to return to their homeland after 1945. Among them was Stanislaw Albrecht (*1914, †1976), the younger son of Janusz Franciszek, who established a very prosperous branch of Radziwills in England. He was one of the organisers of the Sikorski Historical Institute in London and founder of the St. Anne Church in Fawley Court. Stanislaw's third wife Carolina Lee-Bouvier was the sister of Jaqueline, wife of John F. Kennedy, president of the USA. Stanislaw's son from this marriage, Antoni (*1959, †1999), was a broadcast journalist who migrated to USA. Winner of three Emmy awards, eg. for his work during the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul for NBC Sports-he also won the television's prestigious Peabody Award in 1990 for an investigation of new Nazism in the United States. [10]
 
Those Radziwills who decided to stay in Poland despite prosecution and hardship faced by all 'enemies of the working class', were able to adapt to the new political situation with perseverance and resourcefulness. For example, the already mentioned Ferdynand, son of Edmund, was prevented from entering university for four subsequent years, despite successfully passing all exams. Finally, thanks to his forbearance, he managed to become a medical practitioner. Other Radziwills have also managed to find work and provide their children with good education. Consequently, and against the odds, they managed to carry on, until the present times, the values which throughout the centuries shaped them into a distinct social group.

It should be noted, however, that not all Radziwills were persecuted. Krzysztof Mikolaj (*1898, †1986), a pre-war landowner and a politician (imprisoned in a German concentration camp) after the war collaborated with the Communist authorities. His servitude helped him to become the Chief of the Diplomatic Corps and Member of the Communist Parliament; and this in turn earned him a derogatory nickname-Czerwony Ksiaze (the Red Prince).

The loss of Radziwills' wealth and political influence, however, has not robbed them of their social prestige. It was and still is based simply on the fact of bearing of a surname which manifests the family's ancestry, (such values are appreciated by the highly traditional Polish society). Their never-waning prestige was also upheld through marriages conducted almost exclusively among families of similar aristocratic or noble origins, eg. Princes Czartoryski, Counts Rey, or Counts Tyszkiewicz. Radziwill's exclusivity is also sustained by the upholding of a patriotic/religious ideology associated with the Polish aristocratic circles and based on the principle of noblesse oblige-binding them personally to an intensive service towards the common good. This type of activity is represented, for example, by Mikolaj Konstanty (*1958), head of the Foundation of Saint John of Jerusalem, known as Pomoc Maltanska, which cares for the sick and the poor, and works under the auspices of the Association of Polish Knights of Saint John.
 

The importance of the Radziwills in the Polish history is indisputable and well documented. The evidence of this can be found among the eighty-six entries allocated to Radziwills in 'Polski Slownik Biograficzny' (Polish Dictionary of Biography). The limited character of the current essay, unfortunately only allowed for the presentation of a few of the most prominent representants of this family.

Endnotes:
 
1. S. Gorzynski, Slawomir (ed.), Radziwillowie herbu Traby, Warszawa: Wydawnictwo DiG, 1996, pp. 3-4.
 
2. H. Stupnicki, Herbarz Polski i imionopis zasluzonych w Polsce ludzi wszelkich stanow i czasow, 3 vols., Lwów, 1855-1862, vol. III, p. 7.
 
3. The Confederation has been described by Davies as 'a bloody adventure, which divided the state and distracted the government from important foreign engagements in Muscovy and Livonia'. N. Davies, God's Playground: A History of Poland in two Volumes, 2 vols., Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1986, vol. I, pp. 340-343.
 
4. Davies, God's Playground, vol. I, pp. 345-346.
 
5. H. Sienkiewicz, Potop, 3 vols., Warszawa: Panstwowy Instytut Wydawniczy, 1988, vol. II, p. 410.

6. M. Miller, Arystokracja, Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Tenten, 1993, p. 258.
 
7. Sarmatism - a national-like movement among the nobility proclaiming supremacy of the Polish state over other nations, arguing for the protection of the rights of nobility; also deriving descent from ancient Sarmatians, and opposing foreign coercion-Davies, God's Playground, vol. I, p. 367.

8. K. Jasiewicz, Lista strat ziemianstwa polskiego 1939-1945, 2 vols., Warszawa: Pomost-Alfa, 1995, vol. I, pp. 849-852.
 
9. This chapter in the history of the Polish aristocratic families deserves a separate, full-length article. The best work on the subject, so far, was written by Miller. He interviewed members of various aristocratic families imprisoned in Krasnogorsk, and then used their oral histories to present the experiences of this social group prior to World War II, throughout the War and occupation, and up to the early post-war years-see Miller, Arystokracja.
 
10. S. Crenson, 'Anthony Radziwill, JFK Jr.'s cousin', in The Associated Press, 13 August 1999, available from: http://www.bergen.com/obits/obradz19990813c.htm, accessed 20 September 2000.
 


Bibliography:
 
Crenson Sharon, 'Anthony Radziwill, JFK Jr.'s cousin', in The Associated Press, 13 August 1999, available from: http://www.bergen.com/obits/obradz19990813c.htm, accessed 20 September 2000.
 
Davies, Norman, God's Playground: A History of Poland in two Volumes, 2 vols., Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1986.
 
Gorzynski, Slawomir (ed.), Radziwillowie herbu Traby, Warszawa: Wydawnictwo DiG, 1996.
 
Jasiewicz, Krzysztof, Lista strat ziemianstwa polskiego 1939 - 1945, 2 vols., Warszawa: Pomost-Alfa, 1995.
 
Leitgeber, Slawomir, Nowy almanach blekitny, Poznan-Warszawa: Oficyna Wydawnicza 'Adiutor', 1993.
 
Miller, Marek, Arystokracja, Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Tenten, 1993.
 
Niesiecki, Kasper, Herbarz Polski, 10 vols., 2nd ed., J.N.Bobrowicz (ed), Leipzig (1839-1845), republished by WAiF, Warszawa, 1979.
 
-, Nowa Encyklopedia Powszechna PWN, 6 vols., Warszawa: Wydawnictwa Naukowe PWN, 1996, vol.5.
 
-, Polski Slownik Biograficzny, Cracow: Polska Akademia Umiejetnosci, 1936-current, vol. 30 (1987).
 
Sienkiewicz, Henryk, Potop, 3 vols., Warszawa: Panstwowy Instytut Wydawniczy, 1988.
 
Stupnicki, Hipolit, Herbarz Polski i imionopis zasluzonych w Polsce ludzi wszelkich stanow i czasow, 3 vols., Lwow, 1855-1862.
 
Uruski, Seweryn, Rodzina: Herbarz szlachty polskiej, 15 vols., Warszawa, 1904-1938.
 
Zamoyski, Adam, The Polish Way: A Thousand-Year History of The Poles and Their Culture, London: John Murray, 1987.
 
Zielinska, Teresa, Poczet polskich rodow arystokratycznych, Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Szkolne i Pedagogiczne, 1997.
 
Zychlinski, Tadeusz (ed.), Zlota ksiega szlachty polskiej, 31 vols., Poznan, 1879-1908.

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Published: 25/02/2001
(c) Peter Paul Bajer

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