Zjazd proszowicki w marcu 1733 r. Przyczynek do dziejów bezkrólewia po śmierci Augusta II Wettyna w województwie krakowskim

Abstract

The source used and edited in the text is, as the title itself indicates, an account of the pre-convocation sejmik of the Cracow province held in Proszowice on 18–24 March, 1733, after the death of August II Wettin. The convention brought together the political elite of the province, including Teodor Konstanty Lubomirski, governor of Krakow, and Janusz Antoni Korybut Wiśniowiecki, castellan of Krakow, and took place in a tense political situation. Nearly a month earlier, the nobility of the Cracow province had formed partisan confederations, including in Sącz and Cracow, which were intended to guarantee security at the local level, but in reality were to become a tool in the hands of Lubomirski, who made no secret of his ambitions to join the fight to win the crown. He even tried to convince imperial diplomacy, represented in the Commonwealth by Heinrich von Wilczek, of his goals. The Proszowice Sejmik proceeded without major disruptions, despite the real threat of a split session, which occurred during the election of a marshal. Lubomirski, however, managed to reach a compromise and bring the session to a positive conclusion, although the sejmik instructions were not passed. However, deputies and a set of deputies to the star chamberss were elected. “Relacyja…” in addition to describing the course of the noble assembly, is also an excellent source bringing closer the so-called sejmik kitchen, showing critical moments when disputes occurred, and ways to prevent them, hooding the nobility and the functioning of this institution from the less official side. Translated by Stefan Kubiak