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117-531: Bytów ( Polish: [ˈbɨtuf] ; Kashubian : Bëtowò ; German : Bütow [ˈbyːtoː] ) is a town in the Gdańsk Pomerania region of northern Poland with 16,730 inhabitants as of December 2021. It is the capital of Bytów County in the Pomeranian Voivodeship . The origins of Bytów can be traced back to the early Middle Ages when a fortified stronghold once stood near

234-437: A bugle call is played during important events which taking place in the area. Bytów is a popular tourist destination in the region of Pomerania and is famous for its medieval Teutonic Castle built in the late 14th century. According to the city's official webpage the name Bytów comes from the founder of the settlement named "Byt". A settlement was first mentioned by the name of Butow in 1321. The territory became part of

351-466: A revolt , and, with the help of Denmark , blockaded maritime trade to neutral Elbląg (Elbing). Báthory, unable to penetrate the city's extensive fortifications, succumbed to the demands for greater privileges and freedoms. However, his successful Livonian campaign ended in the annexation of Livonia and the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia (modern-day Estonia and Latvia , respectively), thus expanding

468-631: A center of Polish resistance against Germanisation and was a Polish-Kashubian printing center. From 1846 to 1945, Bütow was the seat of the Landkreis Bütow district in Prussia. The town became part of the German Empire in 1871 during the Prussian-led unification of Germany . Polish minority remained active in the city, and in 1910 a Polish Bank Ludowy was founded here. After the end of World War I and

585-660: A centuries-long tradition of a nobles' democracy ( Golden Liberty ). Henry already posed as a candidate before Sigismund's death and received widespread support from the pro-French factions. The choice was a political move aimed at curtailing Habsburg hegemony, ending skirmishes with the French-allied Ottomans , and profiting from the lucrative trade with France. It was also believed that an Austrian Archduke could be too powerful and attempt to limit noble privileges. French envoys had also offered large amounts of bribes, amounting to several hundred thousand ecus . Upon ascending

702-504: A century, from the mid-17th century to the end of the 18th, while its neighbours stabilised their internal affairs and increased their military might. The Commonwealth did eventually make a serious effort to reform its political system, adopting in 1791 the Constitution of 3 May 1791 , which historian Norman Davies calls the first of its kind in Europe. The revolutionary Constitution recast

819-555: A contract with merchants of Gdańsk, who controlled 80% of this inland trade, to ship the grain north to that seaport on the Baltic Sea . Countless rivers and waterways in the Commonwealth were used for shipping purposes, including the Vistula , Pilica , Bug , San , Nida , Wieprz , and Neman . The rivers had relatively developed infrastructure, with river ports and granaries . Most of

936-683: A divergent dialect of Polish . Dialectal diversity is so great within Kashubian that a speaker of southern dialects has considerable difficulty in understanding a speaker of northern dialects. The spelling and the grammar of Polish words written in Kashubian, which is most of its vocabulary, are highly unusual, making it difficult for native Polish speakers to comprehend written text in Kashubian. Like Polish, Kashubian includes about 5% loanwords from German (such as kùńszt "art"). Unlike Polish, these are mostly from Low German and only occasionally from High German . Other sources of loanwords include

1053-493: A mass scale were opened to satisfy the demands of the nobility as consumers. At the height of the Great Northern War a coalition ( Warsaw Confederation ) against Augustus II was formed by Stanisław Leszczyński and other magnates sponsored by Sweden. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was formally neutral at this point, as Augustus entered the war as Elector of Saxony. Disregarding Polish negotiation proposals supported by

1170-472: A mixture of: The end of the Jagiellonian dynasty in 1572 – after nearly two centuries – disrupted the fragile equilibrium of the Commonwealth's government. Power increasingly slipped away from the central government to the nobility. When presented with periodic opportunities to fill the throne, the szlachta exhibited a preference for foreign candidates who would not establish

1287-441: A nobleman's landholding comprised a folwark , a large farmstead worked by serfs to produce surpluses for internal and external trade. This economic arrangement worked well for the ruling classes and nobles in the early years of the Commonwealth, which was one of the most prosperous eras of the grain trade . The economic strength of Commonwealth grain trade waned from the late 17th century on. Trade relationships were disrupted by

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1404-519: A series of blows during the following decades. Władysław's brother, John II Casimir , proved to be weak and impotent. The multicultural and mega-diverse federation already suffered domestic problems. As persecution of religious and ethnic minorities strengthened, several groups started to rebel. A major rebellion of self-governed Ukrainian Cossacks inhabiting south-eastern borderlands of the Commonwealth rioted against Polish and Catholic oppression of Orthodox Ukraine in 1648, in what came to be known as

1521-608: A state that was unusual for its time, although somewhat similar political systems existed in the contemporary city-states like the Republic of Venice . Both states were styled "Serenissima Respublica" or the " Most Serene Republic ". At a time when most European countries were headed toward centralization , absolute monarchy and religious and dynastic warfare, the Commonwealth experimented with decentralization , confederation and federation, democracy and religious tolerance . This political system unusual for its time stemmed from

1638-416: A strong and long-lasting dynasty . This policy often produced monarchs who were either totally ineffective or in constant debilitating conflict with the nobility. Furthermore, aside from notable exceptions such as the able Stefan Batory from Transylvania (1576–86), the kings of foreign origin were inclined to subordinate the interests of the Commonwealth to those of their own country and ruling house. This

1755-451: A substantial increase in the power of the Polish magnates , and the transformation of szlachta democracy into magnate oligarchy . The Commonwealth's political system was vulnerable to outside interference, as Sejm deputies bribed by foreign powers might use their liberum veto to block attempted reforms. This sapped the Commonwealth and plunged it into political paralysis and anarchy for over

1872-468: A term used from 1573 on), included: The three regions (see below) of the Commonwealth enjoyed a degree of autonomy . Each voivodship had its own parliament (sejmik), which exercised serious political power, including choice of poseł ( deputy ) to the national Sejm and charging of the deputy with specific voting instructions. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania had its own separate army, treasury and most other official institutions. Golden Liberty created

1989-474: Is the exchange of high school students between Bytów and Winona. Sołectwos in the urban-rural commune ( gmina ) of Bytów include: Dąbie, Gostkowo, Grzmiąca, Mądrzechowo, Mokrzyn, Niezabyszewo, Płotowo, Pomysk Mały Pomysk Wielki, Rekowo, Rzepnica, Sierżno, Świątkowo, Udorpie, Ząbinowice. Kashubian language In Poland , it has been an officially recognized ethnic-minority language since 2005. Approximately 87,600 people use mainly Kashubian at home. It

2106-722: Is the only language in Poland with that status, which was granted by the Act of 6 January 2005 on National and Ethnic Minorities and on the Regional Language of the Polish Parliament . The act provides for its use in official contexts in ten communes in which speakers are at least 20% of the population. The recognition means that heavily populated Kashubian localities have been able to have road signs and other amenities with Polish and Kashubian translations on them. Friedrich Lorentz wrote in

2223-509: Is the only remnant of the Pomeranian language . It is close to standard Polish with influence from Low German and the extinct Polabian (West Slavic) and Old Prussian (West Baltic) languages. The Kashubian language exists in two different forms: vernacular dialects used in rural areas, and literary variants used in education. Kashubian is assumed to have evolved from the language spoken by some tribes of Pomeranians called Kashubians , in

2340-400: Is used for expressive purposes or is the result of syllable stress. All traces of vowel length can now be seen in vowel alterations. Kashubian features free placement of stress , and in some cases, mobile stress, and in northern dialects, unstressed syllables can result in vowel reduction . An archaic word final stress is preserved in some two-syllable adjectives, adverbs, and regularly in

2457-427: Is widely spoken to this day, despite the use of more formal Polish by parish priests. In Winona, Minnesota , which Ramułt termed the "Kashubian Capital of America", Kashubian was regarded as "poor Polish," as opposed to the "good Polish" of the parish priests and teaching sisters. Consequently, Kashubian failed to survive Polonization and died out shortly after the mid-20th century. Important for Kashubian literature

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2574-472: The Baltic languages . The number of speakers of Kashubian varies widely from source to source. In the 2021 census, approximately 87,600 people in Poland declared that they used Kashubian at home, a decrease from over 108,000 in the 2011 census. Of these, only 1,700 reported speaking exclusively in Kashubian within their homes, down from 3,800 in 2011. However, experts caution that changes in census methodology and

2691-499: The Danube River , never again to threaten central Europe. John Sobieski's death in 1696 arguably ended the period of national sovereignty, and Poland's relative authority over the region dwindled swiftly. By the 18th century, destabilization of its political system brought the Commonwealth to the brink of civil war and the state became increasingly susceptible to foreign influence. The remaining European powers perpetually meddled in

2808-705: The Four-Year Sejm 's May Constitution , came too late. The country was partitioned in three stages by the Russian Empire, the German Kingdom of Prussia , and the Austrian Habsburg monarchy . By 1795, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth had been completely erased from the map of Europe. Poland and Lithuania were not re-established as independent countries until 1918. The political doctrine of

2925-654: The Khmelnytsky Uprising . It resulted in a Ukrainian request, under the terms of the Treaty of Pereyaslav , for protection by the Russian Tsar. In 1651, in the face of a growing threat from Poland, and forsaken by his Tatar allies, Khmelnytsky asked the Tsar to incorporate Ukraine as an autonomous duchy under Russian protection. Russian annexation of Zaporizhian Ukraine gradually supplanted Polish influence in that part of Europe. In

3042-530: The Kingdom of Prussia and later also Germany, within which it remained until the end of World War II . At the final stages of the war, Bytów was the center of heavy artillery shelling initiated by the Red Army , resulting in more than 55% of the buildings destroyed. Throughout its whole history, Bytów was known to be a multicultural town inhabited by Kashubians , Poles , Slovincians , Germans , and Jews . Since 2000

3159-616: The Kingdom of Prussia . Brandenburg imposed higher taxes to pay off its debts after the Thirty Years' War . During the 18th century, the town suffered from fires and plague. In 1773 in the First Partition of Poland the town was wholly incorporated in the Prussian Province of Pomerania . In the 18th century attempts began at Germanisation of the indigenous Polish-Kashubian population by introducing German into schools. It remained

3276-692: The Ottoman Empire . In 1683, the Battle of Vienna marked the final turning point in the 250-year struggle between the forces of Christian Europe and the Islamic Ottomans. For its centuries-long opposition to Muslim advances, the Commonwealth would gain the name of Antemurale Christianitatis (bulwark of Christianity). During the next 16 years, the Great Turkish War would drive the Turks permanently south of

3393-631: The Polish Enlightenment began to sprout. In 1764, aristocrat Stanisław August Poniatowski was elected monarch with the connivance and support of his former lover Catherine the Great , a German noblewoman who became Empress of Russia. Poniatowski's attempts at reform were met with staunch resistance both internally and externally. Any goal of stabilizing the Commonwealth was dangerous for its ambitious and aggressive neighbours. Like his predecessors, he sponsored artists and architects. In 1765 he founded

3510-526: The Pomeranian Voivodeship . Most respondents say that Kashubian is used in informal speech among family members and friends. This is most likely because Polish is the official language and spoken in formal settings. During the Kashubian diaspora of 1855–1900, 115,700 Kashubians emigrated to North America , with around 15,000 emigrating to Brazil . Among the Polish community of Renfrew County, Ontario , Kashubian

3627-742: The Prussian Confederation 's revolt against the Teutonic Knights. The town alternated between Poland and the monastic state during the Polish-Teutonic Wars , and returned to Polish control after the Second Peace of Thorn (1466) . Poland gave Bytów as lien to the Dukes of Pomerania . Since 1526 the Pomerania dukes held it as an inheritable lien. In 1627 during the Thirty Years' War , the town

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3744-581: The Reciprocal Guarantee of Two Nations (1791). In the preamble of the Reciprocal Guarantee of Two Nations (1791) the dualistic nature of the state was confirmed and separate monarchial titles of Stanisław August Poniatowski were included: King of Poland ( Polish : Krol Polski ) and Grand Duke of Lithuania ( Polish : Wielki xiązę litewski ), also the land envoys of the Polish Crown and

3861-535: The Third Statute of Lithuania in which it was stated that the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth is a federation of two countries – Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland where both countries have equal rights within it. In the 17th century and later it was also known as the 'Most Serene Commonwealth of Poland' ( Polish : Najjaśniejsza Rzeczpospolita Polska , Latin : Serenissima Res Publica Poloniae ),

3978-581: The Thirty Years' War ; this neutrality spared the country from the ravages of a political-religious conflict that devastated most of contemporary Europe. During this period, Poland was experiencing a cultural awakening and extensive developments in arts and architecture; the first Vasa king openly sponsored foreign painters, craftsmen, musicians and engineers, who settled in the Commonwealth at his request. Sigismund's eldest son, Ladislaus succeeded him as Władysław IV in 1632 with no major opposition. A skilled tactician, he invested in artillery , modernised

4095-495: The Union of Vilnius and Radom and the Union of Grodno . Lithuania's vulnerable position and rising tensions on its eastern flank persuaded the nobles to seek a closer bond with Poland. The idea of a federation presented better economic opportunities, whilst securing Lithuania's borders from hostile states to the north, south and east. Lesser Lithuanian nobility were eager to share the personal privileges and political liberties enjoyed by

4212-800: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in English: Polish%E2%80%93Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic , was a federative real union between the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania , existing from 1569 to 1795. This state

4329-606: The Warsaw Corps of Cadets , the first state school in Poland for all classes of society. In 1773 the king and parliament formed the Commission of National Education , the first Ministry of Education in European history. In 1792, the king ordered the creation of Virtuti Militari , the oldest military decoration still in use. Stanisław August also admired the culture of ancient kingdoms, particularly Rome and Greece; Neoclassicism became

4446-466: The bourgeoisie , resulted in a fairly slow process of urbanization and thus a rather slow development of industries . The nobility could also regulate the price of grain for their advantage, thus acquiring much wealth. Some of the largest trade fairs in the Commonwealth were held at Lublin . Several ancient trading routes such as the Amber Road ( Pic. 4 ) extended across Poland–Lithuania, which

4563-528: The comparative degree of adverbs, in some infinitives and present and past tense forms, some nouns ending in -ô , in diminutives . ending in -ik / -yk , nouns formed with -c and -k , and some prepositional phrases with pronouns. Stress mobility can be observed in nouns, where in the singular the stress is initial, but in the plural it's on the final syllable of the stem, i.e. k'òlano but kòl'anami , and in some verb forms, i.e. k'ùpi vs kùp'ita . Some dialects have merged ë with e , making

4680-495: The 15th century and include a book of spiritual psalms that were used to introduce Kashubian to the Lutheran church: Throughout the communist period in Poland (1948-1989), Kashubian greatly suffered in education and social status. Kashubian was represented as folklore and prevented from being taught in schools. Following the collapse of communism, attitudes on the status of Kashubian have been gradually changing. It has been included in

4797-631: The 16th century. From Gdańsk, ships carried cargo to the major ports of the Low Countries , such as Antwerp and Amsterdam . The land routes, mostly to the German provinces of the Holy Roman Empire such as the cities of Leipzig and Nuremberg , were used for the export of live cattle (herds of around 50,000 head) hides , salt, tobacco, hemp and cotton from the Greater Poland region. In turn,

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4914-624: The Americas rendered the Commonwealth's supplies less crucial which resulted in financial losses. Augustus III spent little time in the Commonwealth, instead preferring the Saxon city of Dresden . He appointed Heinrich von Brühl as viceroy and minister of Polish affairs who in turn left the politics to Polish magnate families, such as the Czartoryskis and the Radziwiłłs . It was also during this period that

5031-461: The Commonwealth entirely ceased to exist only four years after its adoption. The economy of the Commonwealth was predominantly based on agricultural output and trade, though there was an abundance of artisan workshops and manufactories – notably paper mills , leather tanneries , ironworks , glassworks and brickyards . Some major cities were home to craftsmen, jewellers and clockmakers. The majority of industries and trades were concentrated in

5148-478: The Commonwealth imported wine, beer, fruit, exotic spices, luxury goods (e.g. tapestries , Pic. 5 ), furniture, fabrics as well as industrial products like steel and tools. The agricultural sector was dominated by feudalism based on the plantation system ( serfs ). Slavery was forbidden in Poland in the 15th century, and formally abolished in Lithuania in 1588, replaced by the second enserfment. Typically

5265-459: The Commonwealth of the Polish Kingdom, or the Commonwealth of Poland. Western Europeans often simplified the name to 'Poland' and in most past and modern sources it is referred to as the Kingdom of Poland, or just Poland. The terms 'Commonwealth of Poland' and 'Commonwealth of Two Nations' ( Polish : Rzeczpospolita Obojga Narodów , Latin : Res Publica Utriusque Nationis ) were used in

5382-618: The Commonwealth was our state is a republic under the presidency of the King . Chancellor Jan Zamoyski summed up this doctrine when he said that Rex regnat et non-gubernat ("The King reigns but [ lit. 'and'] does not govern"). The Commonwealth had a parliament, the Sejm, as well as a Senat and an elected king ( Pic. 1 ). The king was obliged to respect citizens' rights specified in King Henry's Articles as well as in pacta conventa , negotiated at

5499-554: The Commonwealth's influence into the Baltics . Most importantly, Poland gained the Hanseatic city of Riga on the Baltic Sea . In 1587, Sigismund Vasa – the son of John III of Sweden and Catherine Jagiellon – won the election, but his claim was overtly contested by Maximilian III of Austria , who launched a military expedition to challenge the new king. His defeat in 1588 at the hands of Jan Zamoyski sealed Sigismund's right to

5616-498: The Grand Duchy of Lithuania ( Polish : posłow ziemskich Korony Polskiey, y Wielkiego Xięstwa Litewskiego ) were mentioned. The English term Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and German Polen–Litauen are seen as renderings of the 'Commonwealth of Two Nations' variant. Other informal names include the 'Republic of Nobles' ( Polish : Rzeczpospolita szlachecka ) and the 'First Commonwealth' ( Polish : I Rzeczpospolita ) or 'First Polish Republic' ( Polish : Pierwsza Rzeczpospolita ),

5733-549: The Kingdom of Poland; the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was more rural and its economy was driven by farming and clothmaking. Mining developed in the south-west region of Poland which was rich in natural resources such as lead , coal, copper and salt. The currency used in Poland–Lithuania was the złoty (meaning "the golden") and its subunit, the grosz . Foreign coins in the form of ducats , thalers and shillings were widely accepted and exchanged. The city of Gdańsk had

5850-530: The Mississippi River to Pine Creek, Wisconsin in the early 1860s. Many found jobs in the lumber mills during the lumber boom of the late 1800s occurring in the region. Up to the end of World War II most inhabitants of the town were Protestants. The above table is based on primary, possibly biased, sources. Polish football club Bytovia Bytów is based in Bytów. Bytów is twinned with: One regular activity

5967-507: The Poles to take and occupy Moscow for the next two years. The disgraced Vasili IV of Russia was transported in a cage to Warsaw where he paid a tribute to Sigismund; Vasili was later murdered in captivity. The Commonwealth forces were eventually driven out on 4 November 1612 (celebrated as Unity Day in Russia). The war concluded with a truce that granted Poland–Lithuania extensive territories in

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6084-570: The Polish szlachta , but did not accept Polish demands for the incorporation of the Grand Duchy into Poland as a mere province, with no sense of autonomy. Mikołaj "the Red" Radziwiłł (Radvila Rudasis) and his cousin Mikołaj "the Black" Radziwiłł , two prominent nobles and military commanders in Lithuania, vocally opposed the union. A fierce proponent of a single unified Commonwealth was Sigismund II Augustus , who

6201-785: The Soviet Union and from the rest of Kashubia . Bytów became the seat of a powiat (1946–1975, 1999-) within Poland. From 1975 to 1998 it was administratively part of the Słupsk Voivodeship . Many families from Bytów such as the Brezas and the Pehlers emigrated to the area of Winona, Minnesota in the United States , beginning in 1859. The Prussian policy was to force the Kashubians out to make room for German settlers. Some Kashubians moved across

6318-661: The Swedish parliament, Charles crossed into the Commonwealth and vanquished the Saxe-Polish forces at the Battle of Kliszów in 1702 and at the Battle of Pułtusk in 1703. Charles then succeeded in dethroning Augustus and coercing the Sejm (parliament) to replace him with Stanisław in 1704. Augustus regained the throne in 1709, but his own death in 1733 sparked the War of the Polish Succession in which Stanisław once more attempted to seize

6435-442: The army and fiercely defended the Commonwealth's eastern borders. Under the Treaty of Stuhmsdorf , he reclaimed regions of Livonia and the Baltics which were lost during the Polish-Swedish wars. Unlike his father who worshipped the Habsburgs, Władysław sought closer ties with France and married Marie Louise Gonzaga , daughter of Charles I Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua , in 1646. The Commonwealth's power and stability began waning after

6552-412: The ascendance of the szlachta noble class over other social classes and over the political system of monarchy. In time, the szlachta accumulated enough privileges (such as those established by the Nihil novi Act of 1505) that no monarch could hope to break the szlachta's grip on power. The Commonwealth's political system is difficult to fit into a simple category, but it can be tentatively described as

6669-431: The assembly in protest. Sigismund II used his authority as grand duke and enforced the Act of Union in contumaciam . In fear, the absent nobles promptly returned to the negotiations. The Union of Lublin was passed by the gathered deputies and signed by attendees on 1 July, thus creating the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Sigismund's death in 1572 was followed by an interregnum during which adjustments were made to

6786-438: The conservative magnates and Pope Innocent XII , who in turn voiced their endorsement. Imperial Russia and Habsburg Austria also contributed by financing Frederick, whose election took place in June 1697. Many questioned the legality of his elevation to the throne; it was speculated that the Prince of Conti had received more votes and was the rightful heir. Frederick hurried with his armies to Poland to quell any opposition. He

6903-399: The constitution as the "contagion of democratic ideas". Meanwhile, Prussia and Austria used it as a pretext for further territorial expansion. Prussian minister Ewald Friedrich von Hertzberg called the constitution "a blow to the Prussian monarchy", fearing that a strengthened Poland would once again dominate Prussia. In the end, the 3 May Constitution was never fully implemented, and

7020-408: The constitutional system; these adjustments significantly increased the power of the Polish nobility and established a truly elective monarchy . On 11 May 1573, Henry de Valois , son of Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici , was proclaimed King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania in the first royal election outside Warsaw . Approximately 40,000 nobles cast a vote in what was to become

7137-521: The country's affairs. Upon the death of a king, several royal houses actively intruded in the hope of securing votes for their desired candidates. The practice was common and apparent, and the selection was often the result of hefty bribes directed at corrupt nobles. Louis XIV of France heavily invested in François Louis, Prince of Conti , in opposition to James Louis Sobieski , Maximilian Emanuel of Bavaria and Frederick Augustus of Saxony . The latter's conversion from Lutheranism to Catholicism awed

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7254-416: The country. Russia feared the revolutionary implications of the 3 May Constitution's political reforms and the prospect of the Commonwealth regaining its position as a European power. Catherine the Great regarded the May constitution as fatal to her influence and declared the Polish constitution Jacobinical . Grigori Aleksandrovich Potemkin drafted the act for the Targowica Confederation , referring to

7371-482: The crown, this time with the support of France. The Pacification Sejm culminated in Augustus III succeeding his father. The relative peace and inactivity that followed only weakened Poland's reputation on the world stage. Aleksander Brückner noted that Polish customs and traditions were abandoned in favour of everything foreign, and neighbouring states continued to exploit Poland to their advantage. Moreover, Western Europe's increasing exploitation of resources in

7488-504: The distinction contrastive. Most of this mobility is limited to morphology and stress has largely stabilized in Kashubian. Northern and central dialects show a much more limited mobility, as northern dialects show stabilization on initial stress, and central shows constant distance between the stressed syllable and the initial syllable of the word. Proclitics such as prepositions, pronouns, and grammatical particles such as nié may take initial stress. Eastern groups place accents on

7605-409: The dominant form of architectural and cultural expression. Politically, however, the vast Commonwealth was in steady decline and by 1768, it started to be considered by Russians as a protectorate of the Russian Empire despite the fact that it was still an independent state. A majority of control over Poland was central to Catherine's diplomatic and military strategies. Attempts at reform, such as

7722-401: The dominant partner in the union. Polonization of nobles was generally voluntary, but state efforts at religious conversion were sometimes resisted. After a long period of prosperity, the Commonwealth entered a period of protracted political, military, and economic decline. Its growing weakness led to its partitioning among its neighbours, Austria , Prussia , and Russia , during

7839-653: The early 20th century that there were three main Kashubian dialects. These include the Other researches would argue that each tiny region of the Kaszuby has its own dialect, as in Dialects and Slang of Poland : The phonological system of the Kashubian language is similar in many ways to those of other Slavic languages . It is famous for Kaszëbienié (Kashubization) and has a large vowel inventory, with 9 oral vowels and 2 nasal vowels. Friedrich Lorentz argued that northern dialects had contrastive vowel length, but later studies showed that any phonemic length distinctions had disappeared by 1900. Any other vowel length

7956-401: The east and marked its largest territorial expansion. At least five million Russians died between 1598 and 1613, the result of continuous conflict, famine and Sigismund's invasion. The Polish–Ottoman War (1620–21) forced Poland to withdraw from Moldavia in southeastern Europe, but Sigismund's victory over the Turks at Khotyn diminished the supremacy of the Sultanate and eventually led to

8073-446: The emerging Polish state under its first historic ruler Mieszko I in the 10th century. Bytów passed to the Teutonic Knights in 1329. From 1335 comes the oldest mention of a Catholic parish, which, however, could have existed since the 12th or 13th century. In 1346 it was granted town rights . The castle seen today was built by the Knights between 1399 and 1405 at the site of the older castle, to protect their western border. It has been

8190-435: The end of the Jagiellonian dynasty and introduced an elective monarchy , whereupon members of domestic noble families or external dynasties were elected to the throne for life. The Commonwealth's parliamentary system of government and elective monarchy , called the Golden Liberty , was an early example of constitutional monarchy . The General Sejm , the bicameral Parliament , held legislative power; its lower house

8307-480: The end of the 16th century. The modern orthography was first proposed in 1879. Many scholars and linguists debate whether Kashubian should be recognized as a Polish dialect or separate language. In terms of historical development Lechitic West Slavic language , but in terms of modern influence Polish is a prestige language. Kashubian is closely related to Slovincian , and both of them are dialects of Pomeranian . Many linguists , in Poland and elsewhere, consider it

8424-523: The end of the war by the Potsdam Conference and the Polish name Bytów was restored. Those German inhabitants, which had remained in the town or had returned to it short after the war, were later on forcibly expelled and their property seized in accordance with the Potsdam Agreement . The indigenous Polish-Kashubian population was joined by Poles displaced from former eastern Poland annexed by

8541-502: The erstwhile Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth as a Polish–Lithuanian federal state with a hereditary monarchy and abolished many of the deleterious features of the old system. The new constitution: These reforms came too late, however, as the Commonwealth was immediately invaded from all sides by its neighbors, which had been content to leave the Commonwealth alone as a weak buffer state, but reacted strongly to attempts by king Stanisław August Poniatowski and other reformers to strengthen

8658-549: The establishment of Kashubian language, customs, and traditions. He felt strongly that Poles were born brothers and that Kashubia was a separate nation. The Young Kashubian movement followed in 1912, led by author and doctor Aleksander Majkowski , who wrote for the paper Zrzësz Kaszëbskô as part of the Zrzëszincë group. The group contributed significantly to the development of the Kashubian literary language. The earliest printed documents in Polish with Kashubian elements date from

8775-460: The king was effectively a partner with the noble class and was constantly supervised by a group of senators . The Sejm could veto the king on important matters, including legislation (the adoption of new laws), foreign affairs, declaration of war, and taxation (changes of existing taxes or the levying of new ones). The foundation of the Commonwealth's political system, the " Golden Liberty " ( Latin : Aurea Libertas or Polish : Złota Wolność ,

8892-658: The late 18th century. Shortly before its demise, the Commonwealth adopted a major reform effort and enacted the 3 May Constitution , which was the first codified constitution in modern European history and the second in modern world history after the United States Constitution . The official name of the state was the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ( Polish : Królestwo Polskie i Wielkie Księstwo Litewskie , Lithuanian : Lenkijos Karalystė ir Lietuvos Didžioji Kunigaikštystė , Latin : Regnum Poloniae Magnusque Ducatus Lithuaniae ). The Latin term

9009-562: The latter relatively common in historiography to distinguish it from the Second Polish Republic . In Lithuania, the state is referred to as 'Republic of Both Nations' ( Lithuanian : Abiejų Tautų Respublika ). The Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania underwent an alternating series of wars and alliances across the 13th and 14th centuries. The relations between the two states differed at times as each strived and competed for political, economic or military dominance of

9126-635: The local Polish population was a local Polish teacher, Jan Bauer, who was arrested by the Germans in 1929. Months before World War II , in 1939, the Germans carried out arrests of notable local Poles, incl. activists and the head of the local Polish bank. During World War II the Polish population was subject to deportations and executions, two of its leaders, Jan Rekowski-Styp  [ pl ] and Józef Rekowski  [ pl ] were imprisoned in Sachsenhausen and Dachau concentration camps , however,

9243-526: The most commonly translated Kashubian authors of the 20th century. A considerable body of Christian literature has been translated into Kashubian, including the New Testament , much of it by Adam Ryszard Sikora ( OFM ). Franciszek Grucza graduated from a Catholic seminary in Pelplin . He was the first priest to introduce Catholic liturgy in Kashubian. The earliest recorded artifacts of Kashubian date back to

9360-533: The murder of Osman II . This secured the Turkish frontier for the duration of Sigismund's rule. In spite of the victories in the Polish–Swedish War (1626–1629) , the exhausted Commonwealth army signed the Treaty of Altmark which ceded much of Livonia to Sweden under Gustavus Adolphus . At the same time, the country's powerful parliament was dominated by nobles ( Pic. 2 ) who were reluctant to get involved in

9477-533: The new monarch. The nobles simultaneously elected Stephen Báthory as co-regent, who ruled jure uxoris . Báthory's election proved controversial – Lithuania and Ducal Prussia initially refused to recognise the Transylvanian as their ruler. Piotr Zborowski supported Bathory as he wanted to promote a princely or ducal candidate. He also endorsed the Duke of Ferrara . The wealthy port city of Gdańsk (Danzig) staged

9594-512: The nobility remained apprehensive believing that William would not secure domestic interests. Instead, they turned to Jogaila , the Grand Duke of Lithuania. Jogaila was a lifelong pagan and vowed to adopt Catholicism upon marriage by signing the Union of Krewo on 14 August 1385. The Act imposed Christianity in Lithuania and transformed Poland into a diarchy , a kingdom ruled over by two sovereigns; their descendants and successive monarchs held

9711-471: The penultimate syllable. The difference between southern and northern dialects dates as far back as the 14th—15th century and is the result of changes to the Proto-Slavic vowel length system . Kashubian has simple consonants with a secondary articulation along with complex ones with secondary articulation. Kashubian features the same system of voicing assimilation as standard Polish . German has been

9828-442: The privilege of minting its own coinage. In 1794, Tadeusz Kościuszko began issuing the first Polish banknotes. The country played a significant role in the supply of Western Europe by the export of grain (rye), cattle (oxen), furs, timber, linen , cannabis , ash , tar , carminic acid and amber . Cereals, cattle and fur amounted to nearly 90% of the country's exports to European markets by overland and maritime trade in

9945-556: The program of school education in Kashubia although not as a language of teaching or as a required subject for every child, but as a foreign language taught 3 hours per week at parents' explicit request. Since 1991, it is estimated that there have been around 17,000 students in over 400 schools who have learned Kashubian. Kashubian has some limited usage on public radio and had on public television. Since 2005, Kashubian has enjoyed legal protection in Poland as an official regional language . It

10062-507: The re-establishment of independent Poland, the Treaty of Versailles kept the town in the Weimar Republic in 1919. There was an economic decline, many Germans emigrated to western Germany, and the population was slowly decreasing. In the interbellum numerous Polish organizations, including the Union of Poles in Germany , operated in the town. Poles were subjected to repressions. The hero of

10179-491: The refurbishment of the Warsaw Royal Castle into a modern palatial residence. Countless landmarks and monuments in the city bear a name referencing the Saxon kings, notably Saxon Garden , Saxon Axis and the former Saxon Palace . The period saw the development of urban planning, street allocation, hospitals, schools ( Collegium Nobilium ), public parks and libraries ( Załuski Library ). First manufactories producing on

10296-578: The region of Pomerania , on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea between the Vistula and Oder rivers. It first began to evolve separately in the period from the thirteenth to the fifteenth century as the Polish-Pomeranian linguistic area began to divide based around important linguistic developments centred in the western (Kashubian) part of the area. In the 19th century Florian Ceynowa became Kashubian's first known activist. He undertook tremendous efforts to awaken Kashubian self-identity through

10413-449: The region. In turn, Poland had remained a staunch ally of its southern neighbour, Hungary . The last Polish monarch from the native Piast dynasty, Casimir the Great , died on 5 November 1370 without fathering a legitimate male heir. Consequently, the crown passed onto his Hungarian nephew, Louis of Anjou , who ruled the Kingdom of Hungary in a personal union with Poland . A fundamental step in developing extensive ties with Lithuania

10530-563: The river shipping moved north, southward transport being less profitable, and barges and rafts were often sold off in Gdańsk for lumber. Grodno become an important site after formation of a customs post at Augustów in 1569, which became a checkpoint for merchants travelling to the Crown lands from the Grand Duchy. Urban population of the Commonwealth was low compared to Western Europe. Exact numbers depend on calculation methods. According to one source,

10647-576: The seat of an administrator of the State of the Teutonic Knights . This castle was captured by Poland after the Battle of Grunwald (1410), and king Władysław II Jagiełło of Poland gave it to Bogislaw VIII, Duke of Pomerania , for all of his lifetime as payment for support obtained from him against the Teutonic Knights. In the Peace of Thorn (1411) Bogislaw had to return the castle to the Knights. The town did not join

10764-496: The socio-political climate may have influenced these results. The number of people who can speak at least some Kashubian is higher, around 366,000. All Kashubian speakers are also fluent in Polish. A number of schools in Poland use Kashubian as a teaching language. It is an official alternative language for local administration purposes in Gmina Sierakowice , Gmina Linia , Gmina Parchowo , Gmina Luzino and Gmina Żukowo in

10881-559: The source for most loanwords in Kashubian, with an estimated 5% of the vocabulary, as opposed to 3% in Polish. Kashubian, like other Slavic languages, has a rich system of derivational morphology, with prefixes, suffixes, deverbals, compounds, among others. [œ], [ø] (northern dialects) The following digraphs and trigraphs are used: Article 1 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Kashubian: Article 1 of

10998-746: The throne of Poland and Sweden. Sigismund's long reign marked an end to the Polish Golden Age and the beginning of the Silver Age. A devout Catholic, he hoped to restore absolutism and imposed Roman Catholicism during the height of the Counter-Reformation . His intolerance towards the Protestants in Sweden sparked a war of independence , which ended the Polish–Swedish union . As a consequence, he

11115-557: The throne, Henry signed the contractual agreement known as the Pacta conventa and approbated the Henrician Articles . The Act stated the fundamental principles of governance and constitutional law in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. In June 1574, Henry abandoned Poland and headed back to claim the French crown following the death of his brother and predecessor, Charles IX . The throne

11232-482: The time of his election. The monarch's power was limited in favour of a sizable noble class. Each new king had to pledge to uphold the Henrician Articles, which were the basis of Poland's political system (and included near-unprecedented guarantees of religious tolerance ). Over time, the Henrician Articles were merged with the pacta conventa, specific pledges agreed to by the king-elect. From that point onwards,

11349-404: The titles of king and grand duke respectively. The ultimate clause dictated that Lithuania was to be merged in perpetuity ( perpetuo applicare ) with the Polish Kingdom; however, this did not take effect until 1569. Jogaila was crowned as Władysław II Jagiełło at Wawel Cathedral on 4 March 1386. Several minor agreements were struck before unification, notably the Union of Kraków and Vilnius ,

11466-578: The town remained a local center of the Polish resistance movement ( Kashubian Griffin ). In January 1945, a German-perpetrated death march of Allied prisoners-of-war from the Stalag XX-B POW camp passed through the town. It was captured by the Soviet Red Army on 8 March 1945. Some inhabitants had fled before the Soviet advance. In April 1945, it was put under Polish administration, confirmed after

11583-567: The town. In 1346 as Bütow it obtained Kulm law rights from the Teutonic Order , which controlled it since 1329. During the Thirteen Years' War (1454–1466), the town was the site of heavy fighting and changed hands over time. Eventually, King Casimir IV Jagiellon granted the town to Eric II, Duke of Pomerania , as a perpetual fiefdom . After the Partitions of Poland , Bytów became part of

11700-502: The urban population of the Commonwealth was about 20% of the total in the 17th century, compared to approximately 50% in the Netherlands and Italy ( Pic. 7 ). Another source suggests much lower figures: 4–8% urban population in Poland, 34–39% in the Netherlands and 22–23% in Italy. The Commonwealth's preoccupation with agriculture, coupled with the nobles' privileged position when compared to

11817-425: The wars, and the Commonwealth proved unable to improve its transport infrastructure or its agricultural practices. Serfs in the region were increasingly tempted to flee. The Commonwealth's major attempts at countering this problem and improving productivity consisted of increasing serfs' workload and further restricting their freedoms in a process known as export-led serfdom. The owner of a folwark usually signed

11934-527: The years following, Polish settlers, nobles, Catholics and Jews became the victims of retaliation massacres instigated by the Cossacks in their dominions. The other blow to the Commonwealth was a Swedish invasion in 1655, known as the Deluge , which was supported by troops of Transylvanian Duke George II Rákóczi and Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg . Under the Treaty of Bromberg in 1657, Catholic Poland

12051-611: Was Xążeczka dlo Kaszebov by Florian Ceynowa (1817–1881). Hieronim Derdowski (1852–1902 in Winona, Minnesota ) was another significant author who wrote in Kashubian, as was Aleksander Majkowski (1876–1938) from Kościerzyna , who wrote the Kashubian national epic The Life and Adventures of Remus . Jan Trepczyk was a poet who wrote in Kashubian, as was Stanisław Pestka . Kashubian literature has been translated into Czech , Polish , English , German , Belarusian , Slovene and Finnish . Aleksander Majkowski and Alojzy Nagel belong to

12168-547: Was a dispute between the city authorities and the starost Jakub Wejher , regarding overdue taxes. To gain an ally against Sweden during the Deluge , in 1657 King John II Casimir of Poland gave the Lauenburg and Bütow Land to Margrave Frederick William of Brandenburg-Prussia as a hereditary fief in the Treaty of Bydgoszcz . Although Poland still retained sovereignty, the town was administered by Brandenburg and, after 1701, by

12285-475: Was a succession crisis arising in the 1380s. Louis died on 10 September 1382 and, like his uncle, did not produce a son to succeed him. His two daughters, Mary and Jadwiga (Hedwig), held claims to the vast dual realm. The Polish lords rejected Mary in favour of her younger sister Jadwiga, partly due to Mary's association with Sigismund of Luxembourg . The future queen regnant was betrothed to young William Habsburg, Duke of Austria , but certain factions of

12402-416: Was among the largest and most populated countries of 16th- to 17th-century Europe. At its peak in the early 17th century, the Commonwealth spanned nearly 1,000,000 km (390,000 sq mi) and supported a multi-ethnic population of approximately 12 million as of 1618. The official languages of the Commonwealth were Polish and Latin , with Catholicism as the state religion. The Commonwealth

12519-419: Was childless and ailing. According to historians, it was his active involvement which hastened the process and made the union possible. A parliament ( sejm ) convened on 10 January 1569 in the city of Lublin , attended by envoys from both nations. It was agreed that the merger will take place the same year and both parliaments will be fused into a joint assembly. No independent parliamentary convocation or diet

12636-584: Was crowned as Augustus II in September and Conti's brief military engagement near Gdańsk in November of the same year proved fruitless. The House of Wettin ruled Poland–Lithuania and Saxony simultaneously, dividing power between the two states. In spite of his controversial means of attaining power, Augustus II lavishly spent on the arts and left an extensive cultural and architectural ( Baroque ) legacy in both countries. In Poland, he expanded Wilanów and facilitated

12753-573: Was deposed in Sweden by his uncle Charles IX Vasa . In Poland, the Zebrzydowski rebellion was brutally suppressed. Sigismund III then initiated a policy of expansionism , and invaded Russia in 1609 when that country was plagued by a civil war known as the Time of Troubles . In July 1610, the outnumbered Polish force comprising winged hussars defeated the Russians at the Battle of Klushino , which enabled

12870-517: Was elected by all szlachta (some 15% of the population). The king and his government were bound by a constitutional statute, the Henrician Articles , which tightly circumscribed royal authority. The country also exhibited unusual levels of ethnic diversity and great religious tolerance by European standards, guaranteed by the Warsaw Confederation Act of 1573 , though the practical degree of religious freedom varied. Poland acted as

12987-460: Was especially visible in the policies and actions of the first two elected kings from the Swedish House of Vasa , whose politics brought the Commonwealth into conflict with Sweden, culminating in the war known as the Deluge (1655), one of the events that mark the end of the Commonwealth's Golden Age and the beginning of the Commonwealth's decline. The Zebrzydowski Rebellion (1606–1607) marked

13104-542: Was established as a single entity by the Union of Lublin on 1 July 1569. The two nations had previously been in a personal union since the Krewo Agreement of 1385 and the subsequent marriage of Queen Jadwiga of Poland to Grand Duke Jogaila of Lithuania , who was crowned jure uxoris King of Poland. Their descendant, Sigismund II Augustus , enforced the merger to strengthen frontiers of his dominion and maintain unity as he remained childless. His death in 1572 marked

13221-411: Was forced to renounce its suzerainty over Protestant Prussia ; in 1701 the once-insignificant duchy was transformed into the Kingdom of Prussia , which became a major European power in the 18th century and proved to be Poland's most enduring foe. In the late 17th century, the king of the weakened Commonwealth, John III Sobieski , allied with Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I to deal crushing defeats to

13338-402: Was henceforth permitted. Subjects of the Polish Crown were no longer restricted in purchasing land on Lithuanian territory and a single currency was established. Whilst the military remained separate, a unified foreign policy meant that Lithuanian troops were obliged to contribute during a conflict not to their advantage. As a result, several Lithuanian magnates deplored the accords and left

13455-493: Was rebuilt after being destroyed by a fire. When the Pomeranian dukes died out in 1637 Bytów ceased to be a Polish fief and became directly ruled by Poland, administratively part of the Pomeranian Voivodeship . Then the local nobility obtained equal rights with the nobility of the entire Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth . Bytów was overshadowed by Lębork , which developed faster and became the seat of local starosts . In 1651 there

13572-430: Was subsequently declared vacant. The interregnum concluded on 12 December 1575 when primate Jakub Uchański declared Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor , as the next king. The decision was condemned by the anti-Habsburg coalition, which demanded a "native" candidate, known as "Piasts". As a compromise, on 13 December 1575 Anna Jagiellon – sister of Sigismund Augustus and a member of the Jagiellonian dynasty – became

13689-534: Was usually employed in international treaties and diplomacy. By concluding the 1569 Union of Lublin the Grand Duchy of Lithuania remained a separate state from the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland with its own name, laws, and territory. The name 'Commonwealth of Two Nations' ( Polish : Rzeczpospolita Obojga Narodów ) came into force during the reign of Stephen Báthory (since 1582, and was officially used until 1795). On 28 January 1588, Sigismund III Vasa has confirmed

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