John III Sobieski at Vienna in the literary testimony of the epoch (reconnaissance)

The Vienna campaign of King John III Sobieski was widely reflected in the literature: diaries, journals, letters and chronicles. The apologies of the victory of the Polish monarch occurred in many  occasional works. Most of them were panegyrical. According to the calculations of researchers (Bolesław Klimaszewski, Juliusz Nowak-Dłużewski), about a dozen or so tales were created. Most poetry on this subject is quite average in terms of artistic skill. It should be remembered, however, that the preserved literary texts (written in Polish and Latin) were meant to glorify the success of the Polish army at Vienna and especially John III Sobieski. His image is heroic, and sometimes sacred. Among the dozen or so poets, Wespazjan Kochowski deserves attention as the one who devoted several works to the subject of victory at Vienna. Apart from favourable evaluations, there were also a few voices criticizing Sobieski’s foreign policy (for example, Wacław Potocki). 

The Vienna campaign of King John III Sobieski was widely reflected in the literature: diaries, journals, letters and chronicles. The apologies of the victory of the Polish monarch occurred in many  occasional works. Most of them were panegyrical. According to the calculations of researchers (Bolesław Klimaszewski, Juliusz Nowak-Dłużewski), about a dozen or so tales were created. Most poetry on this subject is quite average in terms of artistic skill. It should be remembered, however, that the preserved literary texts (written in Polish and Latin) were meant to glorify the success of the Polish army at Vienna and especially John III Sobieski. His image is heroic, and sometimes sacred. Among the dozen or so poets, Wespazjan Kochowski deserves attention as the one who devoted several works to the subject of victory at Vienna. Apart from favourable evaluations, there were also a few voices criticizing Sobieski’s foreign policy (for example, Wacław Potocki).