Pragmatism or betrayal? Relations between the leaders of the Sandomierz rebellion, Mikołaj Zebrzydowski and Janusz Radziwiłł, after the defeat at Guzów

The Sandomierz sedition (Polish: rokosz sandomierski), the revolt of part of the nobility against Sigismund III in the years 1606–1609, was the largest noble movement in the 17th century and one of the most important noble revolts in the history of the Polish‑Lithuanian Commonwealth. The essential rebellion leaders include the voivode of Cracow, Mikołaj Zebrzydowski, and the Lithuanian cup‑bearer, Janusz Radziwiłł. The leaders of the movement, apart from belonging to the elite of the Polish‑Lithuanian state, differed basically in everything: age, political experience, religion, views and a vision of repairing the state. However until losing the battle of Guzów (July 5, 1607) with the royal forces, Zebrzydowski and Radziwiłł represented, with some minor exceptions, a coherent position regarding the methods of activity and goals of the movement. The purpose of this article is to analyze the decomposition of this alliance formed under the influence of specific conditions. Its aim is not to show which of the leaders did not comply with the decisions made earlier (the matter is obvious here, it was Mikołaj Zebrzydowski), but to explain the motives behind the actions of the Cracow voivode and the attitude that Janusz Radziwiłł adopted towards the actions of his former ally. Documents from the Central Archives of Historical Records in Warsaw were attached to the article as an annex.

The Sandomierz sedition (Polish: rokosz sandomierski), the revolt of part of the nobility against Sigismund III in the years 1606–1609, was the largest noble movement in the 17th century and one of the most important noble revolts in the history of the Polish‑Lithuanian Commonwealth. The essential rebellion leaders include the voivode of Cracow, Mikołaj Zebrzydowski, and the Lithuanian cup‑bearer, Janusz Radziwiłł. The leaders of the movement, apart from belonging to the elite of the Polish‑Lithuanian state, differed basically in everything: age, political experience, religion, views and a vision of repairing the state. However until losing the battle of Guzów (July 5, 1607) with the royal forces, Zebrzydowski and Radziwiłł represented, with some minor exceptions, a coherent position regarding the methods of activity and goals of the movement. The purpose of this article is to analyze the decomposition of this alliance formed under the influence of specific conditions. Its aim is not to show which of the leaders did not comply with the decisions made earlier (the matter is obvious here, it was Mikołaj Zebrzydowski), but to explain the motives behind the actions of the Cracow voivode and the attitude that Janusz Radziwiłł adopted towards the actions of his former ally. Documents from the Central Archives of Historical Records in Warsaw were attached to the article as an annex.