Chaos and Strategy in Managing the Diplomatic Service. The Case of Andrzej Taranowski’s Missions to Michael the Brave in 1600

Abstract

In 1600, Sigismund III, King of Poland-Lithuania, sent an envoy to Michael the Brave the Voivode of Wallachia, three times. His mission aimed to conduct negotiations on the treaty between Poland-Lithuania and Wallachia. In brief, the treaty stipu- lated that Michael the Brave should become a voivode of Moldavia and, therefore, Sigismund III’s vassal. The contents of that pact came into conflict with both the reality and the general policy of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Although it might seem surprising, talks gave an extra opportunity to save time. It was the moment of his highest military activity when Wallachian troops would be unchecked power near to Polish-Lithuanian border. Taranowski’s mission represented unofficial and chaotic moves in establishing contacts with the Danubian Principalities, but still clearly shows how diplomatic practice worked in Poland-Lithuania at the end of the sixteenth century.