Jėzuitai Sapiegų hegemonijos bei vidaus karo Lietuvoje akivaizdoje

Abstract

The article analyses the attitude of the Jesuits towards the hegemony of the Sapieha family in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Jesuits’ standpoint and tactics and the changes they underwent in the last decade of the 17th – the first decade of the 18th century when Lithuania was shaken by internal conflicts which at the turn of the century escalated to a civil war. Making use of the Jesuit archives the author analyses: 1) the conflict between the bishop of Vilnius Konstanty Kazimierz Brzostowski and Vilnius academy which evolved in 1691–1693 around the disagreements with regard to the Bishop’s prerogatives as the chancellor of the Academy and his power over the students; 2) The dire situation of monks amidst the conflict between the bishop of Vilnius and the grand hetman of Lithuania and the voivoide of Vilnius Kazimierz Jan Sapieha; 3) the attitude of the Jesuits towards the anti-Sapieha opposition and actions of the former as the conflict escalated to the civil war which later blended into the Great Northern War. The author emphasises the dependence of Jesuits upon the Sapieha family which not only financially supported the institutions of the order but also had a powerful leverage in the possibility to manipulate by means of quartering their army on the estates and collection of hiberna taxes. The article also points out the fact that the Jesuits contributed to the prestige of the grand hetman of Lithuania and his family, therefore the nobility in opposition to the Sapiehas suspected the Jesuits of being in sympathy with the family. This was accountable for the ill relations between the Jesuits and the anti-Sapieha opposition, the so-called republicans. Only when on 18 November 1700 the Sapiehas were defeated at the battle of Valkininkai, Jesuits were forced to look for new patrons and made effort to establish connections with the republican leaders. KEYWORDS: Society of Jesus, Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Sapieha, Konstanty Kazimierz Brzostowski, civil war, Great Northern War (1700–1721), political history, 17th century, 18th century