XVIII amžiaus studijos / The Eighteenth Century Studies

This article presents an analysis of the issue surrounding the debts of the city of Vilnius in the 18th century, focusing mainly on the second half of the century, when the city treasury faced financial difficulties. I seek to identify the reasons for these debts, the most important of them being expenses incurred for the upkeep of the Russian army. The treasury was also burdened with providing for the soldiers of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the city garrison. The extent and nature of these expenses is analysed. The largest creditors are registered in the article, and expenses for debt administration and return are also analysed.

The article discusses the circumstances of the activity of the split Vilnius Tribunal Dietine (Sejmik) held on February 3-7, 1794. The available set of documents of one session of the Vilnius Dietine (resolutions, summary of voting results, protests and a detailed diary of the Dietine) made it possible to reveal the vicissitudes of the elections for the position of clerk of the Supreme Tribunal of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, deputies and commissioners of the Vilnius Voivodeship Civil-Military Order Commission. The aspirations of the Kosakowski’s group to realize control of the Supreme Tribunal of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania through elected officials were felt in the session of the Tribunal Dietine, held in the context of an obvious political confrontation on the eve of the uprising of 1794.

The aim of the article is to highlight the peaceful functioning of the military garrison in Vilnius from the mid-1760s to the early 1790s. In addition to other issues, the article presents the peaceful composition and structure of the garrison, the form of accommodation, the functions performed by the army, as well as conflict situations.

This article is dedicated to an analysis of the Pacowie family’s legal relations with Roman Catholic monks residing in Vilnius. Using the books of the Supreme Tribunal of Lithuania, the Tribunal of the Treasury of Lithuania, and the land and castle court of Vilnius County and additional material, the author attempts to explain the nature of the disputes and trials between the mentioned artistocrats and monastic representatives, as well as the course of these cases, reasons why they arose and how they were resolved. The 18th century was a period of decline for the Pac family; their political influence decreased. However, the aristocratic way of life demanded significant expenditures that frequently exceeded their income, with large debts weighing on a number of representatives of the Pacowie, although there were some instances of debt due from monastries in Vilnius as well. Conflicts also arose over disputed court rulings, ownership of houses in Vilnius, taxes and the misappropriation of items. When studying the Pac family’s trials, it became clear that far from all its representatives were deeply entrenched in debt. Whereas the Samogitian elder Jozéf Pac and the Vileika elder Piotr Pac were held liable in court cases against the monks particularly frequently, this was not really the case with other members of the family. In fact, some of the Pacowie maintained relatively amicable personal relations with the monastic community.

The article concerns the activities of the Vilnius coadjutor, Józef Stanisław Sapieha, at the Vilnius, Smolensk and Starodub sejmiks (local assemblies) during the reign of Augustus III. The key importance of Józef Stanisław Sapieha at these sejmiks in Vilnius was revealed. The article shows that the participation of the Vilnius coadjutor at the Vilnius, Smolensk and Starodub sejmiks took various forms: direct participation, preparation of elections or the termination of the assembly, combining rivals for the election of a deputy or envoy, satisfying the protesting noblemen and formulating parliamentary instructions. Józef Stanisław Sapieha did not always win at these three sejmiks in Vilnius, but everyone had to count on his influence. Sapieha’s adversaries at these assemblies were simply supporters of the Radziwiłł family: the Żaba and Abramowicz families, as well as Mikołaj Petrusewicz, Hrehory Gimbut, Stanisław Łopot and Franciszek Tyzenhauz. They often held Vilnius castle offices under voivodes, who were the leaders of the Radziwiłł magnate party. During the cooperation of the Vilnius coadjutor with the Radziwiłł family, in alliance with their supporters, sejmiks were held peacefully in Vilnius.

The handwritten diary of Michał Kazimierz Radziwiłł (1702–1762), also known as Rybeńko, a source familiar to researchers dealing with the history of the 18th century in various fields, is certainly extremely interesting. The diary is kept in the Central Archives of Historical Records in Warsaw (Archiwum Główny Akt Dawnych w Warszawie, AGAD) in the Radziwiłł Archive collection (section VI, sign. II-80). Rybeńko was one of the richest magnates of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth at the time, and this is evidenced by the numerous and extensive estates he owned in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. He owned about 20 towns, and more than 300 villages, which he inherited from his father and from his father-in-law Janusz Antoni Wiśniowiecki. In view of the above, and concerning the fact that Michal Kazimierz Radziwiłł held one of the highest senatorial offices (from 1744 he was governor of Vilnius, so he was formally in charge of the city that he knew well), did he include information about the capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the pages of his diary? Being a politically active man who was in possession of such extensive estates, he was constantly on the road (pursuing at the same time a variety of political, economic and social goals), which both his wives complained about. He stayed in many cities of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, including the capital of Lithuania. Therefore, this article has been written with the intention of presenting the diary as a source for researching one of the most important centres of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth at that time. An attempt is made to consider the circumstances in which entries appear in the diary, whether the prince visited the city regularly or only occasionally, and whether the entries in the diary are systematic reports, or if they are ‘second hand’ information. Finally, the question should be raised as to what type of data was recorded by Rybeńko in the context of Vilnius, and to what extent it can be useful in the study of the city’s history. It also seems crucial to consider the question of what image of the Lithuanian capital emerges from the governor’s records.

The article presents a discussion of the state of the city of Vilnius, its buildings, people, disasters and memorable events following the disasters that swept through in the beginning of the 18th century. The start of the Great Northern War in 1700 (1700–1721), the campaigns of the Lithuanian, Russian and Swedish armies and the plague epidemic that followed the war (1710) severely affected the city of Vilnius and its inhabitants. Despite the devastation and disasters, Vilnius was still the most important city in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania where the most important political affairs in the land were decided. The article is mainly based on the letters of Maciej Józef Ancuta, the suffragan of the Bishop of Vilnius, to the Chancellor of Lithuania, Karol Stanisław Radziwiłł.