158-757: The Constitution of 3 May 1791 , titled the Government Act , was a written constitution for the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that was adopted by the Great Sejm that met between 1788 and 1792. The Commonwealth was a dual monarchy comprising the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ; the new constitution was intended to address political questions following
316-632: A bicameral legislature. As stated in Article V of the 3 May 1791 Constitution, the government was to ensure that "the integrity of the states, civil liberty, and social order shall always remain in equilibrium." Jacek Jędruch writes that the liberality of the 3 May 1791 Constitution's provisions "fell somewhere below [that of] the French Constitution of 1791 , above [that of the Canadas’] Constitutional Act of 1791 , and left
474-562: A de facto protectorate. "The worst possible news have arrived from Warsaw: the Polish king has become almost sovereign" was the reaction of one of Russia's chief foreign policy authors, Alexander Bezborodko , when he learned of the new constitution. The contacts of Polish reformers with the Revolutionary French National Assembly were seen by Poland's neighbors as evidence of a revolutionary conspiracy and
632-457: A centralised organization and stressed acceptance of any mission to which the pope might call them. His main principle became the unofficial Jesuit motto: Ad Maiorem Dei Gloriam ("For the greater glory of God"). This phrase is designed to reflect the idea that any work that is not evil can be meritorious for the spiritual life if it is performed with this intention, even things normally considered of little importance. The Society of Jesus
790-552: A distinguished and fair empress, our neighboring friend and ally", who "respects the nation's need for well-being and always offers it a helping hand", they wrote. Russian armies entered Poland and Lithuania, starting the Polish–Russian War of 1792 . The Sejm voted to increase the army of the Commonwealth to 100,000 men, but owing to insufficient time and funds this number was never achieved and soon abandoned even as
948-540: A few key activities. First, they founded schools throughout Europe. Jesuit teachers were trained in both classical studies and theology , and their schools reflected this. These schools taught with a balance of Aristotelian methods with mathematics. Second, they sent out missionaries across the globe to evangelize those peoples who had not yet heard the Gospel , founding missions in widely diverse regions such as modern-day Paraguay , Japan, Ontario , and Ethiopia . One of
1106-499: A goal. The Polish King and the reformers could field only a 37,000-man army, many of them untested recruits. This army, under the command of Józef Poniatowski and Tadeusz Kościuszko , defeated or fought to a draw the Russians on several occasions, but in the end, a defeat loomed inevitable. Despite Polish requests, Prussia refused to honor its alliance obligations. Stanisław August's attempts at negotiations with Russia proved futile. As
1264-591: A lackey of Russia and Catherine, and formed a confederation at the town of Bar . The Bar Confederation focused on limiting the influence of foreigners in Commonwealth affairs, and being pro-Catholic was generally opposed to religious tolerance . It began a civil war to overthrow the King, but its irregular forces were overwhelmed by Russian intervention in 1772. The defeat of the Bar Confederation set
1422-631: A long and very detailed account of the country and its religion as well as treatises in Tibetan that attempted to refute key Buddhist ideas and establish the truth of Catholic Christianity. Jesuit missions in the Americas became controversial in Europe, especially in Spain and Portugal where they were seen as interfering with the proper colonial enterprises of the royal governments. The Jesuits were often
1580-616: A majority of both chambers voting jointly. The Senate had a suspensive veto over laws that the Sejm passed, valid until the next Sejm session, when it could be overruled. Article VI recognized the Prawo o sejmikach , the act on regional assemblies ( sejmiks ) passed on 24 March 1791. By reducing the enfranchisement of the noble classes, this law introduced major changes to the electoral ordinance . Previously, all nobles had been eligible to vote in sejmiks , which de facto meant that many of
1738-471: A more effective constitutional monarchy , introduced political equality between townspeople and nobility, and placed the peasants under the government's protection, mitigating the worst abuses of serfdom . It banned pernicious parliamentary institutions such as the liberum veto , which had put the Sejm at the mercy of any single deputy, who could veto and thus undo all the legislation adopted by that Sejm. The Commonwealth's neighbours reacted with hostility to
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#17327840117321896-631: A new legal code . By 1780, he and his collaborators had produced the Zamoyski Code ( Zbiór praw sądowych ). It would have strengthened royal power, made all officials answerable to the Sejm, placed the clergy and their finances under state supervision, and deprived landless szlachta of many of their legal immunities. The Code would also have improved the situation of non-nobles—townspeople and peasants. Zamoyski's progressive legal code, containing elements of constitutional reform, met with opposition from native conservative szlachta and foreign powers;
2054-600: A new constitution for a reformed Poland. Mably submitted his recommendations Du gouvernement et des lois en Pologne ( The Government and Laws of Poland ) in 1770–71, whereas Rousseau finished his Considerations on the Government of Poland in 1772 when the First Partition was already underway. Works advocating the need for reform and presenting specific solutions were published in the Commonwealth by Polish–Lithuanian thinkers: On an Effective Way of Councils or on
2212-536: A new family would be chosen by the nation. The king reigned by the "grace of God and the will of the Nation," and "all authority derives from the will of the Nation." The institution of pacta conventa was preserved. On Stanisław August's death the Polish throne would become hereditary and pass to Frederick Augustus I of Saxony of the House of Wettin , which had provided the two kings before Stanisław August. This provision
2370-504: A partner or comrade. From this came "Society of Jesus" (SJ) by which they would be known more widely. Religious orders established in the medieval era were named after particular men: Francis of Assisi (Franciscans); Domingo de Guzmán , later canonized as Saint Dominic (Dominicans); and Augustine of Hippo (Augustinians). Ignatius of Loyola and his followers appropriated the name of Jesus for their new order, provoking resentment by other orders who considered it presumptuous. The resentment
2528-606: A period of political agitation and gradual reform that began with the Convocation Sejm of 1764 and the election that year of the Commonwealth's last king, Stanisław August Poniatowski . It was the first codified, modern constitution (possessing checks and balances and a tripartite separation of powers) in Europe and the second in the world, after that of the United States . The Constitution sought to implement
2686-656: A place of study in Louvain (1614). This was the earliest foundation of what would later be called Heythrop College . Campion Hall , founded in 1896, has been a presence within Oxford University since then. 16th and 17th-century Jesuit institutions intended to train priests were hotbeds for the persecution of Catholics in Britain, where men suspected of being Catholic priests were routinely imprisoned, tortured, and executed. Jesuits were among those killed, including
2844-739: A single state and their equal representation in state-governing bodies. The Mutual Pledge strengthened the Polish–Lithuanian union while keeping many federal aspects of the state intact. The manuscript in Lithuanian language of the Constitution was made and it was also later published in English-, French-, and German-language editions. The Constitution provided for potential amendments, which were to be addressed at an extraordinary Sejm to be held every 25 years. The Constitution remained to
3002-643: A sound footing, introducing the Tridentine Reforms and finding suitable men to fill vacant sees. He established a house of religious women in Limerick known as the Menabochta ("poor women" ) and in 1565 preparations began for establishing a school at Limerick. At his instigation, Richard Creagh , a priest of the Diocese of Limerick, was persuaded to accept the vacant Archdiocese of Armagh , and
3160-404: A special obedience to the sovereign pontiff in regard to the missions" to the effect that a Jesuit is expected to be directed by the pope " perinde ac cadaver " ("as if he was a lifeless body") and to accept orders to go anywhere in the world, even if required to live in extreme conditions. This was so because Ignatius, its leading founder, was a nobleman who had a military background. Accordingly,
3318-462: A threat to the absolute monarchies. The Prussian statesman Ewald von Hertzberg expressed the fears of European conservatives: "The Poles have given the coup de grâce to the Prussian monarchy by voting a constitution", elaborating that a strong Commonwealth would likely demand return of the lands that Prussia had acquired in the First Partition. Magnates who had opposed the constitution draft from
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#17327840117323476-564: A time been predominantly Protestant, notably Poland and Lithuania . Today, Jesuit colleges and universities are located in over one hundred nations around the world. Under the notion that God can be encountered through created things and especially art, they encouraged the use of ceremony and decoration in Catholic ritual and devotion. Perhaps as a result of this appreciation for art, coupled with their spiritual practice of "finding God in all things", many early Jesuits distinguished themselves in
3634-568: A year before being stopped by Russian armies allied with conservative Polish nobility in the Polish–Russian War of 1792 , also known as the War in Defense of the Constitution. With the wars between Turkey and Russia and Sweden and Russia having ended, Empress Catherine was furious over the adoption of the document, which she believed threatened Russian influence in Poland. Russia had viewed Poland as
3792-649: Is a member of a Society founded chiefly for this purpose: to strive especially for the defence and propagation of the faith and for the progress of souls in Christian life and doctrine, by means of public preaching, lectures and any other ministration whatsoever of the Word of God, and further by means of retreats, the education of children and unlettered persons in Christianity, and the spiritual consolation of Christ's faithful through hearing confessions and administering
3950-418: Is classified among institutes as an order of clerks regular , that is, a body of priests organized for apostolic work, and following a religious rule. The term Jesuit (of 15th-century origin, meaning "one who used too frequently or appropriated the name of Jesus") was first applied to the society in reproach (1544–1552). The term was never used by Ignatius of Loyola, but over time, members and friends of
4108-842: Is consecrated under the patronage of Madonna della Strada , a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary , and it is led by a superior general . The headquarters of the society, its general curia , is in Rome. The historic curia of Ignatius is now part of the Collegio del Gesù attached to the Church of the Gesù , the Jesuit mother church . Members of the Society of Jesus make profession of "perpetual poverty, chastity, and obedience" and "promise
4266-584: Is the founding document of the Society of Jesus as an official Catholic religious order. Ignatius was chosen as the first Superior General . Paul III's bull had limited the number of its members to sixty. This limitation was removed through the bull Exposcit debitum of Julius III in 1550. In 1543, Peter Canisius entered the Company. Ignatius sent him to Messina, where he founded the first Jesuit college in Sicily . Ignatius laid out his original vision for
4424-979: The Spiritual Exercises to help others follow the teachings of Jesus Christ . On 15 August 1534, Ignatius of Loyola (born Íñigo López de Loyola), a Spaniard from the Basque city of Loyola , and six others mostly of Castilian origin, all students at the University of Paris , met in Montmartre outside Paris, in a crypt beneath the church of Saint Denis , now Saint Pierre de Montmartre , to pronounce promises of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Ignatius' six companions were: Francisco Xavier from Navarre ( modern Spain ), Alfonso Salmeron , Diego Laínez , Nicolás Bobadilla from Castile ( modern Spain ), Peter Faber from Savoy , and Simão Rodrigues from Portugal . The meeting has been commemorated in
4582-645: The Cardinal Laws . The Cardinal Laws and the rights of "religious dissenters" passed by the Repnin Sejm were personally guaranteed by Empress Catherine. By these acts of legislation, for the first time, Russia formally intervened in the Commonwealth's constitutional affairs. During the 1768 Sejm, Repnin showed his disregard for local resistance by arranging the abduction and imprisonment of Kajetan Sołtyk , Józef A. Załuski , Wacław Rzewuski and Seweryn Rzewuski , all vocal opponents of foreign domination and
4740-487: The Commission of National Education ( Komisja Edukacji Narodowej )—the first ministry of education in the world. New schools were opened, uniform textbooks were printed, teachers received better education and poor students were provided with scholarships. The Commonwealth's military was to be modernized and funding to create a larger standing army was agreed. Economic and commercial reforms—including some intended to cover
4898-696: The Counter-Reformation and, later, in the implementation of the Second Vatican Council . Jesuit missionaries established missions around the world from the 16th to the 18th century and had both successes and failures in Christianizing the native peoples. The Jesuits have always been controversial within the Catholic Church and have frequently clashed with secular governments and institutions. Beginning in 1759,
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5056-632: The Familia or the King were implemented during and after the 1764 Sejm. The Commonwealth's magnates viewed reform with suspicion and neighboring powers, content with the deterioration of the Commonwealth, abhorred the thought of a resurgent and democratic power on their borders. With the Commonwealth Army reduced to around 16,000, it was easy for its neighbors to intervene directly—the Imperial Russian Army numbered 300,000 and
5214-728: The First Nations and Native American languages they had learned. For instance, before his death in 1708, Jacques Gravier , vicar general of the Illinois Mission in the Mississippi River valley, compiled a Miami–Illinois –French dictionary , considered the most extensive among works of the missionaries. Extensive documentation was left in the form of The Jesuit Relations , published annually from 1632 until 1673. Whereas Jesuits were active in Britain in
5372-618: The Friends of the Constitution ( Zgromadzenie Przyjaciół Konstytucji Rządowej )—which included many participants in the Great Sejm—was organised to defend the reforms already enacted and to promote further ones. It is now regarded as the first modern-style political party in Poland's history. The response to the new constitution was less enthusiastic in the provinces, where the Hetmans' Party enjoyed considerable influence. General support among
5530-522: The Grodno Sejm that met in 1793, though the Sejm's legal power to do so was questionable. The Second and Third Partitions of Poland (1793, 1795) ultimately ended Poland's sovereign existence until the close of World War I in 1918. Over those 123 years, the 1791 Constitution helped keep alive Polish aspirations for the eventual restoration of the country's sovereignty. In the words of two of its principal authors, Ignacy Potocki and Hugo Kołłątaj ,
5688-866: The Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( / ˈ dʒ ɛ ʒ u ɪ t s , ˈ dʒ ɛ zj u -/ JEZH -oo-its, JEZ -ew- ; Latin: Iesuitae ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 by Ignatius of Loyola and six companions, with the approval of Pope Paul III . The society is engaged in evangelization and apostolic ministry in 112 nations. Jesuits work in education, research, and cultural pursuits. Jesuits also conduct retreats, minister in hospitals and parishes, sponsor direct social and humanitarian ministries, and promote ecumenical dialogue . The Society of Jesus
5846-519: The Kangxi Emperor and many Jesuit converts that Chinese veneration of ancestors and Confucius was a nonreligious token of respect, Pope Clement XI 's papal decree Cum Deus Optimus ruled that such behavior constituted impermissible forms of idolatry and superstition in 1704; his legate Tournon and Bishop Charles Maigrot of Fujian, tasked with presenting this finding to the Kangxi Emperor , displayed such extreme ignorance that
6004-670: The Liturgy of Hours in common) allowed them to be flexible and meet diverse needs arising at the time. After much training and experience in theology, Jesuits went across the globe in search of converts to Christianity. Despite their dedication, they had little success in Asia, except in the Philippines . For instance, early missions in Japan resulted in the government granting the Jesuits
6162-691: The Martyrium of Saint Denis, Montmartre . They called themselves the Compañía de Jesús , and also Amigos en El Señor or "Friends in the Lord", because they felt "they were placed together by Christ." The name "company" had echoes of the military (reflecting perhaps Ignatius' background as Captain in the Spanish army) as well as of discipleship (the "companions" of Jesus). The Spanish "company" would be translated into Latin as societas like in socius ,
6320-621: The Petrine primacy and the priority of the Mass amongst the sacraments with his students and congregation, and that his sermons should emphasize obedience to secular princes if he wished to avoid arrest. The number of scholars in their care was very small. An early example of a school play in Ireland is sent in one of Good's reports, which was performed on the Feast of St. John in 1566. The school
6478-585: The Polish communists , and it competed for attention with the communist-endorsed 1 May Labor Day celebrations in the Polish People's Republic ; this led to its "rebranding" as Democratic Party Day and removal from the list of national holidays by 1951. Until 1989, 3 May was a frequent occasion for anti-government and anti-communist protests. 3 May was restored as an official Polish holiday in April 1990 after
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6636-420: The Protestant Reformation throughout Catholic Europe. Ignatius and the early Jesuits did recognize, though, that the hierarchical church was in dire need of reform. Some of their greatest struggles were against corruption, venality , and spiritual lassitude within the Catholic Church. Ignatius insisted on a high level of academic preparation for the clergy in contrast to the relatively poor education of much of
6794-469: The Prussian Army and Imperial Austrian Army had 200,000 each. Russia's Empress Catherine and Prussia's King Frederick II provoked a conflict between members of the Sejm and the King over civil rights for religious minorities, such as Protestants and Greek Orthodox whose positions, which were guaranteed equal with the Catholic majority by the Warsaw Confederation of 1573, had worsened considerably. Catherine and Frederick declared their support for
6952-442: The Roman Catholic faith as the "dominant religion" but guaranteed tolerance and freedom to all religions. It was less progressive than the 16th-century Warsaw Confederation , and placed Poland clearly within the Catholic sphere of influence. Article II confirmed many old privileges of the nobility , stressing that all nobles were equal and should enjoy personal security and the right to property. Article III stipulated that
7110-423: The Scholastic structure of Catholic thought. This method of teaching was important in the context of the Scientific Revolution, as these universities were open to teaching new scientific and mathematical methodology. Further, many important thinkers of the Scientific Revolution were educated by Jesuit universities. In addition to the teachings of faith , the Jesuit Ratio Studiorum (1599) would standardize
7268-415: The Spiritual Exercises . During a four-week period of silence, individuals undergo a series of directed meditations on the purpose of life and contemplations on the life of Christ. They meet regularly with a spiritual director who guides their choice of exercises and helps them to develop a more discerning love for Christ. The retreat follows a "Purgative-Illuminative-Unitive" pattern in the tradition of
7426-400: The Warsaw Confederation (1704) , Sandomierz Confederation , Tarnogród Confederation , Dzików Confederation and the War of the Polish Succession . Only 8 out of 18 Sejm sessions during the reign of Augustus II (1694–1733) passed legislation. For 30 years during the reign of Augustus III, only one session was able to pass legislation. The government was near collapse, giving rise to
7584-402: The absolute rule practiced in their native Saxony , tried to govern through intimidation and the use of force, which led to a series of conflicts between their supporters and opponents—including another pretender to the Polish throne, King Stanisław Leszczyński . Those conflicts often took the form of confederations—legal rebellions against the king permitted under the Golden Freedoms—including
7742-646: The fall of communism . Polish-American pride has been celebrated on the same date, for instance in Chicago , where since 1982 Poles have marked it with festivities and the annual Polish Constitution Day Parade . Written constitution Too Many Requests If you report this error to the Wikimedia System Administrators, please include the details below. Request from 172.68.168.226 via cp1108 cp1108, Varnish XID 219643051 Upstream caches: cp1108 int Error: 429, Too Many Requests at Thu, 28 Nov 2024 08:53:32 GMT Jesuit The Society of Jesus ( Latin : Societas Iesu ; abbreviation: SJ ), also known as
7900-432: The liberum veto . Concurrent world events appeared to have been opportune for the reformers . Russia and Austria were at war with the Ottoman Empire , and the Russians found themselves simultaneously fighting in the Russo-Swedish War, 1788–1790 . A new alliance between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Prussia seemed to provide security against Russian intervention, and King Stanisław August drew closer to leaders of
8058-405: The magnates of Poland and Lithuania controlled the state, ensuring that no reforms that might weaken their privileged status (the " Golden Freedoms ") would be enacted. The ineffective monarchs who were elected to the Commonwealth throne in the early 18th century, Augustus II the Strong and Augustus III of Poland of the House of Wettin , did not improve matters. The Wettins, used to
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#17327840117328216-465: The szlachta and their "liberties", and by October 1767 Russian troops had assembled outside Warsaw in support of the conservative Radom Confederation . The King and his adherents had little choice but to acquiesce to Russian demands. During the Repnin Sejm (named after the unofficially presiding Russian ambassador Nicholas Repnin ) the King accepted the five "eternal and invariable principles" which Catherine had vowed to "protect for all time to come in
8374-416: The " nobles' democracy ." The 1791 Constitution was a response to the increasingly perilous situation in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , which had been a major European power only a century earlier and was still the largest state on the continent. In the 1590s, at the peak of the nobles' democracy, King Sigismund III Vasa 's court preacher—the Jesuit Piotr Skarga —had condemned the weaknesses of
8532-470: The 16th and 17th centuries introduced Western science and astronomy, then undergoing its own revolution , to China. The scientific revolution brought by the Jesuits coincided with a time when scientific innovation had declined in China: [The Jesuits] made efforts to translate western mathematical and astronomical works into Chinese and aroused the interest of Chinese scholars in these sciences. They made very extensive astronomical observation and carried out
8690-416: The 16th century, due to the persecution of Catholics in the Elizabethan times, an English province was only established in 1623. The first pressing issue for early Jesuits in what today is the United Kingdom was to establish places for training priests. After an English College was opened in Rome (1579), a Jesuit seminary was opened at Valladolid (1589), then one in Seville (1592), which culminated in
8848-401: The 1780 Sejm did not adopt it. An opportunity for reform occurred during the "Great Sejm"—also called the "Four-Year Sejm"—of 1788–92, which began on 6 October 1788 with 181 deputies. In accordance with the Constitution's preamble, from 1790 it met "in dual number" when 171 newly elected deputies joined the earlier-established Sejm. On its second day, the body became a confederated sejm to avoid
9006-410: The 1788 ratification of the United States Constitution. Poland and the United States, though geographically distant from each other, showed similar approaches to the designing of political systems. The 3 May Constitution has been called the second constitution in world history. Constitutional-law expert Albert Blaustein calls it the "world's second national constitution", and Bill Moyers writes that it
9164-424: The 1791 Constitution was "the last will and testament of the expiring Homeland". Polish constitutionalism can be traced to the 13th century, when government by consensus and representation was already well established in the young Polish state . The emergence of parliamentary bodies, the sejm and sejmiki , followed in the first half of the 16th century. By the 17th century, Poland's legal and political tradition
9322-454: The 20th century by Bogusław Leśnodorski . The document's official name was Ustawa Rządowa ("Government Act"), where "government" referred to the political system. In the Commonwealth, the term "constitution" (Polish: konstytucja ) had previously denoted all the legislation, of whatever character, that had been passed by a given Sejm. 3 May was declared a Polish holiday (Constitution Day— Święto Konstytucji 3 Maja ) on 5 May 1791. The holiday
9480-429: The Catholic Church expelled Jesuits from most countries in Europe and from European colonies. Pope Clement XIV officially suppressed the order in 1773. In 1814, the Church lifted the suppression. Ignatius of Loyola , a Basque nobleman from the Pyrenees area of northern Spain, founded the society after discerning his spiritual vocation while recovering from a wound sustained in the Battle of Pamplona . He composed
9638-419: The Commonwealth's downfall was the liberum veto ("free veto"), which, since 1652, had allowed any Sejm deputy to nullify all the legislation enacted by that Sejm. As a result, deputies bribed by magnates or foreign powers—primarily from the Russian Empire , the Kingdom of Prussia and France , which had an ongoing revolution —or deputies who believed they were living in an unprecedented "Golden Age" paralysed
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#17327840117329796-423: The Commonwealth's government for over a century. The threat of the liberum veto could only be overridden by the establishment of a " confederated sejm ", which was immune to the liberum veto . Declaring that a sejm either constituted a " confederation " or belonged to one was a contrivance prominently used by foreign interests in the 18th century to force a legislative outcome. By the early 18th century,
9954-463: The Commonwealth's inhabitants and made it clear to progressive minds that the Commonwealth must either reform or perish. In the thirty years before the Constitution, there was a rising interest among progressive thinkers in constitutional reform. Before the First Partition, a Polish noble, Michał Wielhorski was sent to France by the Bar Confederation to ask the philosophes Gabriel Bonnot de Mably and Jean-Jacques Rousseau for their suggestions on
10112-463: The Commonwealth's peasantry under the protection of the national law—a first step toward enfranchising the country's largest and most oppressed social class. Their low status compared to other classes was not eliminated, as the constitution did not abolish serfdom . The Second Partition and Kościuszko's Proclamation of Połaniec in 1794 would later begin to abolish serfdom. Article V stated that "all power in civil society [should be] derived from
10270-445: The Commonwealth. In the same period, writers and philosophers such as Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski and Wawrzyniec Grzymała Goślicki , and the egzekucja praw (Execution-of-the-Laws) reform movement led by Jan Zamoyski had advocated political reforms. In 1656, in what came to be known as the Lwów Oath , Sigismund's son King John II Casimir Vasa made a solemn vow on behalf of the entire Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth that he would free
10428-442: The Conduct of Ordinary Sejms (1761–63), by Stanisław Konarski , founder of the Collegium Nobilium ; Political Thoughts on Civil Liberties (1775) and Patriotic Letters (1778–78), by Józef Wybicki , author of the lyrics of the Polish National Anthem ; ( Anonymous Letters to Stanisław Małachowski (1788–89) and The Political Law of the Polish Nation (1790), by Hugo Kołłątaj , head of the Kołłątaj's Forge party; and Remarks on
10586-401: The Constitution is mythologized and viewed as a national symbol and as the culmination of the Enlightenment in Polish history and culture. In the words of two of its authors, Ignacy Potocki and Hugo Kołłątaj , it was "the last will and testament of the expiring Homeland." Since Poland's recovery of independence in 1918, the 3 May anniversary of the Constitution's adoption has been observed as
10744-566: The Czartoryskis. In exchange for passing decrees favorable to them, the Russians and Prussians let the confederated Convocation Sejm enact a number of reforms, including the weakening of the liberum veto and its no longer applying to treasury and economic matters. A more comprehensive reform package was presented by Andrzej Zamoyski , but opposition from Prussia, Russia, and the Polish nobility thwarted this ambitious program, which had proposed deciding all motions by majority vote. In part because his election had been imposed by Empress Catherine
10902-402: The Declaration of the Assembled Estates ( Deklaracja Stanów Zgromadzonych ) of 5 May 1791, confirming the Government Act adopted two days earlier, and the Mutual Pledge of the Two Nations ( Zaręczenie Wzajemne Obojga Narodów ), i.e., of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania , of 22 October 1791, affirming the unity and indivisibility of Poland and Lithuania within
11060-468: The Government Act was executed as a quasi- coup d'état . No recall notices were sent to known opponents of reform, while many pro-reform deputies secretly returned early. The royal guard under the command of the King's nephew Prince Józef Poniatowski were positioned about the Royal Castle, where the Sejm was gathered, to prevent opponents from disrupting the proceedings. On 3 May, the Sejm convened with only 182 members, about half its "dual" number. The bill
11218-421: The Great , Poniatowski's political position was weak from the start. He proceeded with cautious reforms, such as the establishment of fiscal and military ministries and the introduction of a national customs tariff, which was soon abandoned due to opposition from Prussia's Frederick the Great . These measures had already been authorized by the Convocation Sejm; more legislative and executive improvements inspired by
11376-830: The Japanese Language", a Japanese–Portuguese dictionary written 1603); Vietnamese (Portuguese missionaries created the Vietnamese alphabet , which was later formalized by Avignon missionary Alexandre de Rhodes with his 1651 trilingual dictionary ); Tupi (the main language of Brazil); and the pioneering study of Sanskrit in the West by Jean François Pons in the 1740s. Jesuit missionaries were active among indigenous peoples in New France in North America, many of them compiling dictionaries or glossaries of
11534-543: The King required the countersignature of the pertinent minister. A minister was required to countersign a law, unless all other ministers endorsed his objection to that law. In that case, the King could withdraw the law or press the issue by presenting it to parliament. The stipulation that the King, "doing nothing of himself, ... shall be answerable for nothing to the nation," parallels the British constitutional principle that " The King can do no wrong ." (In both countries,
11692-600: The King: a minister of police, a minister of the seal ( internal affairs ), a minister of foreign affairs , a minister belli (of war), and a minister of treasury. Council members also included—without a vote—the Crown Prince , the Marshal of the Sejm , and two secretaries. This royal council descended from similar councils that had functioned since King Henry's Articles (1573), and from the recent Permanent Council. Acts of
11850-728: The Laws being the newly established top governmental entity) and judicial branches. It advanced the democratization of the polity by limiting the excessive legal immunities and political prerogatives of landless nobility. Legislative power , as defined in Article ;VI, rested with the bicameral parliament (an elected Sejm and an appointed Senate) and the king. The Sejm met every two years, and when required by national emergency. Its lower chamber —the Chamber of Deputies ( Izba Poselska )—had 204 deputies (2 from each powiat , 68 each from
12008-574: The Life of Jan Zamoyski (1787), by Stanisław Staszic . Ignacy Krasicki 's satires of the Great Sejm era were also seen as crucial to giving the constitution moral and political support. A new wave of reforms supported by progressive magnates such as the Czartoryski family and King Stanisław August were introduced at the Partition Sejm. The most important included the 1773 establishment of
12166-490: The Polish peasants "from the unjust burdens and oppression." As he was struggling with the Sejm , in 1661 John Casimir—whose reign saw highly destructive wars and obstructionism by the nobility—correctly predicted that the Commonwealth was in danger of a partition by Russia , Brandenburg and Austria . As the Sejm failed to implement sufficient reforms, the state machinery became increasingly dysfunctional. A significant cause of
12324-591: The Pope, and the Ottoman Empire , had rendered any journey to Jerusalem impossible. Again in 1540, they presented the project to Paul III. After months of dispute, a congregation of cardinals reported favourably upon the Constitution presented, and Paul III confirmed the order through the bull Regimini militantis ecclesiae ("To the Government of the Church Militant"), on 27 September 1540. This
12482-557: The Portuguese Province to agree a surety for the ransom of Wolfe, who was quickly banished on release. Daniel returned to Ireland the following year, but was immediately captured and incriminating documents were found on his person, which were taken as proof of his involvement with the rebellious cousin of the Earl of Desmond , James Fitzmaurice and a Spanish plot. He was removed from Limerick, taken to Cork "just as if he were
12640-489: The Sejm and seats in the executive commissions of the Treasury, Police, and Judiciary. Membership in the nobility ( szlachta ) was also made easier for burghers to acquire. With half a million burghers in the Commonwealth now substantially enfranchised, political power became more equally distributed. Little power was given to the less politically conscious or active classes, such as Jews and peasants. Article IV placed
12798-656: The Sejm comprised representatives of the nobility and clergy, the reformers were supported by the burghers, who in late 1789 organized in Warsaw a " Black Procession " demanding full political enfranchisement of the bourgeoisie . On 18 April 1791 the Sejm—fearing that the burghers' protests, if ignored, could turn violent, as they had in France not long before—adopted the Free Royal Cities Act. The new constitution
12956-502: The Sejm into session. Only 102 of about 200 deputies attended what became known as the Partition Sejm . The rest were aware of the King's decision and refused. Despite protests from the deputy Tadeusz Rejtan and others, the treaty—later known as the First Partition of Poland—was ratified. The first of the three successive 18th-century partitions of Commonwealth territory that would eventually remove Poland's sovereignty shocked
13114-620: The Targowica Confederation, as the Empress had demanded. The Polish Army disintegrated. Many reform leaders, believing their cause was for now lost, went into self-imposed exile. Some hoped that Stanisław August would be able to negotiate an acceptable compromise with the Russians, as he had done in the past. But the King had not saved the Commonwealth and neither had the Targowica Confederates, who governed
13272-558: The Uprising's defeat to have been a foregone conclusion in face of the superiority in numbers and resources of the three invading powers. The defeat of Kościuszko's forces led in 1795 to the third and final partition of the Commonwealth. The Constitution of 3 May 1791 has been both idealized, and criticized for either not going far enough or being too radical. As its provisions remained in force for only 18 months and 3 weeks, its influence was, in any case, limited. However, for generations,
13430-607: The [1794] General State Laws for the Prussian States far behind, but did not equal [that of] the American Constitution [that went into force in 1789]." King Stanisław August Poniatowski was reported to have said that the 3 May 1791 Constitution was "founded principally on those of England and the United States of America, but avoiding the faults and errors of both, and adapted as much as possible to
13588-459: The adoption of the Constitution. King Frederick William II of Prussia broke the Prussian alliance with the Commonwealth, joining with Imperial Russia under Catherine the Great and the anti-reform Targowica Confederation of Polish magnates, to defeat the Commonwealth in the Polish–Russian War of 1792 . The 1791 Constitution was in force for less than 19 months. It was declared null and void by
13746-453: The call for the society's suppression. Jesuit priests such as Manuel da Nóbrega and José de Anchieta founded several towns in Brazil in the 16th century, including São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro , and were very influential in the pacification, religious conversion , and education of indigenous nations. They also built schools, organized people into villages, and created a writing system for
13904-650: The city for eight months, before moving to Kilmallock in December 1565 under the protection of the Earl of Desmond, where they lived in more comfort than the primitive conditions they experienced in the city. However they were unable to support themselves at Kilmallock and three months later they returned to the city in Easter 1566, and strangely set up their house in accommodation owned by the Lord Deputy of Ireland, which
14062-491: The city in very bad health, but had recovered due to the kindness of the people. They established contact with Wolfe, but were only able to meet with him at night, as the English authorities were attempting to arrest the legate. Wolfe charged them initially with teaching to the boys of Limerick, with an emphasis on religious instruction, and Good translated the catechism from Latin into English for this purpose. They remained in
14220-466: The clergy of his time. The Jesuit vow against "ambitioning prelacies" can be seen as an effort to counteract another problem evidenced in the preceding century. Ignatius and the Jesuits who followed him believed that the reform of the church had to begin with the conversion of an individual's heart. One of the main tools the Jesuits have used to bring about this conversion is the Ignatian retreat, called
14378-482: The constitution for contributing to "contagion of democratic ideas" following "the fatal examples set in Paris ." It asserted that "The parliament ... has broken all fundamental laws, swept away all liberties of the gentry and on the third of May 1791 turned into a revolution and a conspiracy." The Confederates declared an intention to overcome this revolution. We "can do nothing but turn trustingly to Tsarina Catherine,
14536-642: The council of the Guardians, headed by the Queen, or in her absence by the Primate. Article X stressed the importance of education of royal children and tasked the Commission of National Education with this responsibility. The last article of the constitution, Article XI, concerned the national standing army. Said army was defined as a "defensive force" dedicated "solely to the nation's defense." The army
14694-709: The country for a short while. To their surprise, the Grodno Sejm , bribed or intimidated by the Russian troops, enacted the Second Partition of Poland . On 23 November 1793, it concluded its deliberations under duress, annulling the constitution and acceding to the Second Partition. Russia took 250,000 square kilometres (97,000 sq mi), while Prussia took 58,000 square kilometres (22,000 sq mi). The Commonwealth now comprised no more than 215,000 square kilometres (83,000 sq mi). What
14852-403: The country's most important civil holiday. The 3 May Constitution was a milestone in the history of law and in the growth of democracy. The 18th-century Irish statesman Edmund Burke described it as "the noblest benefit received by any nation at any time ... Stanislas II has earned a place among the greatest kings and statesmen in history." The 3 May Constitution was the first to follow
15010-451: The earlier Free Royal Cities Act ( Miasta Nasze Królewskie Wolne w Państwach Rzeczypospolitej ), of 18 (or 21) April 1791, was integral to the Constitution. Personal security— neminem captivabimus , the Polish version of habeas corpus —was extended to townspeople (including Jews ). Townspeople also gained the right to acquire landed property and became eligible for military officers' commissions and public offices, such as reserved seats in
15168-546: The emperor mandated the expulsion of Christian missionaries unable to abide by the terms of Ricci's Chinese catechism. Tournon's summary and automatic excommunication for any violators of Clement's decree – upheld by the 1715 bull Ex Illa Die – led to the swift collapse of all the missions in China; the last Jesuits were finally expelled after 1721. The first Jesuit school in Ireland
15326-636: The end of 1568 the Anglican Bishop of Meath, Hugh Brady , was sent to Limerick charged with a Royal Commission to seek out and expel the Jesuits. Daniel was immediately ordered to quit the city and went to Lisbon, where he resumed his studies with the Portuguese Jesuits. Good moved on to Clonmel , before establishing himself at Youghal until 1577. In 1571, after Wolfe had been captured and imprisoned at Dublin Castle , Daniel persuaded
15484-649: The feudal fiefdom of Nagasaki in 1580. This was removed in 1587 due to fears over their growing influence. Jesuits did, however, have much success in Latin America. Their ascendancy in societies in the Americas accelerated during the seventeenth century, wherein Jesuits created new missions in Peru , Colombia , and Bolivia ; as early as 1603, there were 345 Jesuit priests in Mexico alone. Francis Xavier , one of
15642-591: The first Roman-style academic institution in the East, St. Paul Jesuit College in Macau , China. Founded by Alessandro Valignano , it had a great influence on the learning of Eastern languages (Chinese and Japanese) and culture by missionary Jesuits, becoming home to the first western sinologists such as Matteo Ricci . Jesuit efforts in Goa were interrupted by the expulsion of the Jesuits from Portuguese territories in 1759 by
15800-608: The first modern cartographic work in China. They also learned to appreciate the scientific achievements of this ancient culture and made them known in Europe. Through their correspondence, European scientists first learned about the Chinese science and culture. For over a century, Jesuits such as Michele Ruggieri , Matteo Ricci , Diego de Pantoja , Philippe Couplet , Michal Boym , and François Noël refined translations and disseminated Chinese knowledge , culture , history , and philosophy to Europe. Their Latin works popularized
15958-541: The front lines kept shifting to the west and in July 1792 Warsaw was threatened with siege by the Russians, the King came to believe that victory was impossible against the numerically superior enemy, and that surrender was the only alternative to total defeat. Having received assurances from the Russian ambassador Yakov Bulgakov that no territorial changes will occur, the Guardians of the Laws cabinet voted 8:4 to surrender. On 24 July 1792, King Stanisław August Poniatowski joined
16116-653: The hands of "the King in his council," a cabinet of ministers that was called the Guardians of the Laws (or Guard of the Laws, Straż Praw ). The ministries could not create or interpret laws, and all acts of the foreign ministry were provisional and subject to Sejm approval. The King presided over his council, which comprised the Roman Catholic Primate of Poland —who was also president of the Education Commission—and five ministers appointed by
16274-445: The increased military budget previously shunned as unimportant by the szlachta —were introduced. A new executive assembly, the 36-strong Permanent Council comprising five ministries with limited legislative powers, was established, giving the Commonwealth a governing body in constant session between Sejms and therefore immune to their liberum veto disruptions. In 1776, the Sejm commissioned former chancellor Andrzej Zamoyski to draft
16432-577: The last a work in progress. The Government Act was fleshed out in a number of laws passed in May and June 1791: on sejm courts (two acts of 13 May), the Guardians of the Laws (1 June), the national police commission (a ministry, 17 June), and municipal administration (24 June). The Constitution's co-author Hugo Kołłątaj announced that work was underway on "an economic constitution ... guaranteeing all rights of property [and] securing protection and honor to all manner of labor ..." A third planned basic law
16590-499: The late Renaissance were significant in their roles both as a missionary order and as the first religious order to operate colleges and universities as a principal and distinct ministry. By the time of Ignatius' death in 1556, the Jesuits were already operating a network of 74 colleges on three continents. A precursor to liberal education , the Jesuit plan of studies incorporated the Classical teachings of Renaissance humanism into
16748-502: The local and particular circumstances of the country." However, Polish historians report the Constitution as having been described as "based mainly on the United States Constitution , but minus the latter's flaws, and adapted to Poland's circumstances." George Sanford writes that the Constitution of 3 May 1791 provided "a constitutional monarchy close to the English model of the time." Article I acknowledged
16906-415: The local languages of Brazil. José de Anchieta and Manuel da Nóbrega were the first Jesuits that Ignacio de Loyola sent to the Americas. Jesuit scholars working in foreign missions were very dedicated in studying the local languages and strove to produce Latinized grammars and dictionaries . This included: Japanese (see Nippo jisho , also known as Vocabvlario da Lingoa de Iapam , "Vocabulary of
17064-484: The memory of the Constitution—recognized by political scientists as a progressive document for its time—helped keep alive Polish aspirations for an independent and just society, and continued to inform the efforts of its authors' descendants. Bronisław Dembiński , a Polish constitutional scholar, wrote a century later that "The miracle of the Constitution did not save the state but did save the nation." In Poland
17222-416: The middle nobility was crucial and still very substantial; most of the provincial sejmiks deliberating in 1791 and early 1792 supported the constitution. The Constitution of 3 May 1791 reflected Enlightenment influences, including Rousseau 's concept of the social contract and Montesquieu 's advocacy of a balance of powers among three branches of government—legislative, executive, and judicial—and of
17380-530: The name " Confucius " and had considerable influence on the Deists and other Enlightenment thinkers, some of whom were intrigued by the Jesuits' attempts to reconcile Confucian morality with Catholicism . Upon the arrival of the Franciscans and other monastic orders, Jesuit accommodation of Chinese culture and rituals led to the long-running Chinese Rites controversy . Despite the personal testimony of
17538-416: The name of Poland's liberties": the election of kings, the right of liberum veto , the right to renounce allegiance to and raise rebellion against the king ( rokosz ), the szlachta 's exclusive right to hold office and land, and landowners' power over their peasants. Thus all the privileges ("Golden Freedoms") of the nobility that had made the Commonwealth ungovernable were guaranteed as unalterable in
17696-786: The namesake of Campion Hall, as well as Brian Cansfield, Ralph Corbington , and many others. A number of them were canonized among the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales . Four Jesuit churches remain today in London alone, with three other places of worship remaining extant in England and two in Scotland . The Jesuits first entered China through the Portuguese settlement on Macau , where they settled on Green Island and founded St. Paul's College . The Jesuit China missions of
17854-485: The new order in the "Formula of the Institute of the Society of Jesus", which is "the fundamental charter of the order, of which all subsequent official documents were elaborations and to which they had to conform". He ensured that his formula was contained in two papal bulls signed by Pope Paul III in 1540 and by Pope Julius III in 1550. The formula expressed the nature, spirituality, community life, and apostolate of
18012-726: The new religious order. Its famous opening statement echoed Ignatius' military background: Whoever desires to serve as a soldier of God beneath the banner of the Cross in our Society, which we desire to be designated by the Name of Jesus, and to serve the Lord alone and the Church, his spouse, under the Roman Pontiff, the Vicar of Christ on earth, should, after a solemn vow of perpetual chastity, poverty and obedience, keep what follows in mind. He
18170-504: The only force standing between the Indigenous and slavery . Together throughout South America but especially in present-day Brazil and Paraguay , they formed Indigenous Christian city-states, called " reductions ". These were societies set up according to an idealized theocratic model. The efforts of Jesuits like Antonio Ruiz de Montoya to protect the natives from enslavement by Spanish and Portuguese colonizers would contribute to
18328-402: The opening lines of the founding document declared that the society was founded for "whoever desires to serve as a soldier of God, to strive especially for the defense and propagation of the faith, and for the progress of souls in Christian life and doctrine". Jesuits are thus sometimes referred to colloquially as "God's soldiers", "God's marines", or "the Company". The society participated in
18486-705: The opposition; there were already congregations named after the Trinity and as "God's daughters". In 1537, the seven travelled to Italy to seek papal approval for their order . Pope Paul III gave them a commendation, and permitted them to be ordained priests. These initial steps led to the official founding in 1540. They were ordained in Venice by the bishop of Arbe (24 June). They devoted themselves to preaching and charitable work in Italy . The Italian War of 1536–1538 renewed between Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor , Venice,
18644-546: The original companions of Loyola , arrived in Goa ( Portuguese India ) in 1541 to carry out evangelical service in the Indies. In a 1545 letter to John III of Portugal, he requested an Inquisition to be installed in Goa to combat heresies like crypto-Judaism and crypto-Islam. Under Portuguese royal patronage , Jesuits thrived in Goa and until 1759 successfully expanded their activities to education and healthcare. In 1594 they founded
18802-542: The original seven arrived in India already in 1541. Finally, though not initially formed for the purpose, they aimed to stop Protestantism from spreading and to preserve communion with Rome and the pope . The zeal of the Jesuits overcame the movement toward Protestantism in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and southern Germany . Ignatius wrote the Jesuit Constitutions , adopted in 1553, which created
18960-403: The other sacraments. Moreover, he should show himself ready to reconcile the estranged, compassionately assist and serve those who are in prisons or hospitals, and indeed, to perform any other works of charity, according to what will seem expedient for the glory of God and the common good. In fulfilling the mission of the "Formula of the Institute of the Society", the first Jesuits concentrated on
19118-528: The peasants and ownership of land to all who fought in the insurrection. Revolutionary tribunals administered summary justice to those deemed traitors to the Commonwealth. After initial victories at the Battle of Racławice (4 April), the capture of Warsaw (18 April) and the Wilno (22 April)—the Uprising was crushed when the forces of Russia, Austria and Prussia joined in a military intervention. Historians consider
19276-516: The pertinent minister was responsible for the King's acts.) The ministers were responsible to the Sejm, which could dismiss them by a two-thirds vote of no confidence of both houses. Ministers could also be held accountable by the Sejm Court , where a simple-majority vote sufficed to impeach a minister. The King was the nation's commander-in-chief ; there is no mention of hetman s (the previous highest-ranking military commanders). The King had
19434-444: The poorest, landless nobles—known as "clients" or "clientele" of local magnates—voted as the magnates bade them. Now right to vote was tied to a property qualification: one had to own or lease land and pay taxes, or be closely related to somebody who did, to vote. 300,000 of 700,000 previously eligible nobles were thus disfranchised . Voting rights were restored to landowners in military service. They had lost these rights in 1775. Voting
19592-709: The powerful Marquis of Pombal , Secretary of State in Portugal. The Portuguese Jesuit António de Andrade founded a mission in Western Tibet in 1624 (see also " Catholic Church in Tibet "). Two Jesuit missionaries, Johann Grueber and Albert Dorville , reached Lhasa , in Tibet, in 1661. The Italian Jesuit Ippolito Desideri established a new Jesuit mission in Lhasa and Central Tibet (1716–21) and gained an exceptional mastery of Tibetan language and culture, writing
19750-403: The previously binding nature of their instructions to their Sejm deputies. The confederations were declared "contrary to the spirit of this constitution, subversive of government and destructive of society." Thus the new constitution strengthened the powers of the Sejm, moving the country towards a constitutional monarchy. Executive power , according to Article V and Article VII, was in
19908-561: The provinces of Greater Poland , Lesser Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ) and 21 plenipotentiaries from royal cities (7 from each province). The royal chancellery was to inform the sejmiks of the legislation it intended to propose in advance, so deputies could prepare for the discussions. The Sejm's upper chamber —the Chamber of Senators ( Izba Senacka )—had between 130 and 132 (sources vary) senators ( voivodes , castellans , and bishops, as well as governments ministers without
20066-454: The provinces, based on the reformed Crown Tribunal and Lithuanian Tribunal . The Sejm elected from its deputies the judges for the Sejm Court, a precursor to the modern State Tribunal of Poland . Referendary courts were established in each province to hear the cases of the peasantry. Municipal courts, described in the law on towns, complemented this system. Article IX covered procedures for regency , which should be taken up jointly by
20224-606: The recently proclaimed policies. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth had legally and practically become a protectorate of the Russian Empire. Nonetheless, several minor beneficial reforms were adopted, political rights of the religious minorities were restored and the need for more reforms was becoming increasingly recognized. King Stanisław August's acquiescence to the Russian intervention encountered some opposition. On 29 February 1768, several magnates—including Józef Pułaski and his young son Kazimierz Pułaski (Casimir Pulaski)—vowing to oppose Russian influence, declared Stanisław August
20382-427: The reform-minded Patriotic Party . The Sejm passed few major reforms in its first two years, but the subsequent two years brought more substantial changes. The Sejm adopted the 1791 Free Royal Cities Act , which was formally incorporated into the final constitution. This act addressed a number of matters related to the cities, crucially expanding burghers' (i.e., townspeople's) rights, including electoral rights. While
20540-438: The reign (1764–95) of its last king, Stanisław II August Poniatowski . The King was an "enlightened" Polish magnate who had been a deputy to several Sejms between 1750 and 1764 and had a deeper understanding of Polish politics than previous monarchs. The Convocation Sejm of 1764 , which elected Poniatowski to the throne, was controlled by the reformist Czartoryski Familia and was backed by Russian military forces invited by
20698-409: The right to grant pardons , except in cases of treason . The royal council's decisions were implemented by commissions, whose members were elected by the Sejm. The Constitution changed the government from an elective to a hereditary monarchy . This provision was intended to reduce the destructive influence of foreign powers at each election. The royal dynasty was elective, and if one were to cease,
20856-519: The right to vote). The king presided over the Senate and had one vote, which could be used to break ties. The king and all deputies had legislative initiative , and most matters—known as general laws , and divided into constitutional, civil, criminal, and those for the institution of perpetual taxes—required a simple majority, first from the lower chamber, then the upper. Specialized resolutions, including treaties of alliance, declarations of war and peace, ennoblements and increases in national debt, needed
21014-440: The sacraments to the public. In late 1568 the Castle Lane School, in the presence of Daniel and Good, was attacked and looted by government agents sent by Sir Thomas Cusack during the pacification of Munster. The political and religious climate had become more uncertain in the lead up to Pope Pius V 's formal excommunication of Queen Elizabeth I , which resulted in a new wave of repression of Catholicism in England and Ireland. At
21172-520: The scene for the partition treaty of 5 August 1772, which was signed at Saint Petersburg by Russia, Prussia, and Austria. The treaty divested the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth of about a third of its territory and population—over 200,000 km (77,220 sq mi) and 4 million people. The three powers justified their annexation, citing anarchy in the Commonwealth and its refusal to cooperate with its neighbors' efforts to restore order. King Stanisław August yielded and on 19 April 1773, he called
21330-414: The society adopted the name with a positive meaning. While the order is limited to men, Joanna of Austria, Princess of Portugal , favored the order and she is reputed to have been admitted surreptitiously under a male pseudonym. The Jesuits were founded just before the Council of Trent (1545–1563) and ensuing Counter-Reformation that would introduce reforms within the Catholic Church, and so counter
21488-465: The spirituality of John Cassian and the Desert Fathers . Ignatius' innovation was to make this style of contemplative mysticism available to all people in active life. Further, he used it as a means of rebuilding the spiritual life of the church. The Exercises became both the basis for the training of Jesuits and one of the essential ministries of the order: giving the exercises to others in what became known as "retreats". The Jesuits' contributions to
21646-402: The start, Franciszek Ksawery Branicki , Stanisław Szczęsny Potocki , Seweryn Rzewuski , and Szymon and Józef Kossakowski , asked Tsarina Catherine to intervene and restore their privileges—the Cardinal Laws abolished under the new statute. To that end these magnates formed the Targowica Confederation . The Confederation's proclamation, prepared in St. Petersburg in January 1792, criticized
21804-481: The strongest branch of government. Kołłątaj wanted a "gentle" revolution, carried out without violence, to enfranchise other social classes in addition to the nobility. The proposed reforms were opposed by the conservatives, including the Hetmans' Party . Threatened with violence by their opponents, the advocates of the draft began the debate on the Government Act two days early, while many opposing deputies were away on Easter recess. The debate and subsequent adoption of
21962-435: The study of Latin , Greek , classical literature, poetry, and philosophy as well as non-European languages, sciences, and the arts. Furthermore, Jesuit schools encouraged the study of vernacular literature and rhetoric , and thereby became important centres for the training of lawyers and public officials. The Jesuit schools played an important part in winning back to Catholicism a number of European countries which had for
22120-400: The term "Polish anarchy", and the country was managed by provincial assemblies and magnates. Other reform attempts in the Wettin era were led by individuals such as Stanisław Dunin-Karwicki , Stanisław A. Szczuka , Kazimierz Karwowski and Michał Józef Massalski ; these mostly proved to be futile. The Enlightenment greatly affected the thinking of influential Commonwealth circles during
22278-467: The third class learned Donatus by heart, though translated into English rather than through Latin. Young boys in the fourth class were taught to read. Progress was slow because there were too few teachers to conduct classes simultaneously. In the spirit of Ignatius' Roman College founded 14 years before, no fee was requested from pupils, though as a result the two Jesuits lived in very poor conditions and were very overworked with teaching and administering
22436-409: The visual and performing arts as well as in music. The theater was a form of expression especially prominent in Jesuit schools. Jesuit priests often acted as confessors to kings during the early modern period . They were an important force in the Counter-Reformation and in the Catholic missions, in part because their relatively loose structure (without the requirements of living and celebration of
22594-407: The will of the people." The constitution referred to the country's "citizens," which for the first time included townspeople and peasants. The document's preamble and 11 individual articles introduced the principle of popular sovereignty applied to the nobility and townspeople, and the separation of powers into legislative (a bicameral Sejm), executive ("the King and the Guardians," the Guardians of
22752-421: Was "Europe's first codified national constitution (and the second oldest in the world)." Historian Norman Davies calls it "the first constitution of its type in Europe." The 3 May Constitution and the Great Sejm that adopted it have been the subjects of a large body of works by Polish scholars, starting with the still often cited 19th-century works of Walerian Kalinka and Władysław Smoleński , and continued in
22910-410: Was banned during the partitions of Poland but reinstated in April 1919 under the Second Polish Republic —the first holiday officially introduced in the newly independent country. It was again outlawed during World War II by both the Nazi and Soviet occupiers. It was celebrated in Polish cities in May 1945, although in a mostly spontaneous manner. The 1946 anti-communist demonstrations did not endear it to
23068-452: Was characterized as parliamentary institutions and a system of checks and balances on state power, which was itself limited by decentralization . The idea of a contractual state embodied in texts like the Henrician Articles and the Pacta conventa ; the concept of individual liberties; and the notion that the monarch owed duties to his subjects. This system, which primarily benefited the Polish nobility ( szlachta ), came to be known as
23226-464: Was conducted in one large aula, but the students were divided into distinct classes. Good gives a highly detailed report of the curriculum taught and the top class studied the first and second parts of Johannes Despauterius 's Commentarli grammatici, and read a few letters of Cicero or the dialogues of Frusius (André des Freux, SJ). The second class committed Donatus' texts in Latin to memory and read dialogues as well as works by Ēvaldus Gallus. Students in
23384-407: Was consecrated at Rome in 1564. This early Limerick school, Crescent College , operated in difficult circumstances. In April 1566, William Good sent a detailed report to Rome of his activities via the Portuguese Jesuits. He informed the Jesuit superior general that he and Edmund Daniel had arrived at Limerick city two years beforehand and their situation there had been perilous. Both had arrived in
23542-438: Was contingent upon Frederic Augustus' consent. He declined when Adam Czartoryski offered him the throne. Discussed in Article VIII, the judiciary was separated from the two other branches of the government, and was to be served by elective judges. Courts of first instance existed in each voivodeship and were in constant session, with judges elected by the regional sejmik assemblies. Appellate tribunals were established for
23700-420: Was conveyed to them by certain influential friends. They recommenced teaching at Castle Lane, and imparting the sacraments, though their activities were restricted by the arrival of Royal Commissioners. Good reported that as he was an Englishman, English officials in the city cultivated him and he was invited to dine with them on a number of occasions, though he was warned to exercise prudence and avoid promoting
23858-409: Was drafted by the King, with contributions from Ignacy Potocki , Hugo Kołłątaj and others. The King is credited with writing the general provisions and Kołłątaj with giving the document its final shape. Stanisław August wanted the Commonwealth to become a constitutional monarchy similar to that of Great Britain, with a strong central government based on a strong monarch. Potocki wanted the Sejm to be
24016-416: Was established at Limerick by the apostolic visitor of the Holy See , David Wolfe . Wolfe had been sent to Ireland by Pope Pius IV with the concurrence of the third Jesuit superior general, Diego Laynez . He was charged with setting up grammar schools "as a remedy against the profound ignorance of the people". Wolfe's mission in Ireland initially concentrated on setting the sclerotic Irish Church on
24174-434: Was left of the Commonwealth was merely a small buffer state with a puppet king, and Russian garrisons keeping an eye on the reduced Polish army. For a year and a half, Polish patriots waited while planning an insurrection. On 24 March 1794 in Kraków, Tadeusz Kościuszko declared what has come to be known as the Kościuszko Uprising . On 7 May, he issued the Proclamation of Połaniec ( Uniwersał Połaniecki ), granting freedom to
24332-401: Was limited to men aged at least 18. The eligible voters elected deputies to local powiat s, or county sejmiks, which elected deputies to the General Sejm. Finally, Article VI explicitly abolished several institutional sources of government weakness and national anarchy, including the liberum veto , confederations and confederated sejms, and the excessive influence of sejmiks stemming from
24490-454: Was mentioned by Kołłątaj: a "moral constitution," most likely a Polish analog to the United States Bill of Rights and the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen . The Constitution called for the preparation of a new civil and criminal code , tentatively called the Stanisław August Code . The King also planned a reform improving the situation of the Jews. The constitutional formal procedures were performed for little over
24648-430: Was read and overwhelmingly adopted, to the enthusiasm of the crowds outside. A protest was submitted the next day by a small group of deputies, but on 5 May the matter was officially concluded and protests were invalidated by the Constitutional Deputation of the Sejm. It was the first time in the 18th century that a constitutional act had been passed in the Commonwealth without the involvement of foreign powers. Soon after,
24806-425: Was recorded by Jesuit José de Acosta of a conversation with the Archbishop of Santo Domingo. In the words of one historian: "The use of the name Jesus gave great offense. Both on the Continent and in England, it was denounced as blasphemous; petitions were sent to kings and to civil and ecclesiastical tribunals to have it changed; and even Pope Sixtus V had signed a Brief to do away with it." But nothing came of all
24964-461: Was to be increased in strength to 100,000 men. To further enhance the Commonwealth's integration and security, the Constitution abolished the erstwhile union of Poland and Lithuania in favor of a unitary state . Its full establishment, supported by Stanisław August and Kołlątaj, was opposed by many Lithuanian deputies. As a compromise, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania received numerous privileges guaranteeing its continued existence. Related acts included
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