Zamoyski Code
Encyclopedia
Zamoyski Code was a major, progressive legislation
, proposed by Andrzej Zamoyski, Grand Chancellors of the Crown
of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
, in 1776. This legislation was an attempt of codification of the previously uncodified law of the Commonwealth. It was opposed by several conservative and foreign factions and eventually rejected by the sejm of 1780.
. A commission, headed by Zamoyski, and including other notable members, such as Józef Wybicki
and Joachim Chreptowicz
, was created. By 1778, under Zamoyski's direction, a code (Zbiór praw sądowych, also known from his name as Zamoyski's Code[x]) had been produced and published in print.
The code would have strengthened royal power, made all officials answerable to the Sejm, placed the clergy and their finances under state supervision, gave more privileges to the townsfolk, reduced serfdom
, and deprived landless szlachta
of many of their legal immunities.
rule. Representatives of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
were afraid that it would weaken Duchy's autonomy, part of which was a semi-separate legal system (the code would replace the Third Lithuanian Statue
). Those sentiments were used by two foreign powers, which did not want to see the Code pass for their own separate reasons: the Vatican (Holy See
) opposed the Code, as it limited ecclesiastical law throughout the Commonwealth, replacing it with the secular law; Russian Empire
saw the Code as going to far in reforming and strengthening the inefficient and Russia-dependent Polish governance. Working together, in an unlikely alliance between Roman Catholic Church
and Orthodox
Russia, papal nuncio
Giovanni Andrea Archetti
and Russian ambassador
Otto Magnus von Stackelberg
jointly bribed deputies to the Polish Sejm in exchange for their opposition.
Foreign influence, fueling secretly the already existing internal opposition, ensured the Code was postponed (it was first to be presented to Sejm in 1778) and then defeat during the Sejm of 1780.
), drew much inspiration from the Zamoyski Code.
Legislation
Legislation is law which has been promulgated by a legislature or other governing body, or the process of making it...
, proposed by Andrzej Zamoyski, Grand Chancellors of the Crown
Kanclerz
Kanclerz was one of the highest officials in the historic Poland. This office functioned from the early Polish kingdom of the 12th century until the end of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1795. A respective office also existed in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since the 16th...
of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
, in 1776. This legislation was an attempt of codification of the previously uncodified law of the Commonwealth. It was opposed by several conservative and foreign factions and eventually rejected by the sejm of 1780.
History
In 1776, the Sejm of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, on the initiative of the Polish king Stanisław August Poniatowski, commissioned former Grand Chancellor of the Crown, Andrzej Zamoyski, to draft a new legal codeLegal code
A legal code is a body of law written by a governmental body, such as a U.S. state, a Canadian Province or German Bundesland or a municipality...
. A commission, headed by Zamoyski, and including other notable members, such as Józef Wybicki
Józef Wybicki
Józef Rufin Wybicki was a Polish general, poet and political figure.-Life:He was a close friend of General Jan Henryk Dąbrowski, and in 1797 he wrote Mazurek Dąbrowskiego , which in 1927 was adopted as the Polish national anthem.During the Kościuszko Uprising, he was counselor of the Military...
and Joachim Chreptowicz
Joachim Chreptowicz
Joachim Chreptowicz , of Odrowąż Coat of Arms, was a Polish-Lithuanian noble, Grand Secretary of Lithuania, marshal of the Lithuanian Tribunal, Deputy and later last Grand Chancellor of Lithuania. Member of the Permanent Council, activist of the Commission of National Education, physiocrat,...
, was created. By 1778, under Zamoyski's direction, a code (Zbiór praw sądowych, also known from his name as Zamoyski's Code[x]) had been produced and published in print.
The code would have strengthened royal power, made all officials answerable to the Sejm, placed the clergy and their finances under state supervision, gave more privileges to the townsfolk, reduced serfdom
Serfdom
Serfdom is the status of peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to Manorialism. It was a condition of bondage or modified slavery which developed primarily during the High Middle Ages in Europe and lasted to the mid-19th century...
, and deprived landless szlachta
Szlachta
The szlachta was a legally privileged noble class with origins in the Kingdom of Poland. It gained considerable institutional privileges during the 1333-1370 reign of Casimir the Great. In 1413, following a series of tentative personal unions between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of...
of many of their legal immunities.
Opposition
Zamoyski Code was opposed by several faction. Internally, conservative szlachta was afraid that the Code would strengthen the power of the Polish king and the government, threatening to replace the anarchy-like Golden Freedoms with the absolutistAbsolutism (European history)
Absolutism or The Age of Absolutism is a historiographical term used to describe a form of monarchical power that is unrestrained by all other institutions, such as churches, legislatures, or social elites...
rule. Representatives of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state from the 12th /13th century until 1569 and then as a constituent part of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until 1791 when Constitution of May 3, 1791 abolished it in favor of unitary state. It was founded by the Lithuanians, one of the polytheistic...
were afraid that it would weaken Duchy's autonomy, part of which was a semi-separate legal system (the code would replace the Third Lithuanian Statue
Statutes of Lithuania
The Statutes of Lithuania originally known as the Statutes of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania were a 16th century codification of all the legislation of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and its successor, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth...
). Those sentiments were used by two foreign powers, which did not want to see the Code pass for their own separate reasons: the Vatican (Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
) opposed the Code, as it limited ecclesiastical law throughout the Commonwealth, replacing it with the secular law; Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
saw the Code as going to far in reforming and strengthening the inefficient and Russia-dependent Polish governance. Working together, in an unlikely alliance between Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
and Orthodox
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
Russia, papal nuncio
Nuncio
Nuncio is an ecclesiastical diplomatic title, derived from the ancient Latin word, Nuntius, meaning "envoy." This article addresses this title as well as derived similar titles, all within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church...
Giovanni Andrea Archetti
Giovanni Andrea Archetti
Giovanni Andrea Archetti was an Italian Roman Catholic CardinalBorn in Brescia, Lombardy, Archetti studied canon and civil law in La Sapienza University of Rome. He was ordained priest on September 10, 1775, elected titular archbishop of Chalcedon on the next day, and named Apostolic nuncio in...
and Russian ambassador
Ambassadors and envoys from Russia to Poland (1763–1794)
Ambassadors and envoys from Russia to Poland-Lithuania in the years 1763-1794 were among the most important characters in the politics of Poland. Their powers went far beyond the those of most diplomats and can be compared to those of viceroys in the colonies of Spanish Empire, or Roman Republic's...
Otto Magnus von Stackelberg
Otto Magnus von Stackelberg (ambassador)
Reichsgraf Otto Magnus von Stackelberg was a diplomat of the Russian Empire, an envoy in Madrid from 1767 to 1771, ambassador in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1772 to 1790 and in Sweden from 1791 to 1793....
jointly bribed deputies to the Polish Sejm in exchange for their opposition.
Foreign influence, fueling secretly the already existing internal opposition, ensured the Code was postponed (it was first to be presented to Sejm in 1778) and then defeat during the Sejm of 1780.
Legacy
Zamoyski Code was one of the series of proposed progressive reforms, which would culminate in the Constitution of 3rd May, 1791. The constitution had a provision that the law was to be codified, and the new codification project, Poniatowski Code (named after King PoniatowskiStanislaw August Poniatowski
Stanisław II August Poniatowski was the last King and Grand Duke of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth...
), drew much inspiration from the Zamoyski Code.
Further reading
- E. Borkowska-Bagieńska, Zbiór praw sądowych Andrzeja Zamoyskiego [Collection of court laws of Andrzej Zamoyski], Poznań 1986.
- Mieczysław Tarnawski, Kodeks Zamoyskiego na tle stosunków kościelno-państwowych za czasów Stanisława Augusta [Zamoyski Code on the background of state-church relationship of the times of Stanislaw August], Lwów, 1916