Król Rzeczypospolitej jako zwierzchnik lenny
The King of Poland as a fief superior

Summary/Abstract: The main purpose of this paper is to present the place of King of the Commonwealth formed in 1569 as a connection of Kingdom Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania being an organ of the Commonwealth, carrying out the superiority over the territories they were her fiefs. In the paper was presented an evolution of fiefs superiority as a part of public law relations that were in the period of 14.–16. Century, when still existed only Kingdom of Poland, one of prerogatives of Polish King’s authority. After 1569, when the Commonwealth was formed, especially after 1573 – 1576 when were passed and gathered a binding force of law the Henrician Articles, the place of King in political and law system of the Commonwealth changed, what had the influence for the character and range, but also the way of execution the King’s superiority over the fiefs, that now from the juridical point of view became a subject of the Commonwealth power. In the following changes of political system of the Commonwealth, the King’s actions, performed a role an executive organ, made independently in exceptional situations as it were in the case of Prussian Fief and Lauenburg-Bytow Fief in 1657 need a confirmation of Diet of the Commonwealth. This situation were connected with the change of function of the fief relations and feudal law as an instrument regulated a political relations. The fiefs superiority as a King’s prerogative over the fiefs of the Commonwealth was in next time completely taken from personal elements staying as an empower to execution of feudal law of the Commonwealth represented through the kings post. In the age of the development of the international in 17. and especially in 18. Century, the ways of theirregulating of instruments of feudal law had began to be a relict, its application was dependent from the power and ability of the subject for his execution. However to weakness of theCommonwealth in 18. Century and decreasing of the role and position of Kings authority, it was more and more only formal. Leaving only a nominal superiority, political and juridical this became purely a fiction.

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