Warsaw 1578. Establishment of the Crown Tribunal

This sejm was convened on 9 November 1577 by the king Stephen to take place on 14 December 1578 in Warsaw. The pre-sejm sejmiks were held in December 1577. The actual proceedings began at the end of January 1577. They were finished on 8 March 1578. During the sejm George Frederick of Brandenburg-Ansbach paid feudal homage to the Kingdom of Poland, acting on the behalf of the Duke of Prussia Albert Frederick, who was mentally ill. The homage relation of the Pomeranian Dukes: John Frederick and Ernst Ludwig of Bytów and Lębork was also renewed. During the sejm proceedings there were attempts to adopt high taxes, because of the upcoming war with Muscovy and in order to ensure the defence of the southern-eastern borders. Because the deputies of Kraków, Sandomierz and Sieradz Voivodships have hidden behind the “limited power of their instructions”, the king sought the tax agreement directly with sejmiks, which gave him their acceptance. The constitution of 3 March 1578 introduced a reform of judicature, proclaiming creation of the Crown Tribunal. It was agreed that ennoblements and indygenats would be concluded during sejms.

See: O. Balzer, Geneza Trybunału Koronnego. Studium z dziejów sądownictwa polskiego XVI wieku [The origins of the Crown Tribunal. Research of the Polish judicature in 16th century], Warszawa 1886.Ustawodawstwo zob. Volumina Constitutionum, T. 2, cz. 1, Design and layout prepared by S. Grodziski, Irena Dwornicka, W. Uruszczak, Warszawa 2005, s. 405-430. K. Lepszy, Prusy Książęce a Polska w latach 1576-1578 [Royal Prussia and Kingdom of Poland in 1576-1578], w: Księga Pamiątkowa ku czci Profesora dra Wacława Sobieskiego [Memorial book as a tribute to Professor Dr. Wacław Sobieski], Kraków 1932, s. 149-196. J. Siemieński, Króla Stefana polityka sejmowa [Sejm politics of king Stephen], „Przegląd Historyczny”, t. 14, z. 1, s. 31-53; E. Dubas-Urwanowicz, Król i szlachta na sejmach batoriańskich. Konflikty i kompromisy [King and nobility in batorian sejms Konflicts and compromises], in: Między monarchią a demokracją. Studia z dziejów Polski XV-XVIII wieku [Between monarchy and democracy. Research of Polish history in 15-17 centuries], red. A. Sucheni-Grabowska, M. Żaryn, Warszawa 1994, s. 143-169; Ł. Wroniszewski, Wzrost znaczenia sejmików w czasach Stefana Batorego na przykładzie sejmu 1578 roku [Sejmiks - rise of importance in king Stephen period, based on the example of sejm in 1578], in: Kultura parlamentarna epoki staropolskiej. Studia pod red. A. Stroynowskiego [Parliamentary culture of Old Polish era. Research edited by A. Stroynowski], Warszawa 2013, s. 129-141; E. Dubas-Urwanowicz, O nowy kształt Rzeczypospolitej. Kryzys polityczny w państwie w latach 1576-1586 [About new Commonwealt policy. Political crisis in the state in period 1576-1586], Warszawa 2013.