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Mikolaj Krzysztof Radziwill, "Czarny"

Male 1515 - 1565  (50 years)    Has 11 ancestors and more than 100 descendants in this family tree.

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  • Name Mikolaj Krzysztof Radziwill 
    Suffix "Czarny" 
    Birth 4 Feb 1515  Nesvyžius Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Male 
    Death 28 May 1565  Vilnius, Lietuva Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Siblings 1 Sibling 
    Person ID I662168  Geneagraphie
    Last Modified 15 Sep 2009 

    Father Jonas Mikalojus Radvila, 'Barbatus',   b. 1474   d. Yes, date unknown 
    Mother Anna Kiskaite   d. 1533 
    Marriage 1513 
    Family ID F290829  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family Elzbieta Szydlowiecka,   b. 1523, Szydlowiec Slaski, Opole, Polska Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 20 Jun 1562, Vilnius, Lietuva Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 39 years) 
    Marriage 1548 
    Children 
    +1. Prinz Mikalojus Kristupas Radvila,   b. 2 Aug 1549, Czmielow Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 28 Feb 1616, Nieswiez Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 66 years)
     2. Elzbieta Radziwill,   b. 4 Oct 1550, Czmielow Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 8 Apr 1591, Uscie Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 40 years)
     3. Zofia Agnieszka Radziwill,   b. 1552   d. 1608 (Age 56 years)
    +4. Anna Magdalena Radziwill,   b. 1553   d. 28 Oct 1590 (Age 37 years)
     5. Prinz Bisschoff Jurgis Radvila,   b. 31 May 1556, Vilnius, Lietuva Find all individuals with events at this locationd. Yes, date unknown
    +6. Prinz Albrycht Radziwill,   b. 8 Mar 1558, Vilnius, Lietuva Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 13 Jun 1592, Kraków, Sieradz, Polska Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 34 years)
    +7. Stanislaw Radziwill, 'Pius',   b. 12 May 1559, Vilnius, Lietuva Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 19 Mar 1599, Passau Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 39 years)
     8. Krystyna Radziwill,   b. 11 Sep 1560   d. 28 Feb 1580 (Age 19 years)
    Family ID F290830  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
    Last Modified 15 Sep 2009 

  • Event Map Click to hide
    Link to Google MapsDeath - 28 May 1565 - Vilnius, Lietuva Link to Google Earth
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    Pin Legend  : Address       : Location       : City/Town       : County/Shire       : State/Province       : Country       : Not Set

  • Photos Photos (Log in)Photos (Log in)

  • Notes 
    • was Lithuanian noble of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania , voivode of Vilnius , Grand Grand Lithuanian Chancellor and the Grand Hetman of Lithuania .
      Miko was able to gain much political influence thanks to the romance between his cousin Barbara Radziwill and King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania Zygmunt II August . This made him one of the most powerful Royal advisers. Mikolaj became Marshal of Lithuania , Grand Chancellor of Lithuania, as well as Palatine of Vilnius , gained immense wealth and became the most powerful magnate in the Commonwealth of that time.
      The growing influence of the Radziwill family was further bolstered when, during a diplomatic mission to Charles V and Ferdinand I , he and his cousin Miko the Red received a hereditary title of Prince ( Reichsfürst (SRI)).
      He formed an alliance with his cousin Mikolaj "the Red" Radziwill against other notable Lithuanian families in the rivalry for the dominant status in the Great Duchy of Lithuania. This alliance marked the formation of a dynastic-like cooperation between Radziwi and showed how family interests could affect magnates ' relations with the state. Both Radziwi backed the cause of Lithuania's sovereignty and opposed the growing Polish-Lithuanian union .
      Coincidentally, despite opposing close ties with Poland, he was the chief negotiator in the successful negotiation between Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the state controlled by the Livonian Order , which led to the secularisation of Livonia and its union with Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1562.
      Miko has contributed to the ongoing Polonisation of the Grand Duchy, influencing other Lithuanian nobles to follow him in adopting Polish culture - its fashion, customs and language.
      He was known for his religious beliefs, as he was one of the most prominent converts and advocates of the Reformed churches faith in Grand Duchy of Lithuania . He provided financial support for the printing of the first complete Polish translation of the Bible in 1563 in Brest-Litovsk , distributed works written in defense of the Reformed faith, financed a church and college in Vilnius, supported educated Protestants, and in various other ways fostered the Calvinist faith. He is known to have exchanged letters with John Calvin and protecting religious exiles form Italy . Because Protestants supported usage of local languages, he is also believed to have funded Lithuanian churches and schools.
      With the exception of his daughter Anna, all his children converted to Roman Catholicism and became ardent supporters of the Counter Reformation . He is remembered by a statue in the Brest Millennium Monument .

      Juodasis=Niger=the Black



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