Confederation of the Polish Nobility
Encyclopedia
The Confederation of the Polish Nobility (CPN) – sociocultural organization
, registered in 1995 in Gdańsk
. The Confederation aims at integrating the nobility of the once Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
, at taking care of monuments of culture of the Nobles
, popularizing the history and traditions of the Polish Nobility
and promoting the ethos of chivalry
.
on 16 February 2006. The current Confederation headquarters is located in the capital city of Warsaw
, Poland
.
To become a Member of the Confederation one has to be of noble origin in the male line, therefore the son or daughter of a male Noble
.
Regional representatives of the Confederation play an important role in the organization. Currently CPN has its permanent representatives in Ciechanów
, Łomża, Olsztyn
, Ostrów Mazowiecka
, Płock, Przemyśl
, Szczecin
; abroad in Lithuania
, Canada
, in Germany
, in Sweden
and in the United Kingdom
.
The Confederation cooperates with other such organizations in the country and abroad such as: the Institute Saint Georges pour la Noblesse from France
, the Institute Fernando el Catolico from Saragossa in Spain
, the Russian Noble Assembly from Moscow
, the Confederation of the Belarusian Nobility from Minsk
, and many others. In Poland
, CPN cooperates with independent family organizations, supporting and promoting their activities. CPN continuously cooperates with the Polish branch of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, with the foundation Pomoc Maltańska, with the Polish Landed Gentry Society and with the Polish Heraldic Society, of which some of the members are genealogy experts for the Confederation.
The Confederation doesn't grant titles of nobility or titles of aristocracy and it doesn't cooperate with organizations which it considers to be usurpatory, pseudo-aristocratic, pseudo-monarchistic or pseudo-military orders.
The Confederation's magazine, Verbum Nobile, first publication was in 1992 and is still being published up to this day. The magazine's Registration No. in Press Registry: 296, ISSN
: 1230-4573. To date, (August 2010) there have been 15 issued publications, including 2 double volume publications. This magazine is focused on the broader themes of the nobility – the tradition, culture, history (including heraldry and genealogy), as well as current affairs and its contents deemed important to the members and supporters of the organization.
Białystok, Bydgoszcz, Chełm, Chojnice
, Gdańsk
, Kraków
, Warszawa, Wrocław.
Voluntary association
A voluntary association or union is a group of individuals who enter into an agreement as volunteers to form a body to accomplish a purpose.Strictly speaking, in many jurisdictions no formalities are necessary to start an association...
, registered in 1995 in Gdańsk
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
. The Confederation aims at integrating the nobility of the once 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...
, at taking care of monuments of culture of the Nobles
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...
, popularizing the history and traditions of the Polish Nobility
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...
and promoting the ethos of chivalry
Knightly Virtues
Knightly Virtues were part of a medieval chivalric code of honor. The virtues were a set of 'standards' that Knights of the High Middle Ages tried to adhere to in their daily living and interactions with others. Today, this term still carries similar meanings.Some organizations attempt to continue...
.
Basic information
The Confederation is legally recognized, the statute was affirmed by the Regional Court Gdańsk-PółnocGdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
on 16 February 2006. The current Confederation headquarters is located in the capital city of Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
.
To become a Member of the Confederation one has to be of noble origin in the male line, therefore the son or daughter of a male Noble
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
.
Regional representatives of the Confederation play an important role in the organization. Currently CPN has its permanent representatives in Ciechanów
Ciechanów
Ciechanów is a town in north-central Poland with 45,900 inhabitants . It is situated in Masovian Voivodeship . It was previously the capital of Ciechanów Voivodeship.-History:The grad numbered approximately 3,000 armed men....
, Łomża, Olsztyn
Olsztyn
Olsztyn is a city in northeastern Poland, on the Łyna River. Olsztyn has been the capital of the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship since 1999. It was previously in the Olsztyn Voivodeship...
, Ostrów Mazowiecka
Ostrów Mazowiecka
Ostrów Mazowiecka is a town in northeastern Poland with 23,486 inhabitants . Situated in the Masovian Voivodeship , previously in Ostroleka Voivodeship . It is the capital of Ostrów Mazowiecka County....
, Płock, Przemyśl
Przemysl
Przemyśl is a city in south-eastern Poland with 66,756 inhabitants, as of June 2009. In 1999, it became part of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship; it was previously the capital of Przemyśl Voivodeship....
, Szczecin
Szczecin
Szczecin , is the capital city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in Poland. It is the country's seventh-largest city and the largest seaport in Poland on the Baltic Sea. As of June 2009 the population was 406,427....
; abroad in Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
The Confederation cooperates with other such organizations in the country and abroad such as: the Institute Saint Georges pour la Noblesse from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, the Institute Fernando el Catolico from Saragossa in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, the Russian Noble Assembly from Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, the Confederation of the Belarusian Nobility from Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
, and many others. In Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, CPN cooperates with independent family organizations, supporting and promoting their activities. CPN continuously cooperates with the Polish branch of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, with the foundation Pomoc Maltańska, with the Polish Landed Gentry Society and with the Polish Heraldic Society, of which some of the members are genealogy experts for the Confederation.
The Confederation doesn't grant titles of nobility or titles of aristocracy and it doesn't cooperate with organizations which it considers to be usurpatory, pseudo-aristocratic, pseudo-monarchistic or pseudo-military orders.
The Confederation's magazine, Verbum Nobile, first publication was in 1992 and is still being published up to this day. The magazine's Registration No. in Press Registry: 296, ISSN
International Standard Serial Number
An International Standard Serial Number is a unique eight-digit number used to identify a print or electronic periodical publication. Periodicals published in both print and electronic form may have two ISSNs, a print ISSN and an electronic ISSN...
: 1230-4573. To date, (August 2010) there have been 15 issued publications, including 2 double volume publications. This magazine is focused on the broader themes of the nobility – the tradition, culture, history (including heraldry and genealogy), as well as current affairs and its contents deemed important to the members and supporters of the organization.
Presidents of the Confederation of the Polish Nobility
The originator of the Confederation and the first president in 1995–1999, was Ireneusz Stanisław Osiński. His successor, Wacław Podbereski served in 1999–2004. After him, in 2004–2008 the co-founder Marcin Michał Wiszowaty was elected to that office by the General Assembly of the Confederation. Henryk Grocholski was elected the President of the fourth term for the period 2008–2013.Local chapters
The Confederation has its local branches in the following cities:Białystok, Bydgoszcz, Chełm, Chojnice
Chojnice
Chojnice is a town in northern Poland with 39 670 inhabitants , near famous Tuchola Forest, Lake Charzykowskie and many other water reservoirs. It is the capital of the Chojnice County....
, Gdańsk
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
, Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Warszawa, Wrocław.
Major initiatives and achievements
- since 1995 the organization of a series of lectures, symposia and scientific sessions on the history, traditions and culture of the nobles in Poland;
- support of local cultural initiatives, for example, in 2009 the chapter of CPN in Białystok founded a special award in the category of soloists in the X International Moniuszko Competition "Evening Song" in Białystok;
- contacts with Poles abroad (including the donation of books and copies of the magazine Verbum Nobile to the Polish community – individuals and organizations that have asked for such support);
- the delegation of the Confederation participates in the celebration of national holidays (for example, representatives of the Confederation on Polish Independence DayPolish Independence DayNational Independence Day is a public holiday in Poland celebrated every year on 11 November to commemorate the anniversary of Poland's assumption of independent statehood in 1918 after 123 years of partition by Russia, Prussia and Austria....
placing bouquets at the Tomb of the Unknown SoldierTomb of the Unknown Soldier, WarsawThe Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is a monument in Warsaw, Poland, dedicated to the unknown soldiers who have given their lives for Poland. It is one of many such national tombs of unknowns that were erected after World War I.-History:...
).
External links
- Coats of Arms of member families of the Confederation of the Polish Nobility http://www.herbarz.net/Forumnobilium/Rody%20ZSzP.htm
- Polish Nobility Coat of Arms coin series issued by the Polish MintPolish MintThe Polish Mint is a private company which is the only body permitted to manufacture coins and banknotes in Poland. It is located in Warsaw...
in collaboration with the Confederation of the Polish Nobility http://www.skarbiecmennicy.pl/inne-numizmaty/herbarz-szlachty-polskiej-jastrzebiec.html http://www.skarbiecmennicy.pl/inne-numizmaty/herbarz-szlachty-polskiej-Kosciesza.html
Sources
- The Official Website of the Confederation of the Polish Nobility
- National Court Register registration number 0000102686
- Lenczewski, T. (2010) Szlachta polska po 1918 r. – aspekt prawny i organizacje, „Pro Fide Rege et Lege” 45/2003, pages 16–21.http://www.lenczewski.com.pl/aspekt.html