Raków
Encyclopedia
Raków ' is a village
in Kielce County
, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship
, in south-central Poland
. It is the seat of the gmina
(administrative district) called Gmina Raków
. It lies approximately 39 km (24 mi) south-east of the regional capital Kielce
. The village has a population of 1,213.
Raków was founded in 1569 by the Calvinist castellan Jan Sienieński of Żarnów
as the centre of the Polish Brethren
, a place of religious tolerance. The coat of arms of the town, a crab (raków means "of crabs" in Polish
), derives from the coat of arms of his wife, the Arian believer Jadwiga Gnoińska. The Socinian Racovian Academy
(Polish Akademia Rakowska) was founded in 1602 by Jakub Sienieński
(1568–1639). By the 1630s, the town had grown to 15,000 inhabitants, with businesses centering around the Academy.
As the counterreformation gathered force in Poland, pressure began to be used against the Socinians. On April 19, 1638 an incident occurred in which some young students of the Academy destroyed or removed a cross, giving the royal court the pretext needed to ban Arian
activities, including printing and the schools, and sentenced teachers to exile, many heading south to Transylvania
. Szymon Starowolski
(1585–1650 Jesuit scholar) justified the closing of Protestant schools (in 1638 and 1640), and Protestant centers and printing presses (in 1638, the press at Raków), as the "duty of good pastors" and as a legitimate act of the King and the Republic. In 1641 the bishop Jakub Zadzik
commenced construction of a magnificent Catholic church, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, and settled Catholic monks in Raków, with the task to convert the Polish brethren. The monks left the town around 1649. The main Arian buildings were destroyed, and more destruction was brought by Cossacks and Hungarians in 1657. By 1700 the town had only 700 inhabitants left.
After the partition of Poland
Raków was initially under Austrian rule, then Russian. In 1820, Raków had 926 inhabitants, in 1864 their number rose to 2007, a significant part being Jewish
. In 1869, like many other Polish towns, Raków lost its status and rights as a town.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
in Kielce County
Kielce County
Kielce County is a unit of territorial administration and local government in Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, south-central Poland. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local government reforms passed in 1998. Its administrative seat is the city of Kielce, although the...
, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship
Swietokrzyskie Voivodeship
Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, or Świętokrzyskie Province , is one of the 16 voivodeships into which Poland is presently divided. It is situated in central Poland, in the historical province of Lesser Poland, and takes its name from the Świętokrzyskie mountain range...
, in south-central 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...
. It is the seat of the gmina
Gmina
The gmina is the principal unit of administrative division of Poland at its lowest uniform level. It is often translated as "commune" or "municipality." As of 2010 there were 2,479 gminas throughout the country...
(administrative district) called Gmina Raków
Gmina Raków
Gmina Raków is a rural gmina in Kielce County, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship, in south-central Poland. Its seat is the village of Raków, which lies approximately south-east of the regional capital Kielce....
. It lies approximately 39 km (24 mi) south-east of the regional capital Kielce
Kielce
Kielce ) is a city in central Poland with 204,891 inhabitants . It is also the capital city of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship since 1999, previously in Kielce Voivodeship...
. The village has a population of 1,213.
Raków was founded in 1569 by the Calvinist castellan Jan Sienieński of Żarnów
Zarnów
Żarnów is a village in Opoczno County, Łódź Voivodeship, in central Poland. It is the seat of the gmina called Gmina Żarnów. It lies approximately south-west of Opoczno and south-east of the regional capital Łódź. The village has a population of 870.The first written mention of Żarnów dates...
as the centre of the Polish Brethren
Polish Brethren
The Polish Brethren were members of the Minor Reformed Church of Poland, a Nontrinitarian Protestant church that existed in Poland from 1565 to 1658...
, a place of religious tolerance. The coat of arms of the town, a crab (raków means "of crabs" in Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
), derives from the coat of arms of his wife, the Arian believer Jadwiga Gnoińska. The Socinian Racovian Academy
Racovian Academy
The Racovian Academy was a school of the Socinian Polish Brethren operating in Raków, Kielce County, Poland 1602-1638, and publisher of the Racovian Catechism in 1605....
(Polish Akademia Rakowska) was founded in 1602 by Jakub Sienieński
Jakub Sienieński
Jakub Sienieński was a Polish nobleman, representative in the Sejm, who in 1602 founded the Racovian Academy.His father Jan Sienieński founded the town of Raków, Kielce County in 1569...
(1568–1639). By the 1630s, the town had grown to 15,000 inhabitants, with businesses centering around the Academy.
As the counterreformation gathered force in Poland, pressure began to be used against the Socinians. On April 19, 1638 an incident occurred in which some young students of the Academy destroyed or removed a cross, giving the royal court the pretext needed to ban Arian
Arianism
Arianism is the theological teaching attributed to Arius , a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt, concerning the relationship of the entities of the Trinity and the precise nature of the Son of God as being a subordinate entity to God the Father...
activities, including printing and the schools, and sentenced teachers to exile, many heading south to Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
. Szymon Starowolski
Szymon Starowolski
Szymon Starowolski was a writer, scholar and historian in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. He was probably born near Pruzhany, and died near Kraków. He was very prolific writer, left behind over 70 works, mostly in Latin...
(1585–1650 Jesuit scholar) justified the closing of Protestant schools (in 1638 and 1640), and Protestant centers and printing presses (in 1638, the press at Raków), as the "duty of good pastors" and as a legitimate act of the King and the Republic. In 1641 the bishop Jakub Zadzik
Jakub Zadzik
Jakub Zadzik was a Polish Great Crown Secretary from 1613 to 1627, bishop of Chełmno from 1624, Crown Deputy Chancellor from 1627, Great Crown Chancellor from 1628 to 1635, bishop of Kraków from 1635, diplomat, szlachcic, magnate in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth...
commenced construction of a magnificent Catholic church, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, and settled Catholic monks in Raków, with the task to convert the Polish brethren. The monks left the town around 1649. The main Arian buildings were destroyed, and more destruction was brought by Cossacks and Hungarians in 1657. By 1700 the town had only 700 inhabitants left.
After the partition of Poland
Partitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland for 123 years...
Raków was initially under Austrian rule, then Russian. In 1820, Raków had 926 inhabitants, in 1864 their number rose to 2007, a significant part being Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
. In 1869, like many other Polish towns, Raków lost its status and rights as a town.
People
- Fausto Paolo SozziniFausto Paolo SozziniFausto Paolo Sozzini, also known as Faustus Socinus or Faust Socyn was an Italian theologian and founder of the school of Christian thought known as "Socinianism" and the main theologian of Polish Brethren .-Life:Sozzini was born at Siena, the only son of Alessandro Sozzini and...
(Latin Faustus Socinus), Italian Arian. - Lelio Sozzini (Latin Laelius Socinus), uncle of the above.
- Stanisław Lubieniecki, Socinian
- Piotr of Goniądz(Polish Piotr z Goniądza), Socinian
- Grzegorz Paweł z BrzezinGrzegorz Paweł z BrzezinGrzegorz Paweł z Brzezin , Latin: Gregorius Paulus Brzezinensis) , was a Socinian writer and theologian, one of the principal creators and propagators of radical wing of the Polish Brethren, and author of several of the first theological works in Polish, which helped to the development of literary...
(Gregory Pauli of Brzeziny), Socinian - Marcin CzechowicMarcin CzechowicMartin Czechowic was a Polish Socinian minister, theologian and writer.-Life:...
, Socinian - Jan NiemojewskiJan NiemojewskiJanusz Jan Niemojewski was a Polish nobleman, and theologian of the Polish Brethren.-Works:* 1583 - "Odpowiedź na potwarz Wilkowskiego"* 1583 - "Obrona przeciw niesprawiedliwemu obwinieniu"....
, Socinian - Mikołaj Sienicki, Socinian
- Andrzej WiszowatyAndrzej WiszowatyAndrzej Wiszowaty Sr. was a Socinian theologian who worked with Joachim Stegmann on the Racovian Catechism of 1605, and taught at the Racovian Academy of the Polish Brethren....
, Socinian