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An interpretive scene inspired by the life of Stefan Zamojski.
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Nobleman

Stefan Zamojski

Historical figure

A lay defender of Jasna Góra and Sieradz sword-bearer who led a sortie on 20 December 1655.

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A sortie leader

Stefan Zamojski, the sword-bearer of Sieradz, was among the lay participants in the defence of Jasna Góra. The garrison did not simply fire from the ramparts. Historian Ludwik Kubala describes how Zamojski led a sortie on 20 December against men working on the rock beneath the walls and against a nearby battery. The defenders spiked two guns1.

Why his role stands out

A sortie meant leaving the relative shelter of the fortifications and returning before a larger force could respond. Zamojski is one of the named leaders of such actions, alongside Piotr Czarniecki. His role shows that lay soldiers and nobles, as well as Pauline monks, defended the shrine23.

Novel and film

Stefan Zamojski is more than a name in the siege narrative. Ferdynand Matysik plays him in The Deluge; the National Film Archive identifies the character as the Sieradz sword-bearer. The screen portrayal does not replace historical evidence for the sortie on 20 December41.

Notes

  1. Ludwik Kubala, Wojna szwecka w roku 1655 i 1656, Szkice historyczne, serya IV (Biblioteka Historyczna Altenberga), Lwów; Warszawa: H. Altenberg, G. Seyfarth, E. Wende i Sp.; E. Wende i Sp., 1913, p. 175
  2. Ludwik Kubala, Wojna szwecka w roku 1655 i 1656, Szkice historyczne, serya IV (Biblioteka Historyczna Altenberga), Lwów; Warszawa: H. Altenberg, G. Seyfarth, E. Wende i Sp.; E. Wende i Sp., 1913, pp. 162, 175
  3. Oblężenie Jasnej Góry, Kalendarium – Dzieje Oręża Polskiego, Warszawa: Muzeum Wojska Polskiego w Warszawie
  4. Potop (1974), Filmoteka Narodowa – Instytut Audiowizualny

Side: Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Phase: Resistance

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Sources for this page

  • Ludwik Kubala, Wojna szwecka w roku 1655 i 1656, Szkice historyczne, serya IV (Biblioteka Historyczna Altenberga), Lwów; Warszawa: H. Altenberg, G. Seyfarth, E. Wende i Sp.; E. Wende i Sp., 1913 (Academic study)
  • Oblężenie Jasnej Góry, Kalendarium – Dzieje Oręża Polskiego, Warszawa: Muzeum Wojska Polskiego w Warszawie (Institution)
  • Potop (1974), Filmoteka Narodowa – Instytut Audiowizualny (Institution)