The institution of interrex existed in the

Crown of the Kingdom of Poland The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland ( pl, Korona Królestwa Polskiego; Latin: ''Corona Regni Poloniae''), known also as the Polish Crown, is the common name for the historic Late Middle Ages territorial possessions of the King of Poland, includ ...

, whose

ruling classes In sociology, the ruling class of a society is the social class who set and decide the political and economic agenda of society. In Marxist philosophy, the ruling class are the capitalist social class who own the means of production and by ext ...

liked to view their Commonwealth as an heir to

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

traditions. The Commonwealth's monarch, holding a double title of the Two Nations (

King of Poland Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electable position in Europe (16th ...

and

Grand Duke of Lithuania The monarchy of Lithuania concerned the monarchical head of state of Lithuania, which was established as an absolute and hereditary monarchy. Throughout Lithuania's history there were three ducal dynasties that managed to stay in power— Ho ...

), entered into their office by free election (''wolna elekcja''), which often led to a relatively long

interregnum An interregnum (plural interregna or interregnums) is a period of discontinuity or "gap" in a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one monarch and the next (coming from Latin '' ...

. Since 1572, the role of interrex traditionally fell to the Archbishop of Gniezno and Primate of Poland of the Roman Catholic Church. The Archbishop could nominate a replacement (traditionally he would choose the

Bishop of Kujawy A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

). The interrex would represent the country on the international scene and oversee the internal administration until a new king was elected. In special circumstances he could declare war and negotiate peace. He summoned and presided over the convocation sejm and the

election sejm Royal elections in Poland (Polish: ''wolna elekcja'', lit. ''free election'') were the elections of individual kings, rather than dynasties, to the Polish throne. Based on traditions dating to the very beginning of the Polish statehood, strengthe ...

, the gathering of nobility that elected the king. He also announced the election of the king. {, class="wikitable" , - !align=center colspan=3, Interreges of the Commonwealth , -align=center valign=top ! style="background-color:#f3f3ff" , Took the office of interrex in ! style="background-color:#f3f3ff" , Gave up the office of interrex in ! style="background-color:#f3f3ff" , Interrex , - , align=center, 1572 , align=center, 1573 ,

Jakub Uchański Jakub Uchański (1502–81), of Radwan coat of arms, was an archbishop of Gniezno and primate of Poland from 1562 to 1581, interrex from 1572 to 1573 and from 1574 to 1575. Biography He began his service at the royal court as a secretary and a ...

, - , align=center, 1574 , align=center, 1575 ,

(again) , - , align=center, 1586 , align=center, 1587 , Stanisław Karnkowski , - , align=center, 1632 , align=center, 1632 , Jan Wężyk , - , align=center, 1648 , align=center, 1648 ,

Maciej Łubieński Maciej Łubieński (1572 in Łubna – 1652 in Łowicz), of Pomian coat of arms, was a primate of Poland, archbishop of Gniezno, bishop of Poznań, bishop of Kujawy and interrex in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. He was educated in Sierad ...

, - , align=center, 1668 , align=center, 1669 ,

Mikołaj Prażmowski Mikołaj Jan Prażmowski (1617 – 15 April 1673) was the archbishop of Gniezno and primate of Poland from 1666. He was Interrex from 1668 to 1669. He was born in Prażmów. He was bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is ent ...

, - , align=center, 1673 , align=center, 1674 , Kazimierz Florian Czartoryski , - , align=center, 1674 , align=center, 1674 , illness and death of Kazimierz Florian Czartoryski led to him being replaced by the

bishop of Kraków A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

Andrzej Trzebicki Andrzej Trzebicki (23 November 1607 – 28 December 1679) was a nobleman and priest in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Deputy Chancellor of the Crown from 1652, bishop of Przemyśl since 1655, bishop of Kraków since 1658. Loyal to king ...

and

Bishop of Poznań A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Stefan Wierzbowski Stefan Wierzbowski (born 1620 in Siradien) was a Polish clergyman and bishop for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Poznań Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century ...

, - , align=center, 1696 , align=center, 1697 ,

Michał Stefan Radziejowski Augustyn Michał Stefan Radziejowski (3 December 1645 – 13 October 1705) was an archbishop of Gniezno and cardinal primate of the Roman Catholic Church in Poland, son of Hieronim Radziejowski. After the death of the Polish king John III Sobieski ...

, - , align=center, 1704 , align=center, 1705 ,

(again) , - , align=center, 1704 , align=center, 1705 , Michał Stefan Radziejowski was stripped of his authority by the Pope and went into hiding. He was replaced by Bishop of Poznań,

Mikołaj Święcicki Mikołaj Święcicki of the Jastrzębiec coat of arms (died 1707) was from 1697, the Bishop of Kiev, from 1699, the Bishop of Poznań, the chancellor of the Poznań cathedral chapter in 1674–1679, the dean of the Poznań cathedral chapter in 1679 ...

, - , align=center, 1733 , align=center, 1734 ,

Teodor Andrzej Potocki Teodor Andrzej Potocki (13 February 1664 – 12 December 1738) was a Polish nobleman ( szlachcic), Primate of Poland, interrex in 1733. Teodor was Rector of Przemyśl and canon of Kraków since 1687, Bishop of Chełmno since 1699 and Bish ...

, - , align=center, 1763 , align=center, 1764 ,

Władysław Aleksander Łubieński Władysław Aleksander Łubieński (1703–1767) was archbishop of Lwów (1758–59) and primate of Poland (1759–1767). He was an ally of the Czartoryski Familia and of the Russian Empire and an opponent of religious tolerance. He acted as Int ...

See also