Konstanty Iwanowicz Ostrogski ( – 10 August 1530) was a Ruthenian prince and magnate of the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a sovereign state in northeastern Europe that existed from the 13th century, succeeding the Kingdom of Lithuania, to the late 18th century, when the territory was suppressed during the 1795 Partitions of Poland, ...

. He later had the title of grand hetman of Lithuania from 11 September 1497 until his death in 1530.

Career

Ostrogski began his military career under John I Albert,

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 Royal elections in Poland, free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electab ...

. He took part in successful campaigns against the

Tatars Tatars ( )Tatar
in the Collins English Dictionary are a group of Turkic peoples across Eas ...

and the Grand Principality of Moscow. For his victory near Ochakiv against

Mehmed I Giray Mehmed I Giray Crimean Tatar, Ottoman Turkish and (1465–1523, reigned 1515–1523) was khan of the Crimean Khanate. He was preceded by his father Meñli I Giray (r. 1478–1515) and followed by his son Ğazı I Giray (1523–1524). He gained ...

's forces, he was awarded with the title of Grand Hetman of Lithuania. He was the first person to receive this title. However, during a war with Muscovy, he was defeated in the

Battle of Vedrosha The Battle of heVedrosha (; ) was fought near the Vedrosha river, close to Dorogobuzh (then in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, now in Russia) on 14 July 1500, during the Second Muscovite–Lithuanian War (1500–1503). In the battle of Vedros ...

(1500) and held captive for three years. In 1503, he managed to escape and joined king

Sigismund I the Old Sigismund I the Old (, ; 1 January 1467 – 1 April 1548) was List of Polish monarchs, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1506 until his death in 1548. Sigismund I was a member of the Jagiellonian dynasty, the son of Casimir IV of P ...

, who allowed him to resume his post as a hetman. As one of the main military leaders (alongside Polish generals Mikołaj Firlej and Mikołaj Kamieniecki) of the alliance he continued to wage war against Moscow, and in 1512, achieved a great victory against the Tatars in the Battle of Wisniowiec. In 1514, another war with the Russians began and he became the commander-in-chief of all the Polish and Lithuanian forces (amounting to up to 35,000 soldiers). Among his subordinates were Jerzy Radziwiłł, , Witold Sampoliński and the future Hetman of the Crown Jan Tarnowski. On 8 September 1514 he achieved a significant victory in the Battle of Orsha, defeating the army of

Vasili III of Russia Vasili III Ivanovich (; 25 March 14793 December 1533) was Grand Prince of Moscow and all Russia from 1505 until his death in 1533. He was the son of Ivan III and Sophia Paleologue and was christened with the name Gavriil (). Following on t ...

. However, in 1517, his attempt to besiege the Russian fortress of Opochka became a serious defeat that destroyed any hopes to reconquer Smolensk. Ostrogski died in 1530 as a well-respected military commander. Despite his steady loyalty to

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Poland as well as an old feud with an Orthodox Russia, Ostrogski himself remained a devout Orthodox in traditions of his family. He gave generously for construction of Eastern Orthodox churches and sponsored the creation of many church-affiliated schools for the Orthodox children. As one of the wealthiest Orthodox nobles he was buried in the Dormition Cathedral of the Kiev Pechersk Lavra.

Legacy

He is one of the characters on the famous painting by Polish painter

Jan Matejko Jan Alojzy Matejko (; also known as Jan Mateyko; 24 June 1838 – 1 November 1893) was a Polish painter, a leading 19th-century exponent of history painting, known for depicting nodal events from Polish history. His works include large scale ...

, '' Prussian Homage''. The town of Starokostiantyniv still bears his name. The Lithuanian–Polish–Ukrainian Brigade is also named after him. For his wars against Crimea see Crimean-Nogai Raids, years 1508–1527, including Battle of Olshanitsa.

Family

He had two wives: Tatiana Koretska and Aleksandra Słucka. He had two sons: Illia Ostrogski with Koretska, and Konstanty Wasyl Ostrogski with Słucka.

Notes

References

External links