Hetman

The beginning of the 17th century turned out to be a turbulent time for the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, a time of wars and internal unrest. In 1587, the nobility elected swedish prince Vasa onto the polish throne, he ruled as Sigismund III Vasa. Soon he also inherited the Swedish throne, but was eventually removed from it - thus began the war between the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Sweden, which spilt for over 60 years.
The crisis in Russia caused by the end of the Rurik dynasty and the appearance of False Dmitri in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, claiming to be the son of Ivan the Terrible, seeking support here for his plans to regain the tsarist throne, led the Republic of Poland to war against Moscow (1605-1619).
The relations between the Republic of Poland and the Ottoman Empire, which had been peaceful since 1533, at the beginning of the 17th century became increasingly tense. The reason was mutual invasions and looting in the area of the south-eastern borders of the Republic of Poland. Turkey was invaded by the Cossacks - than subjects of the Commonwealth and the Commonwealth – by the Tatars, Turkish subjects. In 1620, the war broke out, the first battle of Cecora, in which hetman Stanisław Żółkiewski died, was a defeat of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Stanisław Żółkiewski set off for the first war in 1577 not yet being hetman, he fought in the war with Sweden, smashed the anti-royal Zebrzydowski rebellion, conquered Moscow and captured the Szujski tsars. However, the next decades of the 17th century brought again wars with Sweden, Moscow and Turkey. The great-grandson of Stanisław Żółkiewski – king Jan III Sobieski, allied with the Habsburgs, in 1683 repelled the Ottoman Empire's attack on Vienna.

Żółkiewski, aged 41, received (on 7 November 1588) the mace of the field crown hetman. He had not held any other important office up to this date, but his bravery and wound sustained at Byczyna made a significant impression on Jan Zamoyski - Żółkiewski's cousin, protector and teacher. The great hetman endorsed his relative and said: "Don't spoil the blood of this poor Żółkiewski, of which he has shed so much." It quickly became apparent exactly how good a choice this was.
Żółkiewski was one of the Republic of Poland’s most outstanding leaders. He was able to utilise the combat qualities of the Polish army in an extraordinary manner, particularly with regards to the heavy cavalry of the hussars. He acted quickly and decisively. His agility counterbalanced the weakness of his strength to deliver a decisive blow at the time and in the place of his choosing.

The figure in the Hussar armor in the central part of the painting is Stanisław Żółkiewski. Matejko made him one of the most important figures in the background, appreciating Żółkiewski's merits during Stefan Batory's Livonian campaigns.

Żółkiewski left some of his forces near Tsaryovo-Zaymishche and, secretly, headed for the approaching Muskovite army. After an all-night march along forest paths, on the morning of July 4th, 1610, the Poles stopped at the edge of a forest. The enemy camp was right before their eyes, asleep. The view of the vast Muscovite army (approx. 35 thousand Muscovite troops and mercenaries, in comparison to approx. 7 thousand. Poles) was impressive, "a countless number, it was fearful to even look at them in terms of the small number our army boasted!” recalled a diarist.

The victory at Klushino was complete. “Prince Dimitri, though few chased after him, escaped mightily. On the mud, the horse he was sitting on and his shoes were disposed of. Barefoot on a shabby scapine, he came to the monastery near Mozhaysk." - Żółkiewski recalled.

It was not following
his greatest successes, but towards the end of his life, that the hetman
obtained the recognition of the monarch, who offered him the office of
chancellor and grand hetman of the crown. The struggle to fend off Tatar
invasions was becoming increasingly difficult for the aging leader. 

At the behest of Sigismund
III, the hetman set off to Moldova in order to consolidate Polish
influence. The Polish commander, standing in the camp near Cecora, thought
that a demonstration of arms would induce the Turks and Tatars to form an
agreement. This did not come to pass. Following initial failures, the
army panicked and its commanders almost lost control over their troops. A
retreat in war wagon formation gave the army a chance to recover. Breaking
through the burning steppe, fighting off enemy assaults, the Poles pushed
towards the border. 

When salvation was within reach, turmoil erupted. The war wagon formation was torn apart and the soldiers rushed to flee. The hetman with a group of officers was not able to bring order, particularly since the Tatars had also launched an attack. Slaughter ensued. Żółkiewski rejected an offer of escape: "A shepherd should be where his sheep die, so he could be asked what he had done with the sheep” – he replied and fought to the end.

The hetman was a devout Catholic, but he was very tolerant. So he allowed an Orthodox church to be erected. The two main nationalities inhabiting the city - Poles and Ruthenians - were to live "in harmony and mutual love, without any turmoil." He also allowed Ruthenians to hold the office of voyt and the soviet. Jews also began to settle in the new town without any problems, and in 1600 they received Żółkiewski's consent to build a house of prayer.
After the Żółkiewski family, the town passed into the hands of the Daniłowicz family, then the Sobieski and Radziwiłł families.

The Żółkiew parish church, later the collegiate church of Queen of Heaven and Saints Lawrence Deacon and Stanisław the Bishop the Martyr was erected in the years 1606-1618 by Italian architects: Paolo the Lucky, Ambrosius Simonis and Paolo of Rome. It was conceived as a monument to the glory of the Polish knighthood. Therefore, in addition to the typical sacred furnishings, the temple was decorated with secular works of art, and those with battle in character. From the outside, this character was emphasized by the frieze with metopes surrounding the temple, in which the figures of Saint Martin and George, equestrian hussars, archers, wounded soldiers, elements of armament and the coat of arms of Żółkiewski - Lubicz family, were placed. The frieze, whose corners are guarded by sumptuous eagle figures, alluding to the victorious battle of kyolushin, is the work of Stanisław Żółkiewski himself. The interior was decorated with the tombstones of the hetman and his son Jan, as well as his wife Regina and daughter Zofia Daniłowiczowa, supplemented in time with new tombstones, epitaphs and paintings related to the town's owners.