Bishop of Wrocław
Coat of arms
Prince Charles Ferdinand Vasa
(
Polish
:
Karol Ferdynand Waza
; 13 October 1613 in
Warsaw
? 9 May 1655 in
Wyszkow
), was a
Polish
prince, priest,
Bishop of Wrocław
from 1625, bishop of
Płock
from 1640 and Duke of
Opole
from 1648 to 1655.
Biography
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Charles Ferdinand was the fourth son of King
Sigismund III Vasa
and his wife
Constance of Austria
and the brother of
John Casimir
,
John Albert
,
Alexander Charles
and
Anna Catherine Constance
. Charles Ferdinand spent his childhood and youth in the care of his mother at the royal court in
Warsaw
. On 23 March 1624 he received dispensation from
Pope Urban VIII
, allowing him to take the dignity of being a canon in
Wrocław
. In this case, cardinal-protector Cosmo de Torres intervened with the pope.
On 3 May 1625, through the political efforts of
Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor
, he was appointed the
Bishop of Wrocław
. On 22 October 1625 he received papal approval for the post. On 18 January 1626, despite being a minor (12 years old) and not having a proper ordination ceremony he was officially installed as bishop.
In 1629, he added the
Prudnik
district to the
Archdiocese of Wrocław
(before that, Prudnik was a part of the
Olomouc Archdiocese
). After the death of his mother in 1631, together with his brother
John Casimir
he inherited the wealthy city of
?ywiec
in
Lesser Poland
. During the reign of
Władysław IV
, Charles Ferdinand resided mainly in Warsaw. Being a close relative of the royal court, however, he was not interested in politics and had no ambition to acquire the secular authorities. Between 1632 and 1648 he devoted his time mostly to administrative work, financial affairs and accumulation of ecclesiastical benefice. In 1640 he was appointed the
Bishop of Płock
. After his coming of age, Charles Ferdinand decided never to accept the ordination of priesthood and gave the control of the
Archdiocese of Wrocław
to other influential bishops and priests that would be in charge like Bishop John von Balthasar Liesch Hornau and Archdeacon Peter Gebauer. Similarly, with the Archdiocese of Płock, he gave control over the sect to Stanisław Starczewski and Wojciech Tolibowski
After the death of King
Władysław IV Vasa
in 1648, he was a candidate to the Polish throne, together with his brother
John Casimir
whom he supported. Later he has launched a tough policy and decisive steps to quell the civil war in Polish occupied
Ruthenia
and Ukraine. He received the support of two-thirds majority of senators and bishops in the Polish
Sejm
(Parliament). Most notably he was supported by the Ruthenian nobles led by
Jeremi Wi?niowiecki
, however, his policies were opposed by the
Protestants
,
Lutherans
and by the nobility of the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
, which feared the tightening of the
Counter-Reformation
. At the forefront of opposition to Charles Ferdinand Vasa stood
Janusz Radziwiłł
and his brother
Bogusław Radziwiłł
, who even threatened to break the
Polish-Lithuanian union
.
After losing the election, Charles Ferdinand received, from his brother and newly elected king, the Duchy of Opole and
Raciborz
. He then retired from public life. He settled on the estates of the bishops in
Płock
, in
Mazovia
. His main residence was a large renaissance castle in Brok. In 1651, he took care of the orphaned and deprived of estates in
Ruthenia
,
Michael Korybut Wi?niowiecki
(later King Michael I). Vasa financed his travels abroad and provided thorough education and studies in the best schools of Europe.
Charles Ferdinand Vasa died on 9 May 1655 in
Wyszkow
. He was buried in the
Jesuit Church
in Warsaw.
Charles Ferdinand Vasa left a huge fortune and the majority of it was spent on various foundations of churches in the country. The rest was inherited by his brother
John II Casimir
. Money and estates inherited from the king's brother helped to finance the troops and the military during the
Polish-Swedish War
(known as the "Deluge"), and the
Duchy of Silesia
provided the king with shelter when he had to flee Poland in 1655.
Charles Ferdinand was a great patron of art and supporter of the
Society of Jesus
(he had an enormous silver
altar
built for the
Jesuit Church
in
Warsaw
[1]
). In the 1640s, royal architect,
Giovanni Battista Gisleni
built for him a palace situated on the northern
bastion
of the Warsaw
Royal Castle
fortifications
. It was later ransacked and destroyed by Swedes and Germans of
Brandenburg
in 1650s, during the
Deluge
.
[1]
He also had a large wooden palace in Wyszkow.
Gallery
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-
Vasa in his youth
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Portrait of Bishop Charles Ferdinand Vasa
, painter unknown
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Monument dedicated to memory of Karol Ferdynand Waza in
Wyszkow
, erected after his death in 1655.
[2]
-
He rebuilt the Castle in
Otmuchow
, after devastation during the
Thirty Years' War
.
[3]
-
Golden chalice commissioned by Charles Ferdinand
-
Bishop's banner
Ancestors
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Ancestors of Karol Ferdynand Vasa
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See also
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References
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External links
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Karol Ferdynand Vasa
Born:
13 October 1613 in Warsaw
Died:
9 May 1655 in Wyszkow
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Religious titles
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Regnal titles
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Preceded by
Karl von Innerosterreich
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Prince-Bishop of Wrocław
1625?1655
(He was represented by Administrator Johann Balthasar Liesch von Hornau, because Vasa did not reside in Breslau)
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Succeeded by
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Religious titles
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Preceded by
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Bishop of Płock
1640?1655
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Succeeded by
Jan Gembicki
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1
Also prince of Norway
2
Also prince of Poland and Lithuania
3
Lost his title due to an unequal marriage
4
Not Swedish prince by birth, but created prince of Sweden
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