Instytut Badań Literackich Polskiej Akademii Nauk

Anna Vasa’s literary patronage

Year of publication: 2020
Page range: 17 (39-55)
Keywords: Anna Vasa, patronage, Valerius Herberger, Samuel Dambrowski
Author: Dariusz Chemperek (Maria Curie-Skłodowska University)



Abstract

The aim of the article is to show the scale of Anna Vasa’s (1568-1625) literary patronage and her role in the literary culture of the Commonwealth at the beginning of the 17th century. The Infanta’s ambitions to become a patron of Protestant culture in the Polish-Lithuanian state succumbing to Catholicism have been fulfilled. The most significant testimonies of this patronage are the works of Evangelicals: the monumental “Postylla" by Samuel Dambrowski, “Florilegium ex Paradiso Psalmorum" by Valerius Herberger or “Heraclitus" by Samuel Bolestraszycki. Anna Vasa’s influence on the literary culture of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the first twenty years of the 17th century is also demonstrated by the group of Catholic writers who offered her their works. They include, among others: Andrzej Zbylitowski, Stanisław Grochowski, Jan Achacy Kmita, Jerzy Cerazyn, Wawrzyniec Chlebowski. An additional value of this patronage is that the dedications and literary works show the deeds and personality of the princess. The abundance of texts related to Infanta makes the
literature connected with the remarkable biography of an independent, well-educated woman, protector of natural scientists, as well as evangelical writers and theologians. The analysis of the royal patronage leads to the another conclusion that in the research on the writings of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the aspect of at least trilingualism of the contemporary literature, which was written in Polish, Latin and German, should be more widely considered.

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