"Šventosios teisės ir teisingumo sergėtojai" Sapiegos

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Sapiegos (Sapiega family); Lietuvos Statutai; Abiejų Tautų Respublika (ATR; Rzeczpospolita Obojga Narodów; Žečpospolita; Sandrauga; Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth); Lietuvos Didžioji Kunigaikštystė (LDK; Grand Duchy of Lithuania; GDL); Statutes of Lithuania; Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.

ENAll researchers of the history of the Sapieha family agree that the political and economic foundations for their power were set in place by Lew Sapieha (1557-1633), whom contemporaries already called the Great Lion (Leon), or even more often - Lithuania’s Solon. The latter title was earned via his work in the legal system of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and in the field of law creation in general, and also from his activities encouraging the ruling estate to create and foster the foundations of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania as a juridical state. On the other hand, the most discussed issue to this day remains the assessment of the actual role of Lew Sapieha in preparing the Third Statute of Lithuania. It is obvious that this role came to most prominence in the final stage of preparing the Statute, especially after having become Court Chancellor (1585) where he in fact practically served as the Grand Chancellor. He used both his juridical erudition and experience as a statesman in editing the text of the Statute. And most importantly, he understood perfectly what role the legal code of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania would have to play in the joint Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. That is why the attempts of certain academics to ascribe to Lew Sapieha only the task of formal editing in the final stage of the Statute appear unconvincing. The credo of the juridical state expounded by Lew Sapieha in the dedication in the Third Statute of Lithuania and his intentions to accumulate the ideas espoused by the nobility in the regional assemblies (sejmiki) are evidence of his concern for the Statutes content and the implementation of its norms. If the actual actions of Lew Sapieha in editing the text of the Third Statute of Lithuania remain an object of academic polemics, then his role in the ratification of this Statute leaves no space for further discussion.Polands opposition towards a separate Lithuanian legal code (with norms unacceptable to Polish lords that did not comply with the provisions of the Union of Lublin) was diffused by the threats passed on by Jan Hlebowicz and Lew Sapieha not to recognize Sigismund Vasa as Grand Duke of Lithuania if he did not implement the conditions set out by Lithuania, which included the requirement to ratify the Third Statute. However, once historians and biblio-researchers started more closely analyzing the surviving publications of the Statute in the original language, some as yet unresolved puzzles arose concerning several so-called "secret" reprintings of the 1588 Rus’ origin publication (in 1590-1591, 1592-1593, 1594-1595 and 1600). In the opinion of Andrzej Zakrzewski, these Rus’ publications (one of which uses paper bearing the Fox watermark, with the seal: Leo Sapieha MDL Cancelar[ius]!) could not have existed without the knowledge of Lew Sapieha who had only become Chancellor in 1589. Also important was his role in preparing the publication of the Third Statute of Lithuania in Polish (in 1614 and 1619). Historiography, which highly values the achievement of the codification of the laws of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, draws attention to the fact that the nobility, which managed to prepare as many as three statutes over 60 years, never ended up receiving complete political rights or privileges. Andrzej Zakrzewski reveals an interesting point that two decades after the release of the first publication of the Third Statute of Lithuania, Jan Januszowski tried to amend this situation by starting preparation of a publication of all the laws of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and informed Lew Sapieha of this project. Thus even in Poland the authority of Lew Sapieha as “protector of holy law and justice” was acknowledged.In the bredth of studies on the Sapieha family, Lew Sapieha is known as a regalist, and a legitimist, and a supporter of the union, and a defender of the statehood of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. In fact, the history of his life and activities substantiates all these descriptions of his political approaches. The ability to combine these approaches and respond according to the demands of the unfolding circumstances actually reveals the talent of Lew Sapieha, an experienced politician and diplomat. Sometimes historians, comparing the juridicial situation in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and in the Kingdom of Poland in the 16th century, claim that the Crown had lawyers, while Lithuania had the law. Of course, there were lawyers in Lithuania too at the time, however they were in fact few in number, especially qualified professionals, which complicated the realization of high level laws (i.e. the Statute). Leaving aside the oft-discussed question in historiography of why there was no Faculty of Law at the Vilnius Jesuit Academy for so long, it should be noted that in 1610-1620 the first to stand up for the establishment of such a faculty were the brothers Hieronim and Eustachy Wollowicz. But the one to have contributed most to the history of Vilnius University was the son of Lew Sapieha, Kazimierz Lew (1609-1656). His promise to fund the establishment of the Law Faculty became a material basis for the realization of the privilege granted by King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania Ladislaus Vasa on 11 October 1641, which saw the opening of the Law Faculty in 1644 where canon and civil law departments were established. In an expression of gratitude for the funding, the Academy named the Faculty of Law Schola Sapiehana, where not only legal studies commenced, but which laid grounds for the development of jurisprudence in Lithuania. [...]. [From the publication]