page_title: History of Poland during the Jagiellonian dynasty
section_title: The Hussite movement and the Polish–Hungarian union
hierarchical_section_title: History of Poland during the Jagiellonian dynasty / Late Middle Ages (14th–15th century) / The Hussite movement and the Polish–Hungarian union
caption_attribution_description: English: Zbigniew Oleśnicki Bishop of Krakow as founder of bursary in the Jagiellonian University (Collegium Maius, Krakow). Polski: Płaskorzeźba na ścianie Collegium Maius przedstawiająca biskupa krakowskiego Zbigniewa Oleśnickiego jako fundatora bursy dla Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego.
context_page_description: The rule of the Jagiellonian dynasty in Poland between 1386 and 1572 spans the late Middle Ages and early Modern Era in European history. The dynasty was founded by the Lithuanian Grand Duke Jogaila, whose marriage to Queen Jadwiga of Poland formed a Polish–Lithuanian union. The partnership brought vast territories controlled by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania into Poland's sphere of influence and proved beneficial for both the Polish and Lithuanian people, who coexisted and cooperated in one of the largest political entities in Europe for the next four centuries.
  In the Baltic Sea region, Poland maintained an ongoing conflict with the Teutonic Knights. The struggles led to a major battle, the Battle of Grunwald of 1410, but there was also the milestone Peace of Thorn of 1466 under King Casimir IV Jagiellon; the treaty created the future Duchy of Prussia. In the south, Poland confronted the Ottoman Empire and the Crimean Tatars, and in the east helped Lithuania fight the Grand Duchy of Moscow. Poland's and Lithuania's territorial expansion included the far north region of Livonia.
context_section_description: During the Hussite Wars of 1420–1434, Jagiełło, Vytautas and Sigismund Korybut were involved in political and military intrigues with respect to the Czech crown, which was offered by the Hussites to Jagiełło in 1420. Bishop Zbigniew Oleśnicki became known as the leading opponent of a union with the Hussite Czech state.
  The Jagiellonian dynasty was not entitled to automatic hereditary succession, rather each new king had to be approved by nobility consensus. Władysław Jagiełło had two sons late in life from his last wife Sophia of Halshany. In 1430, the nobility agreed to the succession of the future Władysław III only after the king consented to a series of concessions. In 1434, the old monarch died and his minor son Władysław was crowned; the Royal Council led by Bishop Oleśnicki undertook the regency duties.
  In 1438, the Czech anti-Habsburg opposition, mainly Hussite factions, offered the Czech crown to Jagiełło's younger son Casimir. The idea, accepted in Poland over Oleśnicki's objections, resulted in two unsuccessful Polish military expeditions to Bohemia.
  After Vytautas' death in 1430, Lithuania became embroiled in internal wars and conflicts with Poland. Casimir, sent as a boy by King Władysław on a mission there in 1440, was surprisingly proclaimed by the Lithuanians as their Grand Duke, and he remained in Lithuania.
  Oleśnicki gained the upper hand again and pursued his long-term objective of Poland's union with Hungary. At that time, the Ottoman Empire embarked on a fresh round of European conquests and threatened Hungary, which needed the assistance of the powerful Polish–Lithuanian ally. In 1440, Władysław III assumed the Hungarian throne. Influenced by Julian Cesarini, the young king led the Hungarian army against the Ottomans in 1443 and again in 1444. Like Cesarini, Władysław III was killed at the Battle of Varna.
  Beginning near the end of Jagiełło's life, Poland was governed in practice by an oligarchy of magnates led by Bishop Oleśnicki. The rule of the dignitaries was actively opposed by various groups of szlachta. Their leader Spytek of Melsztyn was killed at the Battle of Grotniki in 1439, which allowed Oleśnicki to purge Poland of the remaining Hussite sympathizers and pursue his other objectives without significant opposition.
caption: Bishop Zbigniew Oleśnicki with a colleague in a foundation scene
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