Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume IX.djvu/671

 JOHN III. (POLAND) JOHN (SAXONY) 651 bravery. The intrigues of his wife in favor of the duke of Enghien, son of the prince of Con- de as successor to the throne, having brought about a rebellion under George Lubomirski, and a bloody though short civil war, the king finally resolved upon abdication, and resigned his crown at the diet of Warsaw, Sept. 16, 1668. In the following year he retired to France, where he was hospitably treated by Louis XIV. His wife had died without issue before his abdication. His body was removed to the cathedral of Cracow in 1676, his heart only being interred in St. Germain des Prfs, of which Louis XIV. had made him abbot. John Oasimir's reign was one of the most dis- astrous in the history of Poland, whose dis- memberment by the houses of Moscow, Bran- denburg, and Hapsburg, as it took place 100 years after his death, he predicted in a memo- rable speech to the diet of 1661. JOHN III. SOBIESKI, king of Poland, born in the circle of Zlocz6w, then belonging to the palatinate of Belz, in 1629, or according to some in 1624, died June 17, 1696. His father, Jacob Sobieski, castellan of Cracow, carefully attended to the education of his two sons, of whom Marcus was the elder, and to complete it sent them to Paris. Here John entered the ranks of the musketeers of the young Louis XIV. under Cond6; but on receiving the news of the death of King Ladislas IV. and the dis- asters caused by the bloody rising of the Cos- sacks (1648), both brothers hastened to their country and offered their services to the brother and successor of Ladislas, John Casimir. Both fought bravely, John especially distinguishing himself in the battle of Beresteczko (1651), but Marcus fell soon after. The invasion of Charles Gustavus of Sweden, and the simultaneous dangers which threatened Poland from every quarter, gave Sobieski ample opportunity to display his valor, and next to Czarniecki he was foremost in saving the country from ruin. His services were well rewarded, and shortly before the abdication of John Casimir he re- ceived the chief command of the army. In 1672 Poland was invaded by the Turks and Tartars, both of whose armies he successively surprised and defeated. The new king, Michael Korybut, being besieged by the Turks in the fortress of Kamenetz, concluded an ignomin- ious treaty with the sultan ; but Sobieski caused its rejection by the senate, hastened to Podo- lia, and routed the Turks at Khotin (1673). The news of the king's death arrived a few days later, and the commander and his follow- ers hastened to Warsaw to attend to the elec- tion of a successor. This resulted, after stormy debates, in the choice of Sobieski, who imme- diately resumed the war, and rescued the for- tress of Trembowla, which had been saved by the heroism of the wife of the commander. Another campaign was terminated less success- fully by a treaty with the Turks at Zuraw- no, where Sobieski was nearly compelled to surrender with his comparatively small army. The rising of the Hungarians under T6k6li, and the "invasion of the Mussulmans under the grand vizier Kara Mustapha, having brought Austria to the brink of ruin, Sobieski was per- suaded by his wife and the ambassadors of the emperor and pope to hasten to the rescue of Vienna, which was besieged by an army of 300,000 men (1683). The Poles, numbering about one tenth as many, were joined by a somewhat larger body of German troops. Scarcely had they arrived before Vienna when Sobieski gave the signal for attack. The Turks were driven within their intrenchments, and attacked there on the next day (Sept. 12). The charge was terrible, and after a short struggle the Turks were completely routed. Sobieski made a triumphal entry into Vienna, and was hailed by all Europe as the saviour of Christendom. The emperor Leopold alone, who had fled from his capital, was too proud to receive cordially the hero who was " only an elected monarch." Sobieski pursued his suc- cess, following the enemy into Hungary, which was soon restored to the emperor. Returning to Poland, where the intrigues of his wife had created for him a large number of enemies, he made a disadvantageous peace with the czar, in order to be able to turn all his forces against the Turks. The conquest of Wallachia was the aim of this undertaking, in which he failed after various attempts. The last years of his life were embittered by civil as well as domestic troubles. Admired as a warrior, he was little esteemed by the Polish nation as a monarch, and after his death his three sons, Jacob, Con- stantino, and Alexander, were passed over at the election, which gave the crown of Poland to Augustus of Saxony. The Lettres du roi de Pologne, Jean Sobieski, d la reine Marie Casi- mire, pendant la campagne de Vienne, were published in Paris in 1826. JOHN (JOHANN NEPOMUK MAEIA JOSEPH), king of Saxony, born in Dresden, Dec. 12, 1801, died there, Oct. 29, 1873. He was the youngest son of Duke Maximilian of Saxony and the princess Carolina of Parma. At the age of 20 he entered the ministry of finance, of which he was president until he retired in 1831. As a member of the upper house he took an active part in the discussion of the constitution of that year. He was commander of the national guard from 1831 to 1846. His brother, Frederick Au- gustus II., dying without issue, Aug. 9, 1854, he became king. He adopted a policy on east- ern affairs hostile to the western powers, and in the war of 1866 took the side of Austria. The Prussians entered Saxony June 18, and the Saxon army, having withdrawn without a blow to Bohemia, fought against them in the battle of Koniggratz, July 3. Peace was concluded between Prussia and Saxony, Oct. 21, and the king returned to Dresden Nov. 3, having agreed to pay a large sum, and to cede the fortress of Konigstein. Subsequently Saxony entered the North German confederation, and her troops, under command of the crown prince Albert,