Princely houses of Poland and Lithuania

King of Poland in tournament attire, ca. 1433-1435

The princely houses of Poland and Lithuania differed from other princely houses in Europe. Most importantly, Polish nobility (szlachta) could not be granted nobility titles by the Polish kings in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Therefore, the title of prince either dated to the times before the Union of Lublin, which created the Commonwealth in 1569, or was granted to some nobles (usually magnates) by foreign kings. Due to the longstanding history of common statehood, some noble families often described as "Polish" actually originated in Grand Duchy of Lithuania and are of Lithuanian or Ruthenian descent. Some houses are more correctly described as being of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Kingdom of Poland[]

#	Name	Title recognition	Remarks
Royal Houses
1	Piast dynasty	c. 960 The first historical dynasty prevailing in Poland from about 960 to 1370. Their progenitor, the semi-legendary Piast the Wheelwright, son of Chościsko, came from Gniezno. According to the chronicles of Gallus Anonymus, the son of Piast the Wheelwright and his wife Rzepicha – Siemowit, became the first ruler of the Piast dynasty. Followed by Lestek and Siemomysł. The first ruler of the Piast dynasty and Civitas Schinesghe (the first recorded name related to Poland as a political entity), who historically is not questioned, was Mieszko I of Poland.	died out in 1370 in the Kingdom of Poland with the death of king Casimir III the Great; the last Silesian Piasts, who formed the oldest branch of the first Polish royal Piast dynasty, were George William, Duke of Liegnitz in 1675, and the last Silesian Piast female was Karolina, Duchess of Liegnitz-Brieg-Wohlau in 1707, in the Duchies of Silesia
2	Jagiellonian dynasty	1386 Princely (grand ducal) roots of this family are older, but only connected with Lithuania. Previously also known as the Gediminid dynasty in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The dynasty takes its name from Władysław II Jagiełło who was the Grand Duke of Lithuania between 1377–1434 and then alongside his wife queen regnant Jadwiga of Poland (reign 1384-1399) became king of Poland between 1386–1434.	died out in 1596

Duchy of Pomerania[]

#	Name	Title recognition	Remarks
Dukes of Pomerania
1	House of Griffins	1106	died out in 1660
2	House of Sobiesław	1227	died out in 1317 (Duchy of Pomerelia)

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth[]

#	Name	Title recognition	Estates	Remarks
"Ancient" Princely Houses (Rody „stare”)
1	Olelkowicz	1569		title expired in 1592
2	Ostrogski	1569	and Duchy of Ostroróg, Jarosław, Tarnów	title expired in 1620
4	Borkowski	1499	Duchy of Samogitia^[1]	family exists
5		~1528	Princely family of Rurikid origin, Kniaz, Kśiestwo Żmudzkie	family exists ^[2]
6	Zasławski	1569	Duchy of Zasław, and Duchy of Ostroróg	title expired in 1682
7	Zbaraski	1569	Duchy of Zbaraż	title expired in 1631
8	Wiśniowiecki	1569	Duchy of Wiśniowiec, Duchy of Łubniów, Duchy of Zbaraż	title expired in 1744
9	Korecki	1569	Duchy of Korets	title expired in 1651
10	Sanguszko	1569	Duchy of Koszyrsk, , Duchy of Zasław	family exists
11	Czartoryski	1569	Duchy of Czartorysk, Duchy of Klewań, Puławy, Sieniawa	family exists
12	Czetwertyński	1569	Duchy of Czetwertynia	family exists
13	Radziwiłł	1569	Duchy of Birżańsk, Ordynacja and Duchy of Nieświez, Duchy of Dubienica, Ordynacja and Duchy of Ołyka, Ordynacja Kleck,	family exists
"New" Princely Houses (Rody „nowe”)
14	Lubomirski	1682	Wiśnicz, Kolbuszowa, Jarosław, Przeworsk,	family exists
15	Poniatowski	1764	Korsun-Shevchenkivskyi, Jabłonna, Kozienice, Grodno, Wołczyn	family exists
16	Sapieha	1768	Różana, Kodeń, Horki, Zelwa	family exists
Princes of the Partition Sejm
17		1773	Września	title expired in 1920
18	Sułkowski	1774	Leszno,	family exists
19	Jabłonowski	1775	Duchy of Ostrog	title expired in 1926
20	Massalski (Hetmans-Bishops line)	1775	Lachowicze, Mysz, Werki, Druja	title expired in 1794
Ordynacja families
21	Zamoyski (Hetman line)	1588	Ordynacja Zamojska, Szarogród	title expired in 1665
22	Zamoyski (Younger line)	1676	Ordynacja Zamojska	family exists
23	Gonzaga-Myszkowski	1601		title expired in 1727
24	Gonzaga-Myszkowski-Wielopolski	1729		family exists
Lords of Principalities
25	Potocki family	1696	Duchy of Zbaraz	family exists
26	Mniszech	1744	Duchy of Wiśniowiec	died out in 1905
Royal Houses
27	Sobieski	1674	Żółkiew	died out in 1737
28	Leszczyński	1705	Leszno	died out in 1766
Dukes of Polish fiefs
29	Hohenzollern	1525	Duchy of Prussia, Lębork, Bytów, Taurogi, Sereje	family exists
30	Kettler	1561	Duchy of Courland and Semigallia	title expired in 1737
31	Movilești (Mohyłowie)	1595	Principality of Moldavia, Wielkie Oczy	title expired, family exists in Ukraine and Western Russia
32	Wettin	1759	Duchy of Courland and Semigallia	title expired in 1763, family exists
33	Biron	1737	Duchy of Courland and Semigallia	family exists
Clergy Princes
34	Bishops of Gniezno	traditionally		liquidated in 1795
35	Bishops of Krakow	traditionally	Duchy of Siewierz	liquidated in 1790
36	Bishops of Warmia	traditionally	Duchy of Warmia	liquidated in 1772
37	Bishops of Płock	traditionally		liquidated in 1795
38	Provost of Płock	traditionally		liquidated in 1790

Old Lithuanian Gediminid and Ruthenian (Rurikid) Princely Houses[]

#	Name	Remarks
Princely Houses
1	Giedroyć	family exists
2	Światopełk-Mirski	family exists
3		Branches: , , , , , , family exists
4		died out in the 17th century
5		family exists
6		family exists
7		family exists
8		died out
9	Zasławski	family exists
10		died out in 1637. Princes of Ruthenian (Ukrainian) origin in the Korybut clan.
12		perhaps died out
13		died out in 1658
14		died out in 1658
15	Holszański	died out
16		family exists
17	Pac	died out in 1835
17	Świrski	family exists
18		family exists
19	Gliński	died out

Princely Houses with Tatar origin[]

These princely houses lived like average rich nobility, but sometimes part of these lived like peasants.^[3]

Ahmetowicz
Achmetowicz
Adamowicz
Aksak, Axak
Apanowicz-Białobłocki
Assanczukowicz
Assanowicz
Bahryński
Bartoszewicz
Begimowicz
Berbasz
Bierbasz
Birbasz
Bohdanowicz
Bułhak
Chazbiejewicz
Dawidowicz
Fursowicz
Gliński
Grocholski
Haraburda
Jachicz
Juchowski
Jurewicz
Juszyński
Kadyszewicz Kejdysz
Kambułatowicz
Karaczewicz
Kasymowicz
Kieński
Kiński
Kordysz
Korycki
Korzon
Kotłubaj
Kryczyński
Lebiedziewski
Lipski
Łostajski
Łowczycki
Malibakszycz
Maluszycki
Małyszycki
Maślakiewicz
Minbułatowicz
Najman-Kadyszewicz
Niekraszewicz
Nowosielski
Obulewicz
Okęcki
Ostryński
Petyhorski
Piotrowski
Puński
Rodkiewicz-Szpakowski
Rudnicki
Sayna-Kryczyński
Siehdziński
Skirmunt
Smólski
Sołtan
Starzyński
Sulimanowicz
Sulkiewicz
Szymkowicz
Szyryński
Talkowski
Tarak-Buczacki
Taraszewski
Tuhan-Baranowski
Ułan
Ułan-Maluszycki
Waliła-Łowczycki
Zawacki
Zackiewicz-Sulimanowicz

Princely titles granted by foreign monarchs[]

2	Czartoryski	1433^[4]	Holy Roman Empire A confirmation of the old princely title	family exists
3	Radziwiłł	1515/18 and 1547	Holy Roman Empire A confirmation of the old princely title	family exists
4	Ossoliński	1633, 1634, 1736	Papal States, Holy Roman Empire, France	entitled family lines died out
5	Denhoff	1637	Holy Roman Empire	entitled family line died out
6	Koniecpolski	1637	Holy Roman Empire	entitled family line died out
7	Lubomirski	1647	Holy Roman Empire,	family exists
8	Jabłonowski	1698, 1733/34, 1743	Holy Roman Empire	entitled family line died out
9	Sapieha/Sapieha-Rożański/Sapieha-Kodeński	1700	Holy Roman Empire A confirmation of the old princely title	family exists
10	Sułkowski	1752	Holy Roman Empire	family exists
11	Lichnowski	1773	Prussia	family exists
12	Poniatowski	1765, 1847, 1850	Austro-Hungarian Monarchy (Bohemian title of Prince), Grand Duchy of Tuscany, Austro-Hungarian Monarchy	family exists
13	Zajączek	1818	Russia	title expired in 1826
14	Łowicki	1820	Russia An additional title of prince donated to the wife of Grand Duke Konstantin and for their descendants	there were not children from this marriage. The title was expired
15		1888	Prussia	family exists
16	Wołodkowicz	1903	Russia A confirmation of the old princely title	family exists, the title may also be inherited through the females of the french line

Kingdom of Poland (Congress Poland)[]

#	Name	Title recognition	Remarks
Princely Houses
1	Światopełk-Mirski	1821 A confirmation of the old princely title	family exists
2	Puzyna	1823 A confirmation of the old princely title	family exists
3	Żeleński	1823 A confirmation of the old princely title	family exists
4	Ogiński	1824 A confirmation of the old princely title	family exists
5	Woroniecki/Korybut-Woroniecki	1844 and 1852 A confirmation of the old princely title	family exists

References[]

^ "The Titled Families of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth – Polish Genealogical Society of America". pgsa.org. Retrieved 2017-07-05.
^ Borowscy książęta. Kniaź Wołodimir Andrejewicz Chrobry, żonaty z He- leną, córką Olgerda, wnuk w. ks. moskiewskiego Iwana Danifowicza Kalety, pozostawił pięciu synów, z których Semen otrzymał Horowsk. Czy jednak książęta Borowscy, zjawiający się na Litwie, pochodzą od niego, trudno o tym orzec coś stanowczego, skoro Borowsk przeszedł następnie w posiadanie synowców Semena, a synów Jarosława; stanowisko zaś, jakie zajmowali na Litwie kniaziowie Borowscy, tak jest różne od stanowiska potomków Jarosława, brata Semena, że prędzej należy przypuścić, iż litewscy kniaziowie Borowscy stanowią zubożałą odrośl jednej z licznych kniaziowskich rodzin, o pochodzeniu których nic nie wiemy. Z kniaziów Borowskich spotykamy na Litwie kniazia Bohdana, który ma sprawę z Chłupiniczami w 1499 roku i kniazia Juriego, męża Barbary, córki Marcina Jurłowa, który w 1542 r. ma sprawę z kniaziem Illnszonką o dom w Wilnie (ML G i 32). Kniaź Juri, pomimo że nabył w 1547 r. od Chodkiewicza różne majątki, nie musiał być bogatym, skoro pełnił obowiązki marszałka dworu Hlebowicza, wojewody wileńskiego (ML 48 I 62). Kniaź Juri Borowski pozostawił syna Lwa i córkę Helenę, która w 1570 roku była żoną Hieronima Kwileckiego (ML 51). Kniaź Lew Juriewicz Borowski z synami, Janem i Mikołajem, I córką Maryną, żoną Stanisława Burby, wnosi skargę w 1599 r. na (jintowta o za- branie spadku, który im się po Podbercskim przynależał (Akta T. YIII).* https://archive.org/stream/poczetrodwwwie00boniuoft/poczetrodwwwie00boniuoft_djvu.txt source: Adam Boniecki: Poczet Rodów w Wielkim księstwie Litewskim
^ http://www.genpol.com/module-subjects-printpage-pageid-37-scope-all.html
^ Czartoryski at the Encyclopedia of Ukraine