2 results on '"valdovas"'
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2. VALDOVO PAŠLOVINIMUI, ŠLOVINTOJO ATMINIMUI: AUGUSTO III IŠKILMĖS VILNIUJE.
- Author
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BalaiŠytė, Lina
- Subjects
- *
KINGS & rulers , *NOBILITY (Social class) , *UPPER class , *ARISTOCRACY (Social class) - Abstract
The report seeks to discuss the social functions of the celebrations as well as to introduce the tradition of royal representation in the times of August III and also its adaptation in the celebration programme of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Celebration for a ruler had old traditions, their ceremony and images used in occasional decoration were firmly set. However, every celebration had its own specificity, depending on the place, organizers and the political reality. This specificity is revealed in descriptions of celebrations in so far as the observer or reporter tried and was able to advert it. In the 18th c. press and occasional literature two aspects of celebration for rulers are usually highlighted: in the events of the celebration, an idealised portrait of the ruler and the role of a celebration organizer are both displayed. The calendar design for the ruler was impressive with the dates of the king's election and coronation, birthdays and named-days. One of the most important celebrations in Vilnius was an annual celebration of the ruler's nameday on August 3rd. In the capitals of the Poland-Lithuania Commonwealth these celebrations differed. In Warsaw, where August III himself often participated, the celebration was directly related to the person of the ruler (the highlight of the festival was a ceremony of awarding the Order of White Eagle and some kinds of entertainment loved by the king - an opera or a target hit contest). In the capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, a place Augustus III had never been, the honoring of the ruler had more symbolic meaning. During the celebration the local political conjuncture and social hierarchy were revealed. 18th century Vilnius had neither a Royal Palace nor the Parliament and therefore the most important institution was the Lithuanian Supreme Tribunal. Traditionally, the Marshal of the Tribunal was responsible for the ruler's celebration in the city. The Marshal acted as the intermediator to accept the ruler's name-day congratulations from Vilnius city governors. In the case of another member organizing the celebration the marshal found himself among the most prestigious guests of the ceremony. The ruler's name-day celebration in Vilnius had a distinctive decorative tradition. Generally they were held in the Arsenal (Cekhauze) and fireworks, which were placed on both banks of the river Neris, as well as in the river, comprised the main visual attraction. Sapieha's Palace and the park in Antakalnis were also chosen as other places for celebration. The decoration content of the celebration was similar to the occasional literature where the motives of the ruler's glorification interlace with the role of the ruler as a celebration organizer. The main focus of the decoration was placed on the emblems and monograms of the ruler and well-wisher inscriptions describing the glorification of both. For example, during the celebration organized by Józef Sollohub the central celebration decoration was a figure of "Fortune" pointing to Sollohub and his wife's monograms, crowned with mitres where the firework was lit by the Lion figure of Sollohub's coat of arms. Whereas the nobility started to acquire significant political weight in the state, the glorifications motives were to be taken from the image of the rulers, while the rulers- portraits had more conventional than individual features. The celebration decoration was related to ancient ruler's images. Although the ruler's power at that time was weakened and the nobility did not appreciate the demonstration of the ruler's power, the nation security from the inner and outside enemy was traditionally treated as the most significant task, which was obviously depicted in the ruler as a symbolic protector decoration. In Vilnius, the celebration decoration was often depicted as a knight with king's insignia (sword and scepter) or military attribute (armor regiment). Another very important element of decoration was the symbol of justice. On one hand justice and law was traditionally attributed as the ruler's function, on the other, it was connected with supreme tribunal power as a judiciary institution and its ruler's activities. For example, when a celebration was initiated by Michal Antoni Sapieha the triumphal gate was decorated with a "Justice" statue with inscriptions depicting "Sapieha Themis" motives. The most exclusive celebration directly connected with the personality and politics of Augustus III was organized by the Lithuanian tribunal Marshal Michal Ksawery Sapieha in Antakalnis Palace in 1759. That year witnessed Sapieha receiving the Order of White Eagle and the celebration was widely covered by the press. The decorations showed the significance of Vettines in Europe including the emblems of the rulers of different countries in which Augustus III had relations with. Another also very important part of the decorations were emblems with military inscriptions depicting Austria, Russia, France and Sweden in the Seven Years- War where these countries and Augustus III, as a ruler of Saxony, had fought together. A distinctive decoration programme was used in the 1763 exequies dedicated to Augustus III, organized in St. Casimir church and arranged by Vilnius magistrate. The decorations of the funeral embodied a certain ruling balance. The city saw the rule of Augustus III as a period of peace and tranquility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2012
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