Henrician Articles

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politics and government of Poland
Constitutions and major statutes of Poland
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Statutes and Constitutions of Lithuania

The Henrician Articles or King Henry's Articles (Polish: Artykuły henrykowskie; Lithuanian: Henriko artikulai;[1] Latin: Articuli Henriciani) were a constitution in the form of a permanent agreement made in 1573 between the "Polish nation" (the szlachta, or nobility, of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth) and a newly-elected Polish king and Lithuanian grand duke upon his election to the throne. The Articles were the primary constitutional law of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.[2][3]

While pacta conventa (a sort of manifesto or government programme) comprised only the personal undertakings of the king-elect, the Henrician Articles were a permanent constitutional law which all King-Grand Dukes were obligated to swear to uphold.[2][4]

The articles functioned essentially as the first constitution for Poland-Lithuania until the Constitution of 3 May 1791.[2][3]

  1. ^ MELC. "Henriko artikulai". vle.lt. LNB Mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidybos centras. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference bardach216-217 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference tk was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Jędruch1982-84-86 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).