Portrait of Maria Mateiko the artists sister Portrait

Portrait of Maria Mateiko the artist's sister Portrait of Franciszek Matejko

Self-Portrait

Bona Sforza Portrait of Artist's Wife in a Wedding Dress

Portrait of Artist's Children

Portrait of Artist's Children

Portrait of the Artist's Son on Horseback Portrait of the Artist's Daughter Beata with a Canary

Christianisation of Poland in 965

Bolesław I the Brave (966 -1025) The Coronation of First King of Poland 1025 Bolesław was the first Polish king, since it was during his reign that Poland became a kingdom, despite the fact that some Polish rulers before 1295 would never receive a crown.

Piast Eagle coat of arms Boleslaus the Brave with Swiatopelk at the Golden Gate in Kiev

Saint Cunigunde הפטרונית של לוכסמבורג ליטא ופולין St. Cyril and St. Methodius Brothers Known as the Apostles of the Slavs

Baptism of Lithuania , February 15, 1386 Władysław II Jagiełło In 1384, Hedwig, an 11 -year-old daughter of Louis the Hungarian, was called to Poland by the knights and representatives of towns and ascended the Polish throne. The group of Krakow magnates who were ruling Poland chose to give her hand to the pagan ruler of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania , Jagiello. There was one string attached however--Lithuanians had to become Christian and become part of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom. The Union was concluded at Krewo in 1385. , One year later Jagiello was baptized in Krakow, assuming the name of Ladislaus, and the assembly of. Polish knights elected him King of Poland. Royal seal of Władysław Jagiełło

The Battle of Grunwald took place on 15 July, 1410 between the Kingdom of Poland the Grand Duchy of Lithuania on one side (estimated 39, 000 troops), and the Teutonic Knights on the other (about 27, 000 troops). In the battle, the Teutonic Order was defeated and never recovered its former influence. The picture supposedly illustrates the moment when Ulrich von Jungingen, the 26 th Grand Master of the Teutonic Order (left, dressed in white, with a black cross), is killed by infantry. Vytautas the Great is shown in triumphant position (center, dressed in red).

Coat of arms of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth Insignia of the Teutonic Order The Battle of Grunwald One of Poland's greatest military victories over Germany - the total crushing of the military power of the Teutonic Order by the combined Polish, Lithuanian and Russian forces in 1410, a military success that was not, regrettably, translated into political gains. The picture was painted at a time of Prussia's growing European hegemony after the victorious 1870 war against France. It was also Matejko's response to the rising wave of Germanization of Poles in the territories annexed by Prussia.

Zawisza the Black, Polish Knight detail Markward von Salzbach detail

The Grand Master of the Teutonic Order detail Viatautas, the Grand Duke of Lithuania detail

Prussian Homage THE PRUSSIAN HOMAGE-shows the liege homage paid in 1525 to Sigismund I King by Albrecht Hohenzollern, the first ruler of the former lands of the Teutonic Order, now turned into a secular duchy of Prussia.

" • The Prussian Tribute detail

THE CONSTITUTION OF 3 RD MAY-shows the ceremony of King Stanislaw August Poniatowski swearing in the Constitution - the most advanced fundamental document in Europe of the time - enacted in 1791 to save the country from a total loss of sovereignty. While the overall mood is that of solemnity, there is a sense of foreboding in the presence of would-be leaders and participants of the Targowica Confederation, a group established under the patronage of Russia to suppress the reformatory achievement of the Four-Year Sejm (most notably the Constitution) and to defend nobility's Golden Freedom

Hanging of the Sigismund bell at the cathedral tower in 1521 in Kraków Zygmunt , named after King Sigismund I the Old, is a bell that was cast in 1520 by Hans Behamin in Krakow, Poland. It hangs on Zygmunt's Tower at Wawel Cathedral and was cast from metal melted from the armor of soldiers defeated by Polish forces. The bell is rung only on the most important occasions, such the out break of war or the conclusion of war. . As of 2006, the most recent time was on the arrival of Pope Benedictus XVI in Kraków (May 2006). To ring the bell requires the strength of 8 -12 men.

Stefan Batory at Pskov During the Livonian War (1578 -1582) between Ivan the Terrible of Russia and Stefan Batory of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth , the city was besieged by Polish forces. Poland failed to capture the city, but forced Russia to return other territories and gained. The siege was the setting of this painting. Matejko's allegoric painting illustrates the concept of Romantic nationalism : the Muscovites are represented doing homage to the Polish king, which appear victorious, although in reality the Pskov never fell to the Poles, as the conflict ended with negotiations before the siege was concluded.

Stanislaw Zolkiewski-detail A Polish nobleman, magnate and a military commander. He took part in many military operations both in Poland on its southern and eastern border. He held a number of notable posts in the administration of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, including the castellan of Lwow (from 1593), voivode of Kijow Voivodship and Great Chancellor of the Crown (from 1618). Following 1588 he was also a Field Crown Hetman, in 1613 promoted to Grand Hetman of the Crown. During his lifetime he won major military victories against Muscovy, the Ottoman Empire and Tatars.

Iimmigration of Jews to Poland The first extensive Jewish emigration from Western Europe occurred at the Time of the First crusade in 1098. Under Boleslaus III (1102 -1139) the Jews, Encouraged by the tolerant regime of this ruler, settled throughout Poland including over the border into Lithuanian territory as far as Kiev.

Rejtan - The Fall of Poland REYTAN AT THE SEYM IN WARSAW IN 1773, a painting showing the dramatic protest of the title hero Tadeusz Reytan, the Member of Parliament from the region of Nowogrodek, against the ratification of the partition treaty. SKARGA'S SERMON was intended to move the consciences of Poles; REYTAN was more than that- a challenge to magnates , an accusation of some of them of treason and of selling their to foreign powers. As such, it echoed loudly, the public accusing Matejko of, among other things, "exploiting a historical scandal for popularity’s sake. ”

Astronomer Copernicus - Conversation with God Nicolaus Copernicus (1473 -1543), a polish astronomer, who formulated the first modern heliocentric theory of the solar system. His epochal text, De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (on the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres), is often conceived as the starting point of modern Astronomy.

Union of Lublin The Union of Lublin was a real union, Signed 1 July 1569, in Lublin Poland which united the Kingdom of Poland the Grand Duchy of Lithuania into a single state, The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Commonwealth was ruled by a single elected monarch who carried on the duties of Polish King and Grand Duke of Lithuania and governed with a common Senate and Parliament (the Sejm). The Union was an evolutionary stage in the Polish- Lithuanian alliance and personal union, necessitated by Lithuania's dangerous position in wars with Russia.

Polonia The aftermath of the failure of the January Uprising. The crowd of captives awaits transport to Siberia. Russian officers and soldiers supervise a blacksmith installing fetters on the wrists of a woman representing Poland. The blonde woman behind her, next in line, may represent Lithuania.

Battle of Racławice The Battle of Racławice was one of the first battles of the Polish Kościuszko Uprising against Russia. It was fought on April 4, 1794 near the village of Rac ławice in Lesser Poland. The victory was subsequently promoted in Poland as a major success and helped in starting the Kościuszko Uprising in other areas of Poland

Tadeusz Kościuszko at Raclawice- detail Kosciuszko Monument at the entrance to the Wawel Castle in Krakow

: מקורות http: //de. wikipedia. org/wiki/Jan_Matejko http: //www. malarze. com/plartysta. php? id=56 http: //artyzm. com/e_artysta. php? id=677&page=7 http: //www. culture. pl/en/culture/artykuly/os_matejko_jan אסף פלר : עריכה