1576 Polish–Lithuanian royal election
Election of Stephan Báthory to the throne of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
The free election of 1576 was the second royal election to be held in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, which took place in 1575/1576. In the night of June 28–29, 1574, King Henry III of France secretly left Poland to claim the French throne. The Commonwealth was left without a monarch, and the period of interregnum ended with a double election. After a few months of negotiations, Anna Jagiellon and Stephen Báthory were elected co-rulers.
Background
Henry was elected king of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1573. After finding out about the death of his brother, King Charles IX of France, who died on 30 May 1574, Henry decided to secretly leave Poland, and return to his homeland. This plan was supported by his mother, Catherine de' Medici, who resumed the regency until Henry's return from Poland. Polish nobility had previously considered this option: Henry was to marry Anna Jagiellon, and return to France, leaving his wife in the Commonwealth. Thus, the two nations would be ruled by a royal couple.
Since the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was left without a monarch, and there was uncertainty and fear of civil strife, in late August 1574 the Primate of Poland called a council of senators and magnate.
The public source identifies “1576 Polish–Lithuanian royal election” as election of Stephan Báthory to the throne of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Polish, Lithuanian and royal.
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Chronology, provenance and viewpoint should be read together before a broad social or political interpretation is accepted. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 12, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q9252351. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1576, 1575, 1574 and 1573.
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