Students from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (Rzeczpospolita) at the Prague University in the 17th and 18th century
Abstract
This contribution deals with young men from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth at the Prague University. In the 17th and 18th century, approximately one hundred students from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, i.e., Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Lithuania, Royal Prussia, and the Duchy of Prussia (until 1657), had passed through its lecture halls and their names are recorded in the relevant sources (student registries, albums, and printed university documents).
These young men were either of aristocratic (40%) or bourgeois (51%) origin. Within the intellectual context of Early Modern Europe, the Prague University was seen as one of the conservative and provincial establishments.
Even so, it managed to attract Polish students by its tradition, its Catholic nature, geographic location (travelling to a nearby country was cheaper), but also lower costs of study and lower living expenses. These were the main considerations which led the young Poles to choose Prague academic environment as the place where they would receive their education.
The Prague University was affordable even for poorer nobility and burghers, which formed the majority of Polish students in Prague.