In der Nacht des 20.01. September 1610 sind polnisch-lithuanische Commonwealth-Streitkräfte unter dem Kommando von Hetman Stanisław żółkiewski in Moskau eingetreten

We should restart the commonwealth

“the king treated him (Zolkiewski) with suspicion and hostility; only the war with the Muscovite state forced Sigismund to turn to Zolkiewski again.

The latter was against this war, believing that it did not correspond to Poland’s interests, but took part in it after his peaceful representations to the king were unsuccessful.
After defeating Dmitry Shuisky at Klushino in 1610, he approached Moscow, where Tsar Vasily Shuisky had been deposed in the meantime, secured the election of Prince Vladislav to the Moscow throne, and occupied Moscow with the Polish army.

Upon receiving news that Sigismund wanted to become Tsar of Moscow himself, Zolkiewski realized how little chance the Poles had of success in Moscow and left, handing over command of the Polish garrison to Gosiewski”

Yeah, who knows, if Poles have not introduced that uniquely bizarre veto right in their parliament and their kings found a way to bring magnates to heel, the map of Eastern and Central Europe could look quite differently now…

The only time when MosCow was a part of European culture

Shame they didn’t saw the ground with salt

Bruh I first read 1610 as 16:10 and feared world war three.

It was a good day, and a completely wasted opportunity.

Do it again!

Forty five years later began the Swedish Deluge – a series of Swedish and Russian invasions and occupations in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Three million people in the Commonwealth were killed over a twenty year period (one third of the population).  

Swedish and Russian soldiers also robbed the Commonwealth of its most important riches. Some 188 Polish and Lithuanian cities and towns, 81 castles, and 136 churches were were entirely stripped of anything of value then completely destroyed. Poland and Lithuania also lost the entire contents of 67 libraries and 17 archives and became a cultural desert.

Stolen were thousands of works of art, sculptures, books and valuables.  From the Royal Castle in Warsaw alone were plundered ~200 paintings, the carpets, Turkish tents, musical instruments, furniture, Chinese porcelain, weapons, books, manuscripts, marbles, even dresses of the maids. They also took windows, stairs, chimneys, sculptures, floors, doors, door frames and gates. It was the same in all palaces, castles, churches, abbeys, towns and villages. In addition, Poland and Lithuania lost the entire contents of 67 libraries and 17 archives and became a cultural desert.

Most goods were loaded on boats and transported along the Vistula to the Baltic Sea and then to Sweden. Most of the works of art are kept both in private Swedish hands and in Stockholm museums. Most of the stolen books are kept in the University Library at Uppsala, the Royal Library at Stockholm, and private libraries of the Bielke, Oxenstierna, Rosenhahne, Wrangel and Brahe families.

None of the stolen items have been returned to Poland and Lithuania.