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Welcome on the site about the history of House of Korczak-one of the oldest Polish clans, which representatives have been for centuries contributing to the history of Poland and beyond. Korczak, as many other Polish family crests, was used by many families. These coat of arms is used by over six hundred surnames, which make it to be one of the most widespread Polish crests. As so many people used Korczak, its history is rich and definitely worth remembering. Korczak was used by varied members of nobility from aristocracy to poor gentlemen, so it gives really diverse view into Polish elites. Work over the site is in progress. As a historian-hobbyist, i'm going to run it as good as possible, still i look forward for some help from people intrested in the topic.
Korczak coat of arms
Korczak is a Polish coat of arms with Hungarian orgins. There are three legends about its beginnings. It is also mentioned in many European armorials for example: Armorial Gelre; Armorial Bellenville; Armorial universel, avec blasons peints; The Great Armorial of the Golden Fleece; Arma baronum Regni Poloniae per Joannem Długosz descripta; and new Polish Armorial by T. Gajl. Korczak appears also on the throne tapestry of Sigismund II Augustus and coins of Sigismund III Vasa. It was used not only by Polish nobility. In year 1413 Korczak was given to bojar (knight) Czupa from Grand Duchy of Lithuania by the Union in Horodło, in following centuries it was taken also by Russian families. It's interesting that many other western family crests are actually very similar to Korczak. Coats of arms with red and white stripes and dog in crest are used by some German families like von Heggelbach and von Sazenhofen, or French de Croÿ. In "The Royal Garden" (1599) B. Paprocki mentions that all of these families come from the Hungarian predecessors of House of Korczak. Read more
Predecessors of Korczak Clan
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Paprocki presents the two oldest progenitors of the Korczak Clan with the same name. About the first of them Prokop starosta of Ruthenia listed under the date 1269, it is not known much. The author mentioned only that he had three sons. The second of them bishop of Cracow Prokop is known better. He was the grandson of Bolesław V the Chaste and Cousin of Leszek the Black. He was was the chancellor of both princes in 1270 and circa 1292 took up the Cracow bishopric. When the Polish state was reborning after the breakup of Poland from 1138, he supported Przemysł II, or Władysław Elbow-high (historians are not in agreement here). In 1294 he was summoned to Prague, where he had to assume the authority and swear fidelity to Wacław III. As he did that the Cracow bishopric was given the right to the tenth part of the monarch's income from the Cracow salt pits. Prokop was the bishop for two years and three months (according to Paprocki) until his death in 1295 (there is also a theory that he died on 8 December 1294). According to tradition, he was buried in the Cathedral of Cracow. |
