An Cosantóir

www.military.ie the defence forces magazine | 29 England to allow him to recruit volunteers from his kingdom. In September 1619, Sigismund III gave Jakub Butler salvus conductus, to return to Ireland and come back to Poland with new soldiers. As a result of the agreement between Sigismund III and James I, a few thousand soldiers were expected to arrive from Britain and Ireland to aid in a war with Turkey. However, in the end only a small percentage of the expected number arrived in September 1621 and by then the war with Turkey was over. As a result, the newly arrived soldiers, among who was Jakub Butler at head of 300 of infantry, were directed to the Duchy of Livonia under command of the Field Hetman of Lithuania, Krzysztof Radziwił, who was fighting there against Sweden. Butler and his force arrived in Livonia on 10/11th February 1622 and fought in there until the end of the war. At the Sejm (Polish Parliament) in 1623, after the end of the con- flict in Livonia, Field Hetman Radziwił presented soldiers who were to be awarded medals; Captain Jakub Butler was among them. In the Polish-Swedish war of 1626-1629 Jakub fought at the head of 400 infantry, together with his relatives, Walter Butler senior and Walter Butler junior. On 26th June 1627, Jakub's unit participated in the battle of Glowa, where he repelled the at- tacking forces of Gustav Adolf, and, on 3rd July, in the battle of Gniew, where he prevented attempts to resupply the Swedish forces with munitions. In 1627, during the Sejm in Warsaw a bill was introduced which stated: 'Taking into account the brave and bloody ser- vices of Jakub Butler, the Irish nobleman, and his loyal services for us and the Commonwealth of Poland in various military expeditions, with agreement of all Royal States and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, we take him as a nobleman of the Commonwealth of Poland under condition that he will take iuramentum fidelitatis (a vow of faithfulness).' Jakub Butler then received an indygenat confirming his posi- tion as a nobleman of the Commonwealth for his war services. In 1628, in the ongoing Polish-Swedish War, Jakub Butler and his regiment were utilised heavily at the front by Royal Field Hetman Stanisław Koniecpolski. In the battle of Malbork on 25th July, Jakub Butler was wounded in the throat during an attack against Swedish ramparts but survived. On 21st December, he received a recruitment letter from Field Hetman Koniecpolski allowing him to form a regiment of infantry at his own expense. He spent 25,000 Polish złotys on the unit and became Colonel Jakub Butler. The south-east of the country was constantly vulnerable to attacks by Tatar armies and it is no surprise that in 1631, not long after the end of the war with Sweden, we find Jakub Butler at the head 300 dragoons in that area protecting the Commonwealth against Tartar attacks. Next he was sent to the Reich during the Thirty Years' War, where he fought under Albrecht Wallenstein. Vladislaus IV Vasa came to the throne as another war began with Moscow (1632-1634) and the king decided to make use of already trained soldiers, such as the Poles who had served in Wallenstein's army. In 1633, after negotiations between Vladis- laus IV and Wallenstein, Jakub Butler brought 600 Silesian dragoons to Smoleńsk, where the Polish army was fighting the Russians. During this campaign Jakub Butlrer also took com- mand of 1,000 infantry. Towards the end of 1633, after many tough battles, peace negotiations began and Jakub Butler was included on the Polish delegation. On 24th February 1634, on condition of the Russian army's capitulation, an agreement was signed. One of the signatories was Jakub Butler as a courtier and colonel of King Vladislaus IV. In 1634, Jakub Butler was near Kamieniec Podolski in the south with a regiment of 1,000 when the Commonwealth put on a show of force to deter Turkey. Documents record that in 1635 Colonel Jakub Butler was sent to Prussia with 600 infantry. This is the last mention of Jakub Butler in Polish military campaigns, which is surprising as he was a very important person in the Polish army, given his position as a courtier and royal colonel serving in a royal guard. It is possible that he died around that time, but due to his prominence it is likely that this would have been recorded. The most likely scenario is that after the events of 1635, Jakub Butler probably left Poland and went abroad to fight in the Thirty Years' War. There is, of course, the possibility that he returned to Ireland, but there is no information on this in the Polish sources. One thing that is certain, however, is that Jakub Butler was an experienced, professional soldier who contributed to many of the Polish army's victories in the first half of the 17th century and whose dedication to the Commonwealth was recognised by the country's rulers. Vladislaus IV Vasa king Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1632-1648) Sigismund III Vasa king Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1587-1632

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