Letters of Francis II Rakoczi from Mukachevo to Elzbieta Sieniawska in 1709 and 1710

The paper discusses the correspondence of Francis II Rakoczi with Elzbieta Sieniawska, related to his stay in Mukachevo in historical Trans-Carpathia region (Zakarpattia) during the uprising against the Habsburgs in 1709 and 1710. During the Rakoczi uprising, Mukachevo was a crucial place of the Hungarian resistance to the Habsburg government. The private correspondence sheds light on essential political ideas that were popular in Europe of that troubled time. Princess Elzbieta Sieniawska of the Polish family Lubomirski, was married to the castellan of Krakow, with whom she lived in Warsaw, where she met a lot of people close to the crown and was an active participant in the Polish political life. She had a hectic love affair with Francis II Rakoczi and helped him establish contact with people of weight from the Polish political elite. After political events in Poland in 1706, Sieniawska considered that the circumstances in which her friend Francis II Rakoczi could benefit had occurred, and in March 1707, she visited him in Mukachevo. Sieniawska tried to promote Francis II Rakoczy to the vacant Polish throne, though he hardly had a chance. The lovers used to meet in Mukachevo and Warsaw and intensely corresponded. The correspondence between Francis II Rakoczi and Elzbieta Sieniawska gives us valuable data on the current historical time and diplomatic activities and projects. It is an essential source for the history of Zakarpattia and the entire region, especially for the history of international relations in Europe since the early 18th century.

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