Administration and activities of Kėdainiai Evangelical Reformed Church in the 17th century

Abstract

The article addresses the topic of the 17th century cultural history of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania with a focus on the peculiarities of administration of one of the largest Protestant communities (Kėdainiai). It highlights the features of Protestantism in Kėdainiai estate and the place of the Radziwiłł family in the process of administration of the church; it also analyses the role of Kėdainiai in the general – Unitas (Lith. Vieneta) – administration system and reconstructs the activities of the principal administrative body of Kėdainiai Church – seniors’ sessions. The chronological limits of the research cover the period 1614–1695 when Kėdainiai belonged to the Protestant Radziwiłł family line (from Krzysztof II Radziwiłł to Ludwika Karolina Radziwiłł). The research sources comprise the material of the Evangelical Reformed Synod of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, Kėdainiai estate and the Radziwiłł Archive in Warsaw