Olesko Castle, the birthplace of John Sobieski He was succeeded by Augustus II of Poland and Saxony. Suffering from poor health and obesity in later life, Sobieski died in 1696 and was buried at Wawel Cathedral in Kraków. The defeated Ottomans named Sobieski the 'Lion of Lechistan', and the Pope hailed him as the saviour of Western Christendom. Popular among his subjects, he was an able military leader, most famously for his victory over the Ottoman at the Battle of Vienna in 1683. Sobieski's 22-year reign marked a period of the Commonwealth's stabilization, much needed after the turmoil of previous conflicts. In 1674, he was elected monarch of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth following the sudden and unexpected death of King Michael. Sobieski demonstrated his military prowess during the war against the Ottoman Empire and established himself as a leading figure in Poland and Lithuania.
As a soldier and later commander, he fought in the Khmelnytsky Uprising, the Russo-Polish War and during the Swedish invasion known as the Deluge. John III Sobieski ( Polish: Jan III Sobieski Lithuanian: Jonas III Sobieskis Latin: Ioannes III Sobiscius 17 August 1629 – 17 June 1696) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1674 until his death in 1696.īorn into Polish nobility, Sobieski was educated at the Jagiellonian University and toured Europe in his youth.
