Hetman

Hetman is a title historically appointing the commander-in-chief of the armies of the Grand-Duché of Lithuania and the Royaume of Poland. This title will be preserved within the framework of the entity born of their union, the République of the Two Nations. One also finds it in other contexts, but always with this significance of chief.

Hejtman in Tchéquie

During Guerres hussites hejtman appointed the chief of the Tábor. The first hejtman was Jan Žižka in 1420. The Taborites had three others hejtmans, but Ziska was the first of them.

Hetman in Poland and Lithuania

Grand Hetman was the title carried by the chief of the military forces in these two countries. He was of office member of the government, fulfilling the functions of general Minister for defense and ordering armies in such an amount of of war. The first largeone of the Grand-duché of Lithuania was Constantin Ostrogski in 1497. The first largeone of Poland was Nicolas Kamieniecki in 1503. The largeone was often assisted by a hetman of the field (of battle) which ordered the troops to him only during the campaigns, only or under the authority of large-hetman. These stations will disappear with the end from the République from the Two Nations.

Hetman at the Cossack S

The Cossacks also appointed their commander elected by hetman as from the sixteenth century. The first hetman cossack was Dimitri Wisniowiecki. As often for the words coming from the Ukrainian several transliterations coexisted in French; let us quote “hettman” and “hetmann”.

Etymology

The opinions are divided on the subject, but today the majority of the specialists think that hetman is a word of German origin, either of the High-German Hauptmann ( haupt meaning principal or head, mann man), or of the Low-German hōd-man which with the same significance.
  • Gustave Aucouturier (specialist in Eastern Europe): Hetman comes from German Hauptmann. Borrowed by the Poles to appoint the chief of their army then still réapproprié by the cossacks to appoint their chief. With not confusing with the word Ataman which appoints another cossack head of unit and which would be to him of origin Turkish.
  • the definition of the Bouillet dictionary is quoted below.

Bouillet

Article drawn from the universal Dictionary of history and geography.

“Hetman or Attamann, name which the chief of the Cosaque S. carries This dignity was created in 1576 by Etienne Bathory, king de Pologne, in favor of Bogdan Rozynski. The badges were a flag, a tail of horse, a stick of command and a mirror. The hetmans were always selected among the chiefs most distinguished from the Cosaque S; however the emperor Nicolas conferred this dignity on the heir to the crown, the Large-duke Alexandre (auj. emperor). ---- In the old kingdom of Poland there were two large hetmans: large the hetman of the crown and large the hetman of Lithuania. These high-ranking dignitaries arrived to the Almighty authority: by the constitution of 1768 it took seat among the ministers of state, and one of them was to always have the wallet of the war.”

External bonds

Military song " The partisans blancs" , in which the " term; Atamans" is employed

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