- Gaspar Graziani
Gaspar (or Gaşpar) Graziani (also credited as Grazziani, Gratiani and Graţiani; "Kasper Gratiani" in Polish; c. 1575/1580–1620) was
Voivode (Prince) ofMoldavia between February 4OS/February 14 NS 1619 and September 19 OS/September 29 NS 1620 ("seeOld Style and New Style dates ").Early life
A Croat polyglot born in
Dalmatia , Graziani had been in service to several European powers: he was an interpreter for the Englishdiplomatic mission in theOttoman Empire , and then an envoy of both Grand Duke ofTuscany Cosimo II and the Spanish Viceroy of Naples to thePorte , negotating the release of Christian sailors captured byBarbary pirates .The
Republic of Venice awarded Graziani the (by then) honorary title of Duke of Paros and Naxos; he became a close ally of the Doges and, like his predecessor and rivalRadu Mihnea , a self-declared admirer of the "Serenissime" system of government; Graziani also married into a family of Venetian patricians.In Moldavia
Appointed
Dragoman , he was charged by the Turks with missions in theHoly Roman Empire , and nevertheless acted as a spy in favour of theHabsburg s. These activities, along withbribery and promises of absolute loyalty to the Porte, gathered Graziani the support he needed in his bid for the Moldavian throne. In order to qualify for the customary requirements, he quickly converted fromRoman Catholic ism to Eastern Orthodoxy and accepted thesacrament s. On his way to Moldavia, he was received inAdrianople by a delegation of 20boyars , and is said to have been acclaimed by thousands upon his arrival on the shores of theDanube .He organized an armed guard of 500 for his personal defence, and defied the Ottomans by starting negotiations for an alliance the Poland's King
Sigismund III Vasa . The Sultan ordered him removed and a "kapucu " was sent for this purpose; Graziani had the envoy and his 300-strongretinue massacred. He managed to contribute with a minuscule number of his troops tohetman Stanisław Koniecpolski 's effort and was present at theBattle of Cecora , but, as he was making his way to refuge in Poland, he was murdered in the village of Branişte (nowadays in Rîşcani,Republic of Moldova ) by two of his boyars, Şeptilici and Goia, who were fearful of Ottoman reprisals.His life was the subject of
Ioan Slavici 's 1888tragedy , "Gaspar Gratiani".External links
* [http://www.geocities.com/serban_marin/luca2.html Cristian Luca, "Influssi occidentali sull’atteggiamento politico di alcuni principi dei Paesi Romeni nei secoli XVI e XVII"]
ee also
*
Moldavian Magnate Wars
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