Person

Sigismund II Augustus

d. 1572 · 16th century

Sigismund II Augustus was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the last of the Jagiellonian dynasty, who died in 1572. He presided over the Union of Lublin of 1569, which formally created the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. His death without an heir led to the system of elective monarchy.

Sigismund II Augustus
Image: Lucas Cranach the Younger · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 2 profiles

Polish-Lithuanian CommonwealthFoundationGrand Duchy of LithuaniaSocioeconomy, Decline

Mentioned in 4 state histories

Archbishopric of RigaKingdom of Poland (1385-1569)Duchy of FinlandDuchy of Livonia

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Sigismund II Augustus. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/sigismund-ii-augustus
MLA
“Sigismund II Augustus.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/sigismund-ii-augustus. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Sigismund II Augustus.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/sigismund-ii-augustus.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Sigismund II Augustus’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/sigismund-ii-augustus (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻