Radziwiłł family

The House of Radziwiłł (; ; ; ) is a Polish princely family of Lithuanian origin, and one of the most powerful magnate families originating from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and later also prominent in the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland. Part of the representatives of the Radziwiłł family were known for their persistent and consistent struggle for the independence of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and for their crucial role in preserving the Grand Duchy of Lithuania as a separate state in the 16th and 17th centuries.

The family was founded by Radvila Astikas, but over time it split into many branches, such as the Biržai-Dubingiai and Goniądz-Meteliai lines. However, most of the branches became extinct by the 18th century, with only the Nesvizh-Kleck-Ołyka line surviving to this day. Their descendants were highly prominent for centuries, first in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, later in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Kingdom of Prussia. The family produced many individuals notable in Lithuanian, Polish, Belarusian, German as well as general European history and culture. Many members of the Radziwiłł family served in high-ranking officers positions of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (e.g. 13 were Voivodes of Vilnius, the capital city, 10 were Castellans of Vilnius, seven were Grand Chancellors of Lithuania, nine were Grand Marshals of Lithuania, seven were Grand Hetmans of Lithuania, etc.). The Radziwiłł family received the title of ''Reichsfürst'' (prince) from the Holy Roman Emperor in the early 16th-century and were the first nobles in Lithuania and Poland who received this title.

The last patrilineal member of the Radziwiłł family who inhabited in Lithuania was Konstantinas Radvila, an owner of the Taujėnai Manor, however after the Soviet occupation of Lithuania in 1940 he was arrested by the NKVD and deported from Lithuania to the Uzbek SSR in 1941 where he died in ~1945.

The Nesvizh Castle complex, maintained by the family between the 16th century and 1939, is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Provided by Wikipedia