Dymitr of Goraj

Who is Dymitr of Goraj?

Dymitr of Goraj of Clan Korczak was a Grand Crown Marshal from 1390 and Court Treasurer in the years 1364-1370 and 1377-1391. He was one of the wealthiest magnates of his era, and a mentor and adviser to Queen Jadwiga of Poland.

Dymitr was born around 1340 as the son of Piotr of Klecia, starost of Zhydachiv, member of the Korczak family and owner of the village of Klecie. Piotr became a member of the royal court of Poland, and Dymitr quickly joined him there. Around that time Dymitr converted from Orthodox to Catholic faith. In 1364, at the court of Casimir III the Great he became the Court Treasurer, a title he would held in the years 1364-1370 and again in the years of 1377-1391. Dymitr was member of the royal council, adviser to the king, and a witness of his death.

In 1377 Dymitr and his brother Iwan received lands from Louis I of Hungary. Dymitr would be one of the most notable supporters of Louis in Poland, possibly even his friend, and took part in important diplomatic missions on behalf of Louis. Dymitr became a mentor and adviser of the Louis daughter and Polish queen Jadwiga of Poland. He opposed her marriage to William, Duke of Austria, an event which Jan Długosz described in his chronicles, and Jan Matejko and Wojciech Gerson reflected in their paintings. Both depict Jadwiga with an ax, supposedly taken for hacking gates, locked to prevent her running away with William, and Dymitr stopping her. He was involved in her marriage with Władysław Jagiełło, and received significant lands from him as well, particularly when Ruthenian territories were passed from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania to the Kingdom of Poland. Dymitr would become a strong supporter of Jagiełło, his trusted envoy in diplomatic missions, and would take part on his side during the Polish-Teutonic Wars.