Czartoryski family

Czartoryski family

Leading noble family of Poland in the 18th century, known as the Familia. It first achieved widespread power through the efforts of Prince Michal Fryderyk Czartoryski (1696–1775) and his brother August. The Familia, which sought the enactment of constitutional reforms, attained the height of its influence in the court of Augustus III. The family estate at Pulawy was confiscated in 1794, during the third Partition of Poland. However, the Familia continued to wield significant power, notably through the princes Adam Kazimierz Czartoryski (1734–1823), a patron of the arts, and Adam Jerzy Czartoryski (1770–1861), who worked for the restoration of Poland.