Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki (31 May 1640 – 10 November 1673), also known as Michał Tomasz Wiśniowiecki (Lithuanian: Mykolas Kaributas Višnioveckis), and under a regal name Michael (Polish: Michał; Lithuanian: Mykolas), was the ruler of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 29 September 1669 until his death in 1673.
Michał was chosen partly because of the merit of his father, Prince Jeremi Wiśniowiecki, a powerful border magnate who had helped suppress the rebellious Cossacks during the Khmelnytsky Uprising. After Michał's early death, these setbacks were reversed at the Battle of Khotyn (Chocim) in 1673 by his successor, John III Sobieski, who defeated an Austrian candidate in the election.
In 1670, Michał was married to Eleonora Maria of Austria (1653–1697), daughter of Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor, and his third wife Eleonora Gonzaga. They had one son, who died at birth.
Michał was the son of Jeremi Wiśniowiecki and his wife Gryzelda Konstancja Zamoyska. His parents likely met each other in September 1637 in Warsaw during the crowning of Cecilia Renata of Austria, the Queen of Poland and consort to Władysław IV Vasa. They were engaged on 13 February 1638, over a month after the death of Gryzelda's father, Tomasz Zamoyski.
The wedding took place in Zamość on 27 February 1639, and over a year later, on 31 May 1640, Michael Korybut was most likely born in the village of Bilyi Kamin as Michał Tomasz Wiśniowiecki. The infant was then taken to Zamość, where he spent the first two years of his life under the care of his grandmother Katarzyna Ostrogska (née Ostrogska). In 1642, Michał was taken by his mother to Lubny. During the Khmelnytsky Uprising, he fled Left-bank Ukraine with his family and first settled in Wiśniowiec in Volhynia, before arriving in Zamość in autumn 1648.
Jeremi Wiśniowiecki died in 1651, when most of his enormous estate remained under Cossack control. From 1651–1655, young Michał was under the care of Karol Ferdynand Vasa, the bishop of Wrocław and Płock. The boy stayed at the residence of the Bishops of Płock, in the town of Brok. After the death of Bishop Vasa on 9 May 1655, he was taken in by his wealthy uncle, Jan Zamoyski, Voivode of Sandomierz, who funded his education. Sometime in mid-1655, Michał found himself at the court of King John II Casimir.
Following the Swedish invasion of Poland, Michał, together with the royal court, fled to Głogówek in Upper Silesia. On 18 November 1655, following the request of the king, he went to Nysa, to study at the Jesuit College Carolinum and stayed there until March 1656.
In mid-1656, thanks to the support of Queen Marie Louise Gonzaga, Michał Korybut began studying at Charles University in Prague. He returned to Poland in June 1660, but soon afterwards, he headed to Dresden and Vienna to meet Empress Eleonora Gonzaga. There he saw his future wife Eleanor of Austria, who was a child at that time, for the first time. On this trip, Michał improved his knowledge of languages; he spoke Latin, German, Italian, French and also likely Tatar and Turkish as well.
In 1663, Michał took part in the Russo-Polish War, and during the Lubomirski Rebellion, he loyally supported the king.
On 16 September 1668, John II Casimir Vasa abdicated the Polish throne and left the country to live in France, making a new election necessary. The Bishop of Chełmno, Andrzej Olszowski, suggested that Michał Korybut should be listed as one of the candidates for the throne. Wiśniowiecki was supported by the Polish nobility, who sensed that a poor and inexperienced prince would not pose a threat to their rights enshrined in the Golden Liberty.
The Free election of 1669 took place in May and June of that year. Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki was elected King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania on 19 June and became known as Michał. Most of the gathered nobility voted for him as they wished to choose a native, Polish candidate (the so-called "Piast"), over foreign candidates. Wiśniowiecki won 11,271 votes and was crowned on 29 September 1669 in Kraków.
His election was immediately opposed by the pro-French camp, led by Primate of Poland Mikołaj Prażmowski and Crown Hetman John Sobieski.
On 27 February 1670, Michał married Austrian princess Eleanor, and the ceremony was celebrated by Papal Nuncio, Cardinal Galeazzo Marescotti, as Primate Prażmowski refused to attend. The reception took place at the Denhoff Palace in Kruszyna.
Following the 1669 election, the Commonwealth was divided between two camps – pro-French and royal. The pro-French camp had several influential members, including Primate Prazmowski, Hetman Sobieski, Andrzej Morsztyn, Voivode of Kraków Aleksander Michał Lubomirski, Voivode of Ruthenia Stanisław Jan Jabłonowski, Voivode of Poznań Krzysztof Grzymultowski, and Bishop of Kraków Andrzej Trzebicki.
In November 1669, the French camp broke the Coronation Sejm, hoping to dethrone Michał and elect Count Charles-Paris d'Orléans-Longueville. In 1670, the internal struggle moved to the local sejmiks, during which the nobility demanded to bring a Sejm lawsuit against Hetman Sobieski. To defend their commander, Sobieski's soldiers formed a Confederation near Trembowla.
To make matters worse, the divided Commonwealth was under constant Turkish threat. In 1671, the king supported a rebellion of a unit of Stanisław Wyżycki, who, against the explicit order of Sobieski, abandoned Volhynia, leaving the province defenceless. King Michał ordered Wyżycki and his men to spend the winter of 1671/1672 in the wealthy starostwo of Sambor, and paid them their salaries, while Sobieski and his soldiers did not receive any money.
In 1672, the Ottoman Empire declared war on the Commonwealth, and the Polish–Ottoman War of 1672–1676 began. Despite this, the situation in the Polish Crown was still chaotic, with the danger of a civil war. The nobility formed a confederation near Gołąb, demanding the removal of Primate Prażmowski. Its members looted real estate owned by Hetman Sobieski and his family. On 22 November 1672 Lithuanian soldiers formed their own confederation in Kobryń, declaring their support for the Gołąb confederation. In response, soldiers under Sobieski formed a confederation in Szczebrzeszyn. John Sobieski, together with his troops, headed to Łowicz, to meet Primate Prażmowski.
Negotiations between the two factions were carried out by Papal Nuncio Francesco Buonvisi and Bishop of Kraków Andrzej Trzebicki. Furthermore, Sultan Mehmed IV of the Ottoman Empire sent an offensive letter to Warsaw, demanding complete subordination of the Commonwealth. This greatly enraged the Poles but due to chaotic internal situation of the Commonwealth, both sides of the conflict reached an agreement in March 1672.