King Władysław IV Vasa of Poland, from…
January 1635 CE
King Władysław IV Vasa of Poland, from the Swedish House of Vasa, wants to regain the Swedish crown, which had been held and then lost by his father Sigismund III Vasa.
As this is a daunting task, his less ambitious motivations are to gain fame and strengthen his position in the commonwealth, where Golden Liberties make the king's position among the weakest in Europe.
He had hoped these goals would be achievable during the Thirty Years War war and has argued that the commonwealth could gain more by warring with Sweden; however, he is also not averse to peaceful resolution if it were to give him what he wanted.
He thinks the negotiations with Sweden will give him the opportunity to trade his right to the Swedish crown for a hereditary claim to one of the regained lands (he is supported by the primate of Poland, Jan Wężyk), and has entrusted this matter to the Prussian mediators.
The szlachta (Polish nobility) advisors to Władysław, representing the Polish parliament (Sejm), are not convinced that war would be beneficial, although many (like Chancellor and Bishop Jakub Zadzik, Hetman Stanisław Koniecpolski, and Royal Secretary and Voivode Stanisław Lubomirski) agree that the Swedes have to leave Poland—by negotiations, if possible, by war, if necessary.
Few, however, wish the war to continue for the sake of helping Władysław regain the Swedish crown, and, as usual, there is much disagreement between allies of the king, who want to strengthen his power, and those who fear that any victory for the king would mean loss for the nobility.