Rokosz
A Rokosz was originally an assembly of all members of the Polish Szlachta , not just members of the Sejm . The term found its way into the Polish language through Hungary, where similar gatherings were held and called Rákos .
Over time, the term Rokosz developed into a name for an armed rebellion of the Polish-Lithuanian nobility against the king in order to defend threatened privileges. The nobles who gathered for a rokosz could form a confederation ( konfederacja ).
The institution of Rokosz, in its later sense, was derived from the medieval right to resist royal power. The Rokosz drew its authority from the right to refuse allegiance to the king, as stated in the Mielnik Privilege ( przywilej mielnicki of October 23, 1501) and later in the Articuli Henriciani of 1573. The most famous Rococo are the Chicken War in the 16th and the Zebrzydowski Rebellion in the 17th century. The Repnin Sejm of 1767/1768 confirmed the right of the Szlachta to form a Rokosz as a cardinal right .
