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Piotr Opaliński

1566 – 1600

5 facts1 source

Facts and their sources

  • Born1566not verified1 source
  • TitleDeputy to the Sejm of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealthnot verified1 source
  • Died1600not verified1 source

A life in time

  1. 1566

    Born

  2. 1599

    A son is born

  3. 1600

    Dies

Family

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Partner

Children · 1

During his lifetime

He lived through 5 decades. Pick one to hear and see what it was like.

General history, not a record about the family: each item says where it comes from.

The 1560s · Piotr is born

In the news1569–1574

Famine and price crisis of 1569-1574

Between 1569 and 1574, a severe famine and price crisis struck the region, causing mass death among the poorest residents, while wealthy nobles remained largely unaffected. During 1573 and 1574, a 2.2-kilogram loaf of rye bread cost an unskilled worker in Krakow between 32% and 40% of their daily wage.

At the table

Famine bread ingredients

During times of severe famine, poor people were forced to bake bread using ingredients like acorns, bran, and in extreme cases, dried tree bark and plant buds.

What people wore

Valuation of peasant clothing sets

A full set of clothing for an ordinary Ukrainian peasant was valued at 26.5 zlotys for men and 52 zlotys for women, with the women's set including a shirt, skirt, and corset. Those who possessed such a complete set were considered wealthy by their community.

Getting around

Security for goods in transit

A merchant in 1586 paid four guilders to hire two Tartars to transport his goods, reflecting common practice to ensure security during travel.

What it cost

Wages and shoe prices in Kraków

In the first half of the 16th century, an unskilled daily worker in Kraków earned approximately 2 grossi per day, while a pair of shoes cost about 7 to 8 grossi.

Music

Carnival sleigh rides and masquerade balls

During the carnival season, the Polish gentry organized festive sleigh rides from mansion to mansion, accompanied by musicians playing dance music, which often culminated in a masquerade ball where nobles dressed as peasants, Jews, or Gypsies.

Daily life

Cooking and lighting challenges

Cooking happened in multipurpose living spaces or entryways using cauldrons suspended on complex, expensive iron hooks that allowed height adjustment over the fire. Because light was poor and candles were prohibitively expensive, many food preparation tasks were performed outdoors.