Editing Stephen Báthory (section)

==Policies==
[[File:Amman Stephen Bathory.jpg|thumb|left|upright|King Stephen in [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] clothes, 1585]]
After securing control over the Commonwealth, Báthory had a chance to devote himself to strengthening his authority, in which he was supported by his [[kanclerz|chancellor]] [[Jan Zamoyski]], who would soon become one of the king's most trusted advisers.<ref name="Lerski1996"/><ref name="Stone2001-123"/> Báthory reorganised the judiciary by the formation of legal tribunals (the [[Crown Tribunal]] in 1578 and the [[Lithuanian Tribunal]] in 1581).<ref name="Stone2001-125"/> While this somewhat weakened the royal position, it was of little concern to Báthory, as the loss of power was not significant in the short term, and he was more concerned with the hereditary Hungarian throne.<ref name=psb119/><ref name="Stone2001-125"/> In exchange, the Sejm allowed him to raise taxes and push a number of reforms strengthening the military, including the establishment of the ''[[piechota wybraniecka]]'', an infantry formation composed of peasants.<ref name=psb119/> Many of his projects aimed to modernize the Commonwealth army, reforming it in a model of Hungarian troops of Transylvania.<ref name="psb124"/> He also founded the [[Academy of Vilnius]], the third university in the Commonwealth, transforming what had been a [[Jesuit]] college into a major university.<ref name="Stone2001-126"/> He founded several other Jesuit colleges, and was active in propagating [[Catholicism]], while at the same time being respectful of the Commonwealth policy of [[religious tolerance]], issuing a number of decrees offering protection to [[Polish Jews]], and denouncing any [[religious violence]].<ref name=psb124/>

In external relations, Báthory sought peace through strong alliances. Though remaining distrustful of the Habsburgs, he maintained the tradition of good relations that the Commonwealth enjoyed with its Western neighbor and confirmed past treaties between the Commonwealth and Holy Roman Empire with diplomatic missions received by Maximilian's successor, [[Rudolf II]].<ref name=psb120/> The troublesome south-eastern border with the [[Ottoman Empire]] was temporarily quelled by truces signed in July 1577 and April 1579.<ref name="psb120"/> The [[Sejm]] of January 1578 gathered in [[Warsaw]] was persuaded to grant Báthory subsidies for the inevitable war against [[Tsardom of Russia|Muscovy]].<ref name=psb119/>

A number of his trusted advisers were Hungarian, and he remained interested in Hungarian politics.<ref name=psb124/> In his last years, Báthory, with [[Pope Gregory XIII|Pope Gregory XVIII]]'s approval, made a plan with [[Antonio Possevino]] for the liberation of [[Ottoman Hungary]] by a well organized (mostly Polish) Christian army, and the creation of a strong and independent Hungarian-Polish union under his rule. However, the unfavorable international situation did not allow him significantly to advance any of his plans in that area.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Entz |first1=Géza |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FxIcSwAACAAJ |title=Tanulmányok Nyírbátor és a Báthori család történetéhez |last2=Benda |first2=Kálmán |last3=Péter |first3=Katalin |last4=Kahler |first4=Frigyes |last5=Takács |first5=Péter |last6=Jenei |first6=Károly |last7=Bán |first7=Imre |publisher=Báthori István Múzeum |year=1986 |isbn=963017782X |editor-last=Dám |editor-first=László |chapter=Báthory István tervei Magyarország egységének helyreállitására |trans-chapter=István Báthory's plans for the restoration of Hungary's unity |issn=0237-8779}}</ref> In addition to Hungarian, he was well versed in [[Latin]], and spoke Italian and German; he never learned the Polish language.<ref name=psb124/>

In his personal life, he was described as rather frugal in his personal expenditures, with hunting and reading as his favorite pastimes.<ref name=psb124/>