received the title of chorąży of Sandomierz, and was elected the military deputy for the Sejm in January 1652. According to Nagielski, Czarniecki, while returning from the Sejm, witnessed the massacre of Polish prisoners in the aftermath of the battle of Batoh; This scene made him reject the notions that a compromise with the enemies of the Commonwealth was a likely or desired outcome. Podhorodecki however notes that another historian, Wojciech Jacek Długołęcki, questions Czarniecki's presence there, and concludes that we have no conclusive proof whether Czarniecki was present at Batoh, The massacre further escalated the hostilities and the surrounding hatred; illustrating that in a letter Czarniecki wrote soon after the battle, in which he promised that if enough military forces are gathered and given to him, he will leave few Ruthenians alive. Later that year Czarniecki received territories from the king, along with the office of Crown oboźny. In 1653 he led a unit to Ukraine, ransacking much of the Cossack-held lands, although the attrition among the troops was high. During that campaign Czarniecki was wounded at Monastyryska. He continued his suppression campaign in 1654, and the following January took part in the battle of Okhmativ. In May 1655 he was called from Ukraine to Warsaw, as the king John Casimir Vasa, respected his experience and requested his presence at a new war council, convened to discuss the looming thread of the war with Sweden. At that time his reputation was significant; Sejm often passed resolutions applauding him for his efforts to reclaim Ukraine, and he was even held in much consideration by the Ottomans, then temporarily allied with the Commonwealth. On 14 May 1655 he received the office of the castellan of Kiev, a position that made him a member of the Senate of Poland. The Swedish Deluge When Charles X of Sweden invaded Poland in 1655, Czarniecki distinguished himself by his defence of Kraków, which he eventually surrendered on good terms, retreating with his army. He remained loyal to the Polish king, even when much of the army, including most of the senators and the hetmans, temporarily joined the Swedes. His vocal support for the wavering king, who at that time found refuge abroad, and was considering abdication, was decisive. For his continuing support, the Polish king rewarded him with more lands, and the office of regimentarz of the royal army. He led guerrilla warfare against Swedish