The Henrician Articles or King Henry's Articles (Polish: Artykuły henrykowskie; Lithuanian: Henriko artikulai;[1] Latin: Articuli Henriciani) were a constitution in the form of a permanent agreement made in 1573 between the "Polish nation" (the szlachta, or nobility, of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth) and a newly-elected Polish king and Lithuanian grand duke upon his election to the throne.
[2][3] While pacta conventa (a sort of manifesto or government programme) comprised only the personal undertakings of the king-elect, the Henrician Articles were a permanent constitutional law which all King-Grand Dukes were obligated to swear to uphold.
[2][3] The charter took the form of 18 articles written and adopted by the Polish-Lithuanian nobility in 1573 at the town of Kamień, near Warsaw, during the interregnum after the extinction of the Jagiellon dynasty.
He was obliged to sign the Articles to be allowed to ascend the throne.
[2] Acceptance by the king-elect of the articles was a condition for his elevation to the throne, and they formed part of the royal oath at the coronation.