Until the death of Sigismund II Augustus, the last king of the Jagiellonian dynasty, <answer>monarchs could be elected from within only the royal family</answer>. However, starting from 1573, practically any Polish noble or foreigner of royal blood could become a Polish–Lithuanian monarch. Every newly elected king was supposed to sign two documents—the Pacta conventa ("agreed pacts")—a confirmation of the king's pre-election promises, and Henrican articles (artykuły henrykowskie, named after the first freely elected king, Henry of Valois). The latter document served as a virtual Polish constitution and contained the basic laws of the Commonwealth:
What stopped after the death of Sigismund II Augustus?
monarchs could be elected from within only the royal family