Polish nobles (Szlachta) supported the Czechs (at least verbally) because the struggle of Czech and Hungarian nobles was viewed as a struggle of "free" nobility against absolutist monarchs. Nobles would not fight the Protestants, and the Sejm had even forbidden Sigismund III to send Polish armed forces as assistance to the Habsburgs. However, the king of Poland, Sigismund, was a devout Roman Catholic and a long time sympathizer of the Habsburgs. Additionally, some of the Polish magnates and szlachta hoped to get back some parts of Silesia in exchange for helping out the Habsburgs. During talks with Sigismund's son, Prince Władysław IV Waza, on his voyage to Silesia in mid-1619, Emperor Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor, promised to allow a temporary occupation of part of Silesia by the Poles, with the possibility of incorporating those areas into Poland at a later date. Some of the Piast (old Polish dynasty) dukes of Silesia also supported returning their lands to the Polish realm, especially given the attractive religious tolerance policy of the Commonwealth and the fact that the Polish western regions had been very peaceful and secure for a long time.