593 



POLAND (HISTORY.) 



Augustus II) maintained a resistance to the French 

 puny, and attached himself to Peter of Russia, the 

 republic, unable to defend itself, and considering 

 the presence of the Suxnn army dangerous to its 

 freedom, was involved, by the unsteadiness and am- 

 bition of cardinal Kadziecowski, in the northern war, 

 which made Hussia the first power in the north. 

 (See Northern /Par.) The fate of Poland was now- 

 decided. Swedish arms accomplished in 1704, what 

 the Russians achieved at a Jater period (1733 95). 

 They disposed of the Polish throne. Corruption 

 and luxury now made equal progress among the 

 Polish nobility, and paralyzed and annihilated the 

 strength of the nation. To fill up the measure of 

 confusion, encroachments were made, in 1717, on 

 the constitutional rights of the dissidents, which had 

 been established for 150 years. The Jesuits blew 

 up the flames, and their inquisitorial tribunal, estab- 

 lished at Thoren in 1724, became the signal for 

 mortal hatred. Finally, at the diets of 1733 and 

 1736, the dissidents were excluded from the office 

 of deputy, from access to the courts of justice, and, 

 in general, from all public offices ; they were to be 

 treated merely as the privileged Jews. In its moral 

 tone, too, which aimed at uniting French wit and 

 frivolousness with excess and rudeness, Poland went 

 back many steps towards the times of violence. 

 Thus every passion was thrown into a fatal ferment, 

 when Catharine II. placed her favourite, the count 

 Poniatowski, on the Polish throne. Too weak to 

 check the rebellious pride of the nobility, he waver- 

 ed between Russian protection and the dignity of an 

 independent republic, till lie finally lost the respect 

 oi' all. The fanaticism with which Soltyk, bishop 

 of Cracow, and Massalski, bishop of Wilna, oppos- 

 ed the restoration of religious freedom, was the 

 main cause of the civil war, which plunged Poland 

 into the wildest disorder, and accelerated the final 

 ruin of the state. Russia embraced the cause of the 

 dissidents ; a general confederation was formed, but 

 the diet was altogether under Russian influence. 

 On the other hand, the confederacy of Bar was sup- 

 ported by France, and the war broke out with Rus- 

 sia. Foreign troops laid waste the country, and the 

 lawless conduct of some of the Polish party chiefs 

 excited, among the neighbouring powers, such a 

 contempt of the natural rights of the Poles, that, to 

 use the expression of Catharine, they deemed Poland 

 a country in which it was only necessary to stoop 

 to pick up something. 



Such being the internal condition of the country, 

 it seemed to the Austrian court a favourable oppor- 

 tunity to take possession of the towns of Zips, which 

 had been mortgaged to Poland by Hungary, in 

 1402 ; and the dexterity of Kaunitz, the Austrian 

 minister of state, finally induced the Petersburg, 

 and this the Prussian cabinet, to meditate the parti- 

 tion of Poland. Von Dohm has shown, in his Me- 

 moirs (vol. i. p. 433 et seq.), in what manner the 

 plan originated. This project has been, by some, 

 ascribed to Prussia. Whoever must bear the guilt 

 of starting this infamous scheme, the ignominy of 

 all the three accomplices is sufficiently great. Septem- 

 ber 2, 1772, the Russian minister made known the re- 

 solution of the three powers, and September 18, 1773, 

 the republic of Poland confirmed the treaty of par- 

 tition, by which Poland lost 84,000 square miles. 

 Austria obtained the county of Zips, the half of the 

 Palatinate (waywodeship of Cracow), a part of the 

 palatinate of Sandomir, the palatinate of Red Rus- 

 sia, the greater part of Belz, Pokutia, and a part of 

 Podolia, countries which had formerly constituted 

 the kingdoms of Galicia and Lodomeria, belonging 

 to Hungary (27,000 square miles). Prussia received 

 all Polish Prussia, with the exception of Dantzic 



and Thorn, and, in Great Poland, the district of 

 Netz, which had formerly belonged to Pomerania, 

 under the name of Pomerelia (13,375 square mile-.) 

 Russia received Polish Livonia, half the palatinate 

 of Polotzk, the palatinates of Vitepsk, Mscislav, and 

 a part of Minsk (42,000 square miles). Russia now 

 decided the constitution of the unhappy republic. 

 The Poles at last became aware of their true policy, 

 and of their past folly. To secure their indepen- 

 dence, encouraged by the promise of protection 

 from Frederic William of Prussia, they undertook 

 the formation of a new constitution. The elective 

 monarchy was to be abolished, and the third estate 

 to be received into the national representation. 

 This was the basis of the constitution of May 3, 

 1791, to which Prussia gave its approbation. Hut 

 Russia rejected it by the declaration of May 18, 



1791, and espoused the cause of its opponents, who 

 had concluded at Targowicz a confederation against 

 the constitution which had been adopted by the 

 diet. Prussia abandoned the cause of the republic, 

 in the king's answer to the Poles, given June 8, 



1792, through Lucchesini : the Polish republic, he 

 said, had done wrong to adopt, without his know- 

 ledge and co-operation, a constitution which he had 

 never intended to support. Prussia consented to a 

 second partition, in 1793, by which Russia received 

 96,500 square miles, with 3,000,000 inhabitants (the 

 remainder of the palatinates of Polotzk and Minsk, 

 half the palatinates of Novgorod and Brzesc, the 

 crown domains of Polish Ukraine, Podolia, and the 

 eastern half of Volhynia) ; Prussia 22,500 square 

 miles, with 1,136,000 inhabitants (the palatinates of 

 Posen, Gnesen, Kalisch, Sieradc, Lenczic, and half 

 Rawa, besides Dantzic and Thorn, half the palati- 

 nate Brzesc and of the district of Dobrzyn, together 

 with the fortress of Czenstochow). Russian bayonets 

 compelled the indignant members of the diet to ac- 

 quiesce in this dismemberment of their country. 

 The remnant of Poland was now under Russian 

 guardianship. The heroic Kosciusko, in this situa- 

 tion of affairs, became the head of the confederates 

 of Cracow, in March, 1794, and, in the holy contest 

 for their country, Warsaw and Wilna were liberat- 

 ed. The battle of Raclawice, April 4, 1794, and 

 the relief of Warsaw, which was besieged by the 

 Prussian army, September 5 and 6, 1794, are the 

 most glorious days in the history of the Polish na- 

 tion. But it was too late : without fortresses, 

 discipline, allies, or even arms ; surrounded by Rus- 

 sians, Prussians, and Austrians the convulsive ef- 

 forts of national despair must have been unavailing 

 after the battle of Macziewice, October 10, and af- 

 ter the fall of Praga, November 4, even if the Poles 

 had acted with more unity, and had had more heroes 

 like Kosciusko. In October, 1795, the whole country 

 was divided between Russia (43,000 square miles, 

 with 1,200,000 inhabitants), Prussia (21,000 square 

 miles, with 1,000,000 inhabitants), and Austria 

 (17,600 square miles, with 1,000,000 inhabitants) 

 The last king lived at Petersburg, with a pension, 

 and died there in 1798. To the Poles nothing remain- 

 ed but wounded feelings of national pride, a bitter 

 hate against Russians and Germans, and fruitless ap- 

 peals to French aid and public sympathy. Russia had 

 robbed Poland of upwards of 180,000 square miles, 

 and 4,600,000 inhabitants ; Austria of about 45,000 

 square miles, with 5,000,000 inhabitants ; Prussia 

 of 57,000 square miles, with 2,550,000 inhabitants. 



The dismembered country, which now first re- 

 ceived internal ordei from foreign hands, continued 

 in this condition till November, 1806, when Napo- 

 leon's victories led the emigrant Poles, under Doiii- 

 browski, to Posen and Warsaw. By the terms of 

 the peace of Tilsit (July 9, 1807), the greater part 



