480 GALLICIA AND LODOMER1A, 



night of the 24th, and next morning ordered the gates to be shut, and 

 declared himself commander in chief of all the Polish forces. He thezi 

 imposed an oath of fidelity on all the military in the city, took posses- 

 sion of the public treasure, and proceeded to measures of military se- 

 questration. On the day on which he entered Cracow, he issued a pro- 

 clamation, couched in the most energetic terms, inviting the nation to 

 shake off their disgraceful fetters, and to unite in forming a new con- 

 federation. The proclamation was received with unanimous applause ; 

 and "Long live Kosciusko!" resounded from every quarter. He 

 was conducted to the town-house, and presented to the principal no- 

 bility, who had assembled there to receive him ; and by them he was 

 formally invested with the title of general. Every article for the sup- 

 port of his army was abundantly supplied. On the 26th, the differ- 

 ent corporations assembled under their respective banners before the 

 town-house, whence the magistrates led them in procession to the 

 church of the Holy Virgin, where the constitution of the 3d of May 

 1791, was publicly read with great solemnity and an oath taken to de- 

 fend it. 



The Polish nobles had no sooner taken the oaths in the presence of 

 Kosciusko, than they departed for their respective estates, in order to 

 arm and assemble their vassals. Baron d'lngelstrohm, about the same 

 time, surrounded the diet at Warsaw with a military force, and de- 

 manded the surrender of the arsenal. This demand was spiritedly 

 resisted; and notice of it having been sent to Kosciusko, he about the 

 end of March, took the route to Warsaw with his army, and a reinforce- 

 ment of 4000 peasants, armed with pikes, &c. On the 4th of April 

 he was met by a detachment of 6000 Russians, with a park of heavy 

 artillery, on their march to reduce Cracow. A fierce encounter en- 

 sued. The Polish peasants being driven to desperation, made a 

 dreadful slaughter of the Russian plunderers. General Woronzow 

 was taken prisoner, and above 1000 Russians killed on the spot; while 

 the Poles lost only sixty men, and took eleven pieces of cannon and 

 all the ammunition. After the battle, Kosciusko fell back with his 

 army towards Cracow, where he was joined by a very considerable bo- 

 dy of disaffected Polish troops 



On the 16th of April, baron d'lngelstrohm demanded the surrender 

 of the arsenal, the disarming of the military, and that twenty persons of 

 the first consequence should be arrested, and, if found guilty, punished 

 with death. This occasioned a general commotion, in which the citi- 

 zens, having procured arms from the arsenal, after an incessant com- 

 bat of thirty-six hours, drove the Russians out of the city with great 

 slaughter A deputation had been sent to inform the king of the at- 

 tempt of the Russians to seize the arsenal ; when the monarch replied, 

 "Go, and defend your honour." The situation of the king after the 

 •contest became very critical, and the people were extremely jealous 

 of every movement he made. They compelled him to promise repeat- 

 edly that he would not quit Warsaw; and, not satisfied with his assur- 

 ances, insisted upon placing two municipal officers as a guard upon 

 him ; and he was desired frequently to exhibit himself to the people. 



Forty thousand Russians were now put in motion towards Poland 

 from the Ukraine, and 16,000 from Livonia. About the end of May, 

 the corps of Kosciusko amounted to nearly 23,000 men ; that of gene- 

 ral Kochowski to 18,000; that of Jaffinski to 6000; a corps of 12,000 

 was stationed at Wilna, and another at Warsaw which consisted of 

 8000. The peasants were not included in this calculation. 



