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First Partition of Poland (or Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth) took place in 1772. It was the first of the three partitions of Poland that ended the existence of that country at the end of the 18th century. The First Partition was carried out by the Russian Empire, Kingdom of Prussia and the Austrian Empire.
Background
The First Partition occurred after the balance of power in Europe shifted, with Russian victories against the Ottomans in the Russo-Turkish War (1768–1774) strengthening Russia so that Austria became alarmed and threatened to enter the war against Russia. Frederick II the Great of Prussia, wanting to avoid an escalation of conflict, and trying to maximize Prussia's gains, succeeded in reducing the tension of Austro-Russian relations by shifting the direction of Russia's expansion from the Turkish provinces to Poland. Although Russia has seen the weakened Poland as its own protectorate, Poland has been also devastated by a civil war (the Bar Confederation) and the Russian court has decided that the usefulness of Poland as a protectorate has dminished. Under pressure from Prussia, which wanted to annex Polish Royal Prussia, and with token objections from Austria, the three powers have agreed on the First Partition of Poland.
Partition begins
On February 19, 1772, the agreement of partition was signed in Vienna. A previous agreement between Prussia and Russia had been made in St. Petersburg on February 6, 1772. Early in August the Russian, Prussian and Austrian troops simultaneously entered the Commonwealth and occupied the provinces agreed upon among themselves. On August 5, 1772, the occupation manifesto was issued; much to the consternation of a country too exhausted by the endeavours of the Confederation of Bar to offer further resistance. Frederick II wrote about the participation of the (catholic) empress Maria Theresa in the first division of Poland in a letter: "The Empress Catherine and I are simple robbers. I just would like to know how the empress calmed down her father confessor? She cried, when she took; the more she cried, the more she took!?"
The regiments of the Confederation, whose executive board had been forced to leave Austria after that country joined the Prusso-Russian alliance, did not lay down their arms. Every fortress in their command held out as long as possible. Famous was the defence of Tyniec, which lasted until the end of March 1773, and also that of Częstochowa commanded by Kazimierz Pułaski. Kraków fell on April 28th, captured by the Russian general Suvorov who exiled the garrison to Siberia. Neither France nor Britain, upon whom hopes had been based, helped in a sufficient measure or protested when the partition was executed. So came to an end the ill-organized attempt of the Commonwealth to repulse the foreign aggression. It had cost about a hundred thousand men and once more laid the country to waste, although it was the first demonstration of the reviving national consciousness.
Division of territories
The partition treaty was ratified by its signatories on September 22, 1772. Frederick II of Prussia was elated with his success, and took great care for the welfare of his new Polish subjects, importing large numbers of Catholic schoolteachers (especially Jesuits whose order was suppressed at about that time) and making it mandatory for Prussian crown princes to learn Polish; Kaunitz of Austria was proud of wresting as large a share as he did, with the rich salt mines of Bochnia and Wieliczka; and Catherine of Russia was also very satisfied. By this "diplomatic document" Russia came into possession of that section of Livonia which had still remained in Commonwealth control, and of Belarus embracing the counties of Vitebsk, Polotsk and Mstislavl.
Prussia took Ermland (Warmia), Royal Prussia without the city of Danzig (Gdańsk) (which in 1773 became a new province called West Prussia), northern areas of Greater Poland along the Noteć River (the Netze District), and parts of Kuyavia (including the city of Thorn ).
To Austria fell Zator and Auschwitz (Oświęcim), part of Little Poland embracing parts of the counties of Kraków and Sandomir and the whole of Galicia, less the City of Kraków. By this partition the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth lost about 30% of its territory, amounting at that time to about 484,000 square miles (1,250,000 km), with a population of four million people. The largest share of the spoils, as far as population and revenue were concerned, went to Austria.
Aftermath
After having occupied their respective territories, the three partitioning powers demanded that King Stanisław and the Sejm approve their action. The King appealed to the nations of Western Europe for help and tarried with the convocation of the Sejm. When no help was forthcoming and the armies of the combined nations occupied Warsaw to compel by force of arms the calling of the assembly, no alternative could be chosen save passive submission to their will. Those of the senators who advised against this step were arrested and exiled to Siberia by the representatives of Catherine. The local land assemblies (Sejmiks) refused to elect Deputies to the Sejm, and after great difficulties less than half of the regular number of representatives came to attend the session led by Marshal of the Sejm, Adam Poniński, the commander of the Malta Order, a cynic and notorious gambler. In order to prevent the disruption of the Sejm and the defeat of the purpose of the invaders he undertook to turn the regular Sejm into a Sejm of a Confederacy, where majority rule prevailed. In spite of the dramatic efforts of Tadeusz Rejtan, Samuel Korsak and Stanisław Bohuszewicz to prevent it, the deed was accomplished with the aid of Michał Radziwiłł and the Bishops Andrzej Młodziejowski, Ignacy Jakub Massalski, and Antoni Kazimierz Ostrowski (primate of Poland), who occupied high positions in the Senate of Poland. The so-called Partition Sejm elected a committee of thirty to deal with the various matters presented. On September 18, 1773, the Committee formally signed the treaty of cession, renouncing all claims of the Commonwealth to the occupied territories. On the other hand, that very Sejm, which continued its deliberations until 1775, shaken by the first partition, passed several important reforms, among them the creation of the Permanent Council and Commission for National Education.
By seizing northwestern Poland, Prussia instantly gained control over 80% of the Commonwealth's total foreign trade. Through levying enormous custom duties, Prussia accelerated the inevitable collapse of the Commonwealth (EB.)
Further reading
- Tadeusz Cegielski, Łukasz Kądziela, Rozbiory Polski 1772-1793-1795, Warszawa 1990
- Władysław Konopczyński Dzieje Polski nowożytnej, t. 2, Warszawa 1986
- Tomasz Paluszyński, Czy Rosja uczestniczyła w pierwszym rozbiorze Polski czyli co zaborcy zabrali Polsce w trzech rozbiorach. Nowe określenie obszarów rozbiorowych Polski w kontekście analizy przynależności i tożsamości państwowej Księstw Inflanckiego i Kurlandzkiego, prawnopaństwowego stosunku Polski i Litwy oraz podmiotowości Rzeczypospolitej, Poznań 2006.
- S. Salmonowicz, Fryderyk Wielki, Wrocław 2006
- Maria Wawrykowa, Dzieje Niemiec 1648-1789, Warszawa 1976
External links
- Template:Pl icon Photos of some contemporary documents
- Template:Pl icon Polish-Russian and Polish-Austrian treaties of the First Partition
- ^ Poland, Partitions of. (2008). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved April 28, 2008, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9060581