Catherine's toilet seat 2 former throne of Polish kings. Stanislav II August Poniatowski: biography. Treasure under the monument

Stanislaw August Poniatowski is known to most people for two reasons: as the last king of Poland and as a favorite of the Russian Empress Catherine the Great, and the fourth son of the Krakow castellan became a favorite long before he tried on the royal regalia. Historians attribute paternity to the Litvinsky prince in relation to one of the daughters of the most influential woman Russian Empire.

Stanislav Stanislavovich was born in the first month of the 17th of 1732. He was the fourth son in the family of the Mazovian governor. The father of the future king of Poland, Stanislaw Poniatowski, provided his son with an excellent education, which, coupled with the boy's abilities, determined him further fate. Already at the age of twenty, the young man took the seat of a deputy in the Polish Sejm. Such a position revealed extraordinary oratory skills in Stanislav August: endowed with eloquence and wit, he very quickly gained popularity in diplomatic circles.

When the young Poniatowski was 25 years old, the Polish king appointed him his ambassador to Russia. This appointment, obtained with the help of influential family connections on the part of Stanislav's mother, was planned to be used as leverage in a conspiracy against the Saxon Elector Augustus III, but providence decreed otherwise. The Russian envoy Poniatowski, instead of promoting kindred interests, had an affair with Ekaterina Alekseevna, the future Empress of Russia, who was only three years older than the young man.

But time passes, and the attention of the empress switches to the new chosen one, so in 1762 Stanislav returns to his native land, where a year after the death of August III, the Sejm proclaims him king of the Commonwealth, and fate dedicates the last autocrats of Lithuania. The support of Catherine the Great, who, despite the termination of close relations, continued to patronize Stanislav, had a decisive influence on the opinion of the gentry in favor of the ex-favorite. November 25, 1764 Poniatowski was officially elected king of Poland.

Vivat, king, Vivat!

Stanisław August took up public affairs with great zeal. It turned out that the young king can not only speak beautifully, but also manage wisely. Gifted with the attitude of an aesthete, he proved himself to be a blessed patron of culture and art. Patronage during the tenure of Stanisław August takes the form of state policy.

The best artists from Germany, France and Italy are invited to Poland to train local craftsmen, and the monarch takes care of reimbursement of all expenses. For the publication of their works, writers receive material assistance from the hands of the king himself, and architectural transformations are in full swing in Warsaw, which are a harmonious union of elements of baroque and classicism, later this original combination will be named in honor of the sovereign - “the style of Stanislav Augustus”.

The king not only appreciated and encouraged literary activity, but he himself had a good command of the pen: both in prose and in poetry, he showed himself to be a real master. Stanisław Poniatowski's love for creativity was also expressed in the translations of classics and contemporaries: Shakespeare, Horace, Trembecki (who was the king's secretary) and Narushevich.

Concerning government reforms, here Stanislav August also succeeded. He founded the Knights School of Cadets - the first secular educational institution, and in the army, thanks to the introduction modern look weapons, it became possible to replace bulky cavalry with easy-to-lift infantry.

Poniatowski also had a hand in the creation of Polish industry: the production of wool fabrics through the organization of a manufactory company in 1767, the construction of a porcelain and foundry factories - all these achievements can be safely credited to the king of the Commonwealth.

Love and Politics

As soon as Ekaterina Alekseevna took the scepter of the Russian imperial power in her hands, her ambitious character made itself felt. This cold-blooded woman was determined to use even the former favorite in the political interests of her crown. However, Stanislav August did not want to play the role of a royal puppet, and if circumstances forced him to make some concessions, then only under powerful pressure from his patroness.

The demand of Catherine the Great to give equal rights to Orthodox and Protestants on an equal footing with Catholics, voiced at the diet of 1766, had to be satisfied. Such a pro-Russian course caused discontent among the Polish patriots and the conservative gentry, which resulted in the civil war of 1768. Internal strife weakened Poland, and Russia, along with Prussia and Austria, in August 1772 secretly signed the Convention on the Partition of the Commonwealth.

Stanisław August did not find in his heart the courage to take a place in the ranks of freedom fighters and, by his silence, doomed himself to political death. Indulging in the amusements and pleasures of social life, former king tried to ignore the just reproaches of those who accused him of unwillingness to look after the interests of his homeland.

Requiem for the Commonwealth

The uprising, which set the main goal of the independence of Poland and was headed by Tadeusz Kosciuszko, was hastily suppressed by Ekaterina Alekseevna. For the sake of such an occasion, she even summoned Suvorov, who was in exile. In the autumn of 1795, the last division of the Commonwealth took place: the Polish-Lithuanian state has now sunk into oblivion.

After the forced abdication, the ex-king of the Commonwealth lived only three years. The attending physician of Stanislav Stanislavovich believed that the cause of death was poisoning.

The Russian Emperor Paul I, the son of Ekaterina Alekseevna, arranged a magnificent funeral for his mother's former favorite. But, even paying the last debt to the deceased, instead of returning the crown of his fathers to Stanislav August, he hoisted a copy on the head of the deceased, sending the original to the Moscow Armory.

As a farewell hymn to the last king and the once great kingdom, a requiem written by the composer Iosif Kozlovsky especially for this sad date sounded during the burial ceremony ...

Personality Empress Catherine the Great for centuries surrounded by myths. One of them says: a fatal cerebral hemorrhage overtook the queen in the dressing room at the moment when she was sitting on a toilet seat, which was previously the ancient throne of the Polish Piast dynasty. Catherine allegedly ordered to convert the throne into a toilet seat after the third partition of Poland, when this country ceased to exist as an independent state.

The attack really overtook the empress in the dressing room, but experts are skeptical about the story with the toilet seat throne: Catherine was not inclined to such tricks, even when she was in a state of extreme irritation.

The Polish affairs irritated the empress very much, since she saw in them the black ingratitude of the person to whom she made the most expensive gift in her life.

Catherine was never stingy with her beloved. Regardless of their intelligence and talent, they were all generously gifted. But neither Grigory Orlov, nor his namesake Potemkin didn't get what I got Stanislav August Poniatowski: royal crown.

Sir Williams' Secretary

Stanislav was three years younger than Catherine. He was born in 1732 in Volchin, on the territory of modern Belarus, in a family Castellan of Krakow Stanisław Poniatowski And Constance Poniatowska, born Princess Czartoryska.

Stanisław, who belongs to one of the most influential families in Poland, received a good education and traveled extensively in Western Europe spent a long time in England. At home, he was noticed during speeches in the Seimas, where he established himself as an excellent speaker.

In 1755 Poniatowski went to Russia as a personal secretary. English envoy Charles Hanbury-Williams.

The representative of England in Russia was looking for ways to conduct a course that would be beneficial to the British crown. Most of all, in this regard, he was interested in the heir to the throne and his wife, Ekaterina Alekseevna.

Williams understood that it would be difficult for him personally to establish close ties with the Grand Duchess, and besides, it would attract attention. Therefore, on June 29, 1756, at the celebration of the name day of the heir to the throne, the English envoy introduced his secretary to Catherine.

Stanislav August Poniatowski. Painter Marcello Bacciarelli, 1785 Source: Public Domain

“When sentries asked him who was coming, he called himself: “Musician of the Grand Duke! “ ”

Catherine was unhappy in marriage, which was known both at the Russian court and at the courts of European monarchs. After childbirth, having produced a son Paul, the Grand Duchess became even prettier. Favorite Sergei Saltykov sent as an envoy to Sweden, and Catherine suffered from female longing.

It was at this moment that a handsome Polish handsome man appeared before her, who struck down the future empress on the spot.

However, Poniatowski was also subjugated. “She was twenty-five years old. Recovering from her first childbirth, she flourished in a way that a woman endowed with natural beauty can only dream of. Black hair, delightful whiteness of skin, large blue eyes, bulging, saying a lot, very long black eyelashes, a pointed nose, a mouth inviting to a kiss, arms and shoulders of perfect shape, average height - rather high than short - an unusually light gait .. .", - he wrote about the first meeting with Catherine.

A stormy romance began, which lasted three years. Poniatowski eventually changed his status: he himself became an envoy to the Russian court. This made his relationship with Catherine difficult, but Poniatowski, who had lost his head from love, did not pay attention to the difficulties. He entered the chambers of the Grand Duchess even when she herself did not expect it, and left them under the noses of the guards.

“Count Poniatowski used to take a blond wig and a raincoat with him to leave me, and when sentries asked him who was coming, he called himself: “Musician of the Grand Duke! "" - wrote Catherine.

"Stanislav Poniatowski in Petersburg". Artist Jan Czesław Moniuszko, painted between 1880 and 1910. Source: Public Domain

Exile

In 1757, Catherine gave birth to a daughter Anna. The girl was officially recognized by Pyotr Fedorovich, however, both he and the courtiers doubted paternity. Most likely, Anna's father was Poniatowski. Grand Duchess Anna Petrovna died in March 1759, before she was one and a half years old.

By this time, her alleged father was no longer in St. Petersburg. In 1758, both Catherine and Poniatowski had big troubles. The guards nevertheless caught the Pole on the way to the chambers of the Grand Duchess. Pyotr Fedorovich, to whom the envoy was brought, ordered him to be lowered down the stairs. But these were mere trifles compared with the conspiracy case. Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, recovering from a serious illness, suspected the environment of preparing a palace coup, as a result of which the young Pavel Petrovich was to ascend the throne under the guardianship of Catherine.

Mighty Chancellor Bestuzhev-Ryumin this story cost a career and exile, Field Marshal Apraksin- life. Catherine was saved by the fact that no compromising evidence could be found on her from other participants in the conspiracy. The English envoy and Poniatowski were suspected of involvement in the case. Diplomatic status saved them from the rear, so both were simply asked to get out of Russia.

Ekaterina was terribly homesick, and so was Poniatowski. Therefore, after the coup of 1762, when Catherine became the mistress of Russia, the Pole was ready to immediately go to his beloved.

"I will do anything for you and your family"

Catherine cooled the ardor of her lover, noting that her position was unstable, and the appearance of Poniatowski would only aggravate the situation.

And then the empress more than transparently made it clear that the relationship had come to an end, writing: “I will do everything for you and your family, be firmly convinced of this ... Write to me as little as possible or better not write at all unless absolutely necessary.”

The proud Pole did not immediately realize that it was not only a matter of high politics. Catherine fell in love with another Russian Guardsman Grigory Orlov, who, along with his brothers, became one of the main actors in the 1762 coup.

Of all Catherine's lovers, only Poniatowski was a foreigner. The empress, who ascended the throne, rightly considered that there were enough men worthy of her in Russia.

Catherine the Great always strove to find government employment for the men who happened to be next to her. This rule also applied to Poniatowski.

Died in 1763 in Poland King August III. State structure The Commonwealth was such that there was no direct and only heir to the crown, and various aristocratic parties put forward their own candidate.

Catherine saw this as a chance to solve the eternal “Polish problem” for Russia. The consignment Czartoryski nominated Stanislav August Poniatowski as king, and the Russian empress backed up the claims of her former lover with money and force of arms.

In 1764 Poniatowski became King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania. Thus, Catherine kept her promise, doing even more for Stanislav than he could have expected.

"Stanisław August Poniatowski at the head of the army". 19th century, artist unknown. Source: Public Domain

The fate of the "straw king"

But for Stanisław August, the crown was not a happy lot. With whose help he ascended the throne, the Poles knew very well. The king turned out to be completely dependent on the opinion of the Russian ambassador. The Poles themselves called the monarch "straw king", and the opposition was preparing an armed rebellion.

The king tried to carry out reforms, but some encountered resistance from the aristocracy, others were stopped by dissatisfied shouts from St. Petersburg. In 1768, a bloodshed broke out in Poland. Civil War, in which the opponents of Poniatowski and Russia turned to Turkey and France for help. As a result, Russia began to take over, which did not please Prussia and Austria. In an effort to stop the rise of Russia, Prussian King Frederick II the Great proposed to divide part of the territory of the Commonwealth between the three states. Catherine, after hesitating, agreed.

Poland's sovereignty became a formality, as did Poniatowski's royal status. This position oppressed Stanislav August, and he tried to force Catherine to reconsider her views. “But it’s not for the same reason that they hated me, did you wish to make me king? Not that Poland should be dismembered under my rule, would you like me to wear the crown?” he wrote to Petersburg.

The king dreamed of a personal meeting, hoping that old feelings would wake up and help him change Catherine's attitude towards him and towards Poland.

But the meeting took place only in 1787 during Catherine's trip to the Crimea. Nothing that Stanislav had hoped for happened. Ekaterina had no feelings for him, and she was clearly burdened by his presence. Russia's policy towards the Commonwealth has not changed.

The Empress did not understand what did not suit him: he became king, and all the might of the Russian army guards his throne. But the proud Poniatowski wanted real independence.

The weak-willed ruler

In 1791, the king of the Commonwealth signed the Constitution of the country, which changed the system to a constitutional monarchy. This was to be followed by reforms that would turn Poland into a strong and independent state.

Catherine was furious with such "arbitrariness", but the forces of Russia were diverted to the war with Turkey. Therefore, Russian emissaries were ordered to form confederations from oppositionists who were dissatisfied with the Constitution. At the right time, they had to turn to Russia for help.

In May 1792, the Russian-Polish war began, in which Stanislav August Poniatowski de facto opposed his former lover. By the end of July, it was all over: Stanislav Poniatowski ordered an end to resistance and announced the rejection of the Constitution and reforms.

This was followed by the second partition of Poland between Prussia and Russia, after which only a third of the territory remained from the state of Stanisław Poniatowski.

The magnanimous Catherine again kept the crown on his head.

Stanislav II Poniatowski.

On that gloomy and late Petersburg morning on November 6, 1796 (according to the old style) Russian empress Catherine the Great woke up with a severe migraine. She was in her sixty-seventh year, she was the ruler of the largest European power, which by that time had reached the zenith of her power and influence on pan-European affairs. Catherine did a lot for the rise of the Russian Empire, being one of the brightest and most gifted women in world history on the royal throne, with whom many of the smartest and most educated people of that time considered it an honor to correspond. But she was a woman of supreme power, and rumors about her novels and hobbies still excite idle minds. By the moment we are describing at the Empress a new favorite- twenty-year-old handsome guards officer Zubov, and heir to the throne - Grand Duke Pavel Petrovich (the future Pavel I) practically stopped talking to his mother. But who will understand the heart of a woman? And at sixty-seven Catherine wanted to be loved.

Meanwhile, while taking her morning toilet, the Empress proceeded to the sovereign's personal water closet - a technical novelty of that time, which appeared in Russia only with the construction of the Winter Palace (another merit of Catherine the Great). Until then, even the sovereign's latrines did not fundamentally differ from the latrines of ordinary peasant houses, well, except perhaps in building materials and the richness of interior decoration. However, the personal water closet of Catherine the Great had one more difference from all similar utility rooms, if I may say so, both in the Winter Palace and in other royal castles throughout Europe of that time. The fact is that the ancient throne of the first Polish kings - the legendary Piasts - served as a “seat chair” in this very water closet. The Piast throne was removed from Poland on the personal instructions of Catherine the Great, after the suppression of the uprising led by Tadeusz Kosciuszko and the Third Partition of Poland, which put an end to the existence of the once powerful Commonwealth.

Cause of death of Catherine II

Some time later, after the doors of her personal water closet closed behind Catherine, the sound of a fallen body reached the ears of the royal servants. This sound came from behind the doors of the imperial water closet. For some time the servants hesitated, but then they nevertheless decided to enter there. The Empress lay on the floor and bled, unconscious. Although the sovereign's life doctors were immediately called, the medicine of that time could not help the all-powerful Russian autocrat - after a few hours she died of vaginal bleeding without regaining consciousness. The terrible details of the death of Catherine the Great were whispered through the aristocratic salons of St. Petersburg. Allegedly, in the water closet of the Empress, under the Piast throne, a certain Polish fanatic, who almost the dwarf who hit her majesty from below with a spear or a cleaver, and then, taking advantage of the turmoil, slipped away unnoticed from the royal chambers and from the Winter Palace. Surely, treason - the listeners of these chilling sensitive aristocratic stories agreed cautiously. Whether this was actually so, it is difficult for us to find out now. But the fact remains - Catherine the Great practically entered the path of death on the ancient Polish royal throne, which she turned into a "stool".

The reason for the appearance of a lover is the reason for the absence of marital relations with her husband

And the beginning of this whole story can be considered the meeting in 1757 of the young Polish ambassador to Russia, Stanislav Poniatowski, and the young heir to the Russian throne, Grand Duchess Ekaterina Alekseevna (the future Catherine II). Handsome brilliant Polish the diplomat managed to captivate the Russian princess, and their love relationship lasted almost until the end of the 50s of the XVIII century. Historians explain this connection in different ways. The future Catherine the Great (born Sophia Augusta Frederick, Princess of Anhalt-Zerbt) at the age of fifteen (1744) was called with her mother to Russia by Empress Elizaveta Petrovna, baptized in the Orthodox rite under the name of Catherine Alekseevna and named the bride of Grand Duke Peter Fedorovich (the future emperor Peter III), whom she married in 1745. But the personal life of the newly-made Russian princess was unsuccessful in her new homeland. Her husband Peter was infantile, and therefore during the first years of their marriage, there was no marital relationship between them. In the early 1750s, Catherine had an affair with Guards officer S. V. Saltykov. And although in 1754 she gave birth to a son, the future Emperor Paul I, Catherine still did not find happiness in married life.

Stanisław August Poniatowski (born in 1732) was the offspring of two old Polish aristocratic families, Poniatowski and Czartoryski. Already in 1752, he received a seat in the Polish Sejm (parliament), where he gained fame for his eloquence and wit. Stepping on the path diplomatic service, the young Poniatowski went to Paris, where he willingly took part in the cheerful and luxurious life of the French royal court. In 1757, the Polish King and Elector of Saxony August III appointed Stanisław August as his envoy to Russia. This appointment was arranged by our hero's influential maternal relatives, the Czartoryskis. Through the young Poniatowski, the Czartoryskis hoped to enlist the support of the Russian court in their intrigue against Augustus III. As you know, in St. Petersburg, Poniatowski did not succeed too much in protecting family interests, but a long love relationship with the future Russian empress changed his life forever, and his whole future career passed under their sign.

The arrival of a new lover

In the early 1760s, Catherine became interested in new lover - Guards officer Grigory Orlov, and Stanisław August was dismissed. In 1762, Stanislav Poniatowski returned to his homeland, but most importantly, at the end of the love affair, he retained the benevolent attitude of the future Catherine the Great. In 1763, the Polish king August III died. In Polish society, by that time, there was an opinion about the need for reforms in order to strengthen state power, eliminate the dominance of foreign states in foreign and domestic politics Commonwealth. The neighbors of the Commonwealth, Austria and Prussia, taking advantage of its weakness, sought to divide the Polish lands. These plans were opposed by Russia, which considered the Commonwealth as a puppet state and advocated for its integrity. But Russia was also reserved about the reform projects in Poland, suspecting them of an attempt to get out of its tutelage.

How Catherine Helped a Former Lover to Become King

By that time, two parties had formed in the camp of supporters of reforms in the Commonwealth. One of them was headed by the Potocki princes, who occupied militant anti-Russian positions. The second was headed by the princes Czartoryski, who believed that without the support of Russia, no reforms in Poland were possible. In this situation, elections were held for a new Polish king (the Commonwealth, having a king at its head, was in fact a monarchical republic). The Czartoryskis nominated their relative, Stanisław August Poniatowski, who had close ties to the St. Petersburg court. And this proposal found a favorable response in the female heart of Catherine II, who wished to have a person close to her on the Polish throne. Catherine was supported by the Prussian king Frederick II the Great, who, in turn, treated the young Russian empress with great respect. Austria, which put its stake on the candidate of the Potocki party, remained in the minority, and the outcome of the elections was a foregone conclusion. To make her position more convincing, the Russian Empress sent an army of thirty thousand to Poland., and on September 7, 1764, the Sejm proclaimed Poniatowski King of the Commonwealth Stanisław II Augustus.

It so happened that with the help of Catherine II, a natural Pole appeared on the Polish throne, in whose veins the blood of the Piast dynasty flowed. In other words, we can say that at that moment the Piasts regained their ancient throne again, since, starting from the middle of the 14th century, they no longer ruled the country, and the Polish throne was occupied mainly by foreigners. In the first years of his reign, Stanislav August II, as they say, bathed in the ocean of popular love and popularity. The new king was distinguished by a good-natured character, was a witty and pleasant conversationalist, loved the brilliance of secular life. His superficial education and, as a result, shallow knowledge in the sciences was compensated by concerns about the development of the Polish education system. Special delights in Warsaw were caused by parties at the court on Thursdays, when the whole color of the Polish artistic, literary and scientific world. The former lover of Grand Duchess Ekaterina Alekseevna shone, and already in his usual role - numerous socialites and high-born aristocrats literally lined up for the king's bed, and considered it an honor to be listed as the mistresses of Stanislav August II.

Reforms that changed the course of history and forced to abandon the lover

On this wave of public support, Stanisław August carried out some reforms aimed at centralizing state power and restriction of oligarchic arbitrariness. These steps aroused dissatisfaction not only among the reactionary part of the magnate and gentry, but also in Russia and Prussia. A consistent opponent of these reforms was the Russian envoy in Warsaw, Prince N. V. Repnin, who managed to rally part of the Polish gentry against the king. Relying on the occupying Russian army stationed in Poland already on a permanent basis, the opponents of the reforms blocked their implementation. And just here Ekaterina showed that for her state interests are more important than personal attachments, refusing to support his former lover. The ladies' minion Stanislav August had to obediently follow the instructions of the real manager of Poland's affairs - Prince Repnin.

Who started hostilities

But following in the wake of Russian policy caused a cooling, and then hatred of the Polish patriots towards their so recently adored king. His most energetic opponents formed the Bar Confederation, which in 1768 began hostilities against the Russian and royal troops. Stanislaus Augustus II avoided decisive action against the confederates, preferring secret negotiations and bribing the leaders of the confederation. The main burden of the war fell on the shoulders of the Russian occupying army, which crushed the Confederate uprising in 1772.

The rebellion of the Bar Confederation and its defeat served as a pretext for the demand of Austria and Prussia to divide the Polish lands, in view of the inability of the Commonwealth to maintain proper order on its territory. Engaged in a war with Turkey (1768 - 1774), Russia was unable to resist the claims of Austria and Prussia and also decided to take part in the division of an increasingly weakening country. In 1772, a significant part of the territory of the Commonwealth came under the jurisdiction of neighboring states. Stanisław August dutifully accepted the decision of the Great Powers, not daring to protest or go over to the side of the Polish patriots. From that moment Stanislav August II ceased to play any significant role in the political life of his country. He spent his years in the fun and pleasures of social life, without thinking about the future. To reproaches of forgetting the interests of Poland, Stanisław August answered with bravado that he personally needed as much land as would fit under his triangular hat.

Who benefited from Russia's war against Turkey

In the meantime, the real threat of liquidation of the Polish state has accelerated the process of maturation of the national self-consciousness of the Polish people. The figures of Polish education Stanisław Staszic and Hugo Kollontai put forward a program of political and social reforms designed to strengthen the Polish statehood. All this coincided with the beginning of the next war of Russia in alliance with Austria against Turkey (1787 - 1791), which obviously began to drag on. Polish patriots decided to take advantage of this situation and, using the main ideas of Staszic and Kollontai, they convened the so-called Four-Year Sejm of 1788-1792, which adopted a series of reforms aimed at strengthening the army, changing the state-legal system, and adopted the "basic law" (Constitution of May 3, 1791).

Stanislav August II decided that Catherine the Great had no time for Poland, and suddenly supported the patriots, swearing allegiance to the new Constitution. But man proposes and God disposes. In 1790 Suvorov with 8000 army took impregnable Ishmael, which was defended by 35000 Turkish army, and in 1791 the war ended with the complete triumph of Russia and its ally Austria. The reactionary Polish magnates immediately raised their heads, alarmed by the infringement of their rights, forming the Targowice Conference in 1792, at the call of which the troops of Prussia and Russia again occupied the territory of the Commonwealth. Stanisław August immediately renounced his oath of allegiance to the Constitution and went over to the side of the Targovičians.

Territory division

In 1793 the second partition of the territory of Poland took place between Prussia and Russia, the reforms of the Four-Year Diet were cancelled. In response, in 1794, an uprising broke out under the leadership of Tadeusz Kosciuszko (the hero of the recently ended War for the Independence of the United States from the British crown of 1776 - 1783). The rebels executed some figures of the Targowice Conference. The king again withdrew from the course of events, rightly fearing for his life, remembering the fate of Louis XVI Bourbon, who was recently executed by the French revolutionaries (the Great French Revolution of 1789-1794). was opposed to this uprising. He entered into secret correspondence with Prussian troops besieging Warsaw. Cardinal Poniatowski's letters were intercepted by the insurgents, he was imprisoned, and he faced the death penalty by hanging. His brother, the king, did not lift a finger to save his blood relative, and all he could do for him was to carry into the cell the poison that the primate had taken, and thus avoided a shameful death on the gallows. Catherine the Great, annoyed by the events in Poland, summoned Suvorov from exile and threw him into battle. The vaunted Kosciuszko was unexpectedly beaten by the "Russian lion", which had far fewer troops, in the very heart of the uprising - in a military camp in the Warsaw suburb of Prague.

Catherine called a former lover

When the uprising was finally crushed, the third and final partition of the Commonwealth took place, which disappeared for more than a century from the political map of the world. Stanislav August readily obeyed the demand of Catherine the Great - he arrived from Warsaw to Grodno, where on November 25, 1795 he abdicated. However, here, too, the generous heart of Catherine could not refuse the once beloved person. Stanislav Ponyatovsky was summoned to St. Petersburg, where he led a luxurious lifestyle. Remains a mystery- why did the very cautious and tactful Catherine the Great order the ancient Piast royal throne to be brought from Warsaw and to determine such an inappropriate purpose for it? Perhaps Catherine wanted to remind herself all the time (we must not forget that at that time a fire raging deadly for monarchs in Europe french revolution), what can happen to the ancient glory of the ancestors, if you behave the way the Polish elite did towards their country? After all, Russia has always treated Poland with respect, calling it Slavic France. Catherine the Great also loved Poland, as evidenced by her long-term tutelage of Stanislav Poniatowski. And, as they say, from love to hate is just one step.

Stanislav outlived his crowned lover for more than a year. He died in February 1798, leaving behind huge debts that he had incurred under the protection of the imperial family. The stingy Paul I refused to pay the bills of the last Polish king. Even from Stanislav Poniatowski there were memoirs in which he posthumously poured mud on his once beloved benefactress, published in 1914-1924.

The last king of the Commonwealth in 1764-1795. In 1752, Mr.. received a seat in the Polish Sejm, where he gained fame for his eloquence and wit. In 1757, the Polish king and Elector of Saxony August III appointed him his envoy to Russia. This appointment was arranged by Stanisław August's influential maternal relatives. Through the young Poniatowski, the Czartoryskis hoped to enlist the support of the Russian court in their intrigue against Augustus III. In St. Petersburg, Poniatowski was not very successful in protecting family interests, but he managed to establish a love relationship with the Grand Duchess Ekaterina Alekseevna, the future Russian Empress Catherine II. Even after the love affair ended and in 1762 Poniatowski returned to his homeland, Catherine retained a benevolent attitude towards Stanislav August. In 1763 King August III died. In Polish society, by this time, there was an opinion about the need for reforms in order to strengthen state power, eliminate the dominance of foreign states in the foreign and domestic policy of the Commonwealth. The neighbors of the Commonwealth, Prussia and Austria, taking advantage of its weakness, sought to divide the Polish lands. These plans were opposed by Russia, which considered the Commonwealth as its puppet state and stood for its integrity. But Russia has been reserved about reform projects in Poland, suspecting an attempt to get out of its tutelage. By that time, two parties had formed in the camp of Polish supporters of reforms. One of them was headed by the princes Pototsky, who occupied a militantly anti-Russian position. The second was headed by the princes Czartoryski, who believed that without the support of Russia, no reforms in Poland were possible. In this situation, elections were held for a new Polish king. The Czartoryskis nominated their relative, Stanisław August Poniatowski, who had close ties to the St. Petersburg court. This proposal found a favorable response in the heart of Catherine II, who wished to have a person close to her on the Polish throne. Catherine was supported by the Prussian king Frederick II the Great and the outcome of the elections was a foregone conclusion. On September 7, 1764, the Sejm proclaimed Poniatowski King of the Commonwealth Stanisław II August. The election of a natural Pole as king, in whose veins the blood of the ancient Piast dynasty flowed, aroused the enthusiasm of Polish patriots. The new king was distinguished by a good-natured character, was a witty and pleasant conversationalist, loved the brilliance of secular life. His superficial education and, as a result, shallow knowledge in the sciences was compensated by concerns about the development of the Polish education system. Special delights in Warsaw were caused by the parties at the court on Thursdays, when the whole color of the Polish artistic, literary and scientific world gathered. A lover of the fair sex, Stanislaw August willingly met the wishes of numerous ladies of the Polish high society, who considered it an honor to become a royal mistress. On this wave of public support, Stanislav August carried out some reforms aimed at centralizing state power and limiting oligarchic arbitrariness. In particular, the right of the Liberum veto was limited. These steps aroused discontent not only among the reactionary sections of the magnate and gentry, but also in Russia and Prussia. A consistent opponent of the reforms was the Russian envoy in Warsaw, Prince N. V. Repnin, who managed to rally part of the Polish gentry against the king. Relying on the 30,000-strong Russian army stationed in Poland, the opponents of the reforms blocked their implementation. Catherine II refused to support Stanislav Augustus. The king, forced to focus on Russia, agreed with Repnin's demands. Following in the wake of Russian policy caused a cooling, and then hatred of the Polish patriots towards the king. His most energetic opponents formed the Bar Confederation, which in 1768 began fighting against Russian and royal troops. Stanisław August avoided decisive action against the Confederates, preferring secret negotiations and bribing the leaders of the confederation. The main burden of the war fell on the shoulders of the Russian expeditionary corps, which crushed the resistance of the Confederates in 1772. The Bar Confederation served as a pretext for the demand of Prussia and Austria to divide the Polish lands, due to the inability of the Commonwealth to maintain proper order on its territory. Engaged in a war with Turkey, Russia could not resist the claims of Prussia and Austria and decided to also take part in the partition. In 1772, a significant part of the territory of the Commonwealth came under the jurisdiction of neighboring states. Stanislaw August dutifully accepted the decision of the Great Powers, not daring to protest and openly go over to the side of the Polish patriots. Since that time, Stanisław August ceased to play a significant political role in the life of Poland. He spent years in the fun and pleasures of social life, not thinking about the future. To reproaches for forgetting the interests of the homeland, Stanislav August answered with bravado that he personally needed as much land as would fit under his triangular hat. In the meantime, the real threat of liquidation of the Polish state has accelerated the process of maturation of the national self-consciousness of the Polish people. Polish educators Stanisław Staszic and Hugo Kollontai put forward a program of political and social reforms designed to strengthen the Polish state. This program determined the activities of the Four-Year Sejm of 1788-1792, which adopted a number of reforms aimed at strengthening the army, changing the state-legal system, finally abolished the liberum veto, and adopted the “basic law” (Constitution on May 3, 1791). Stanisław August supported the patriots and swore allegiance to the constitution. The reactionary magnates opposed the infringement of their privileges and in 1792 formed the Targowice Confederation, at the call of which the troops of Russia and Prussia occupied the territory of the Commonwealth. The king immediately renounced the constitution and joined the Targovichians. In 1793, the second division of part of the territory of Poland between Prussia and Russia took place, and the reforms of the Four-Year Sejm were canceled. In response, in 1794 an uprising broke out under the leadership of Tadeusz Kosciuszko (Polish Uprising of 1794). The rebels executed some members of the Targowice Confederation. The king tried not to interfere in the course of events, but feared for his life, remembering the fate of Louis XVI of Bourbon. The King's brother, Primate of the Catholic Church in Poland, Mikhail-Yuri Poniatowski, opposed the uprising. He entered into a secret correspondence with the Prussian troops besieging Warsaw. Poniatowski's letters were intercepted by the rebels, he was imprisoned and faced the death penalty by hanging. Mikhail-Yuri managed to avoid the gallows only by taking a lethal dose of poison, which Stanislav August himself brought to prison. After the suppression of the uprising and the third, final partition of Poland, Stanislaw August, at the request of Russia, left Warsaw for Grodno, where on November 25, 1795 he abdicated. Last years he spent in St. Petersburg, leading a luxurious lifestyle. After the death of Stanisław August, he left huge debts and memoirs, which were published in 1914-1924.