Stanislaw August Poniatowski
Encyclopedia
Stanisław II August Poniatowski (born Count Stanisław Antoni Poniatowski; 17 January 1732 – 12 February 1798) was the last King and Grand Duke of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
(1764–95). He was the son of Count Stanisław Poniatowski, Castellan
of Kraków
, and Princess Konstancja Czartoryska
; brother of Michał Jerzy Poniatowski, (1736–94), Primate of Poland; and uncle to Prince Józef Poniatowski, (1763–1813).
, Grand Duke of Lithuania
and Duke of Ruthenia
, Prussia
, Masovia
, Samogitia, Kiev
, Volhynia
, Podolia
, Podlasie, Livonia
, Smolensk
, Severia
and Chernihiv
.
). By the age of twenty, in 1752, as a Sejm
deputy
, he had attracted attention with his oratory.
He owed his career ultimately, however, to his family connections with the powerful Czartoryski
family, who in 1755 sent him to Saint Petersburg
, Russian Empire
, in the service of British ambassador Sir Charles Hanbury-Williams
. The same year, through the influence of Russian Empress Elizabeth and Chancellor Bestuzhev-Ryumin
, he joined the Russian court as ambassador of Saxony
.
At Saint Petersburg he met the twenty-six-year-old future Empress Catherine Alexeievna
(Catherine the Great). She was irresistibly drawn to the handsome, brilliant young Polish nobleman, for whom she forsook all other lovers. In 1755 he was appointed to the office of Stolnik Litewski and later he became Starosta
of Przemyśl
.
In October 1763, upon the death of Poland's King August III
, negotiations began regarding who should be elected king. After a coup d'état
on 7 September 1764, supported by Russian troops, the ambitious 32-year-old Poniatowski was elected King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
.
The formal coronation took place in Warsaw
on 25 November 1764. The new King's uncles in the "Familia
" would have preferred another nephew, Prince Adam Kazimierz Czartoryski on the throne, characterized by his contemporary as débauché, sinon dévoyé (debauched if not depraved), but Czartoryski had declined to seek the office.
Stanisław August, as he now styled himself, combining the names of his two immediate royal predecessors, or "Ciołek" (bull calf, as he was derisively referred to in reference to his Coat-of-Arms), inaugurated economic changes by supporting the Familia's reform program until 1766, when he fell out with his uncles.
In 1768 the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth effectively became a protectorate
of the Russian Empire
.
As king, Poniatowski supported the Russian army's repression of the Bar Confederation
between 1768-72. In 1770 the Council of the Bar Confederation had proclaimed him dethroned. In 1771 he was kidnapped by Bar Confederate sympathizers and briefly held prisoner outside of Warsaw.
Although he protested the first partition
of the Commonwealth (1772), he was powerless to do anything about it, and in the face of implacable opposition from the Polish magnates.
Moreover, Poniatowski was obliged to place his reliance in Russia's ambassador
, Otto Magnus von Stackelberg
.
In 1783/1784 he married morganatically his lover Elżbieta Szydłowska
(1748–1810), whose first husband Jan Jerzy Grabowski was general inspektor wojsk litewskich, and by whom he had an only son, born before marriage, Count Stanisław Konopnicy-Grabowski (1780-Dresden
, 1845).
Poniatowski son married firstly Cecylia Dembowska (19 December 1787 - 17 January 1821 ), and secondly May 8, 1822 Countess Julia Zabiełło; he left issue, his descendants were the Counts Konopnicy-Grabowski. Acting in concert with him, he hoped to strengthen his authority and bring about essential reforms.
It was only during the Four-Year Sejm of 1788-1792 that he threw in his lot with the reformers, centered in the Patriotic Party
, and with them co-authored the Constitution
of 3 May 1791.
Poniatowski's eloquent speech before the Sejm on taking an oath to uphold the newly adopted Constitution moved his audience to tears. Shortly thereafter, the Targowica Confederation was formed by Polish nobility to overthrow the Constitution. The confederates aligned with Russia's Catherine the Great, and the Russian army entered Poland, starting the Polish-Russian War of 1792
.
After a series of battles, Poniatowski, upon the advice of Hugo Kołłątaj and others, acceded to the Confederation. This undermined the operations of the Polish Army, which under Tadeusz Kościuszko
and the King's own nephew, Prince Jozef Poniatowski, had been performing prodigiously on the battlefield. The war was ended, and Russia and Prussia undertook the Second partition of Poland
in 1793.
King Stanisław August remains a controversial figure. He was accused by some of striving for absolutism, of doing away with the liberties of the szlachta
(Polish nobility), of desiring the downfall of the Roman Catholic Church
; by others, of weakness and subservience, even of treason, especially after he had joined the Targowica Confederation
.
Nevertheless, he did accomplish much in the realm of culture and education. He founded the School of Chivalry (otherwise "Corps of Cadets"), which functioned 1765-1794 and whose alumni included Tadeusz Kościuszko
; and the Commission of National Education (1773), the world's first national ministry of education. In 1765 he helped found the Monitor
, the leading periodical of the Polish Enlightenment, and the Polish national theater. He hosted his famous "Thursday Dinners
", the most brilliant social functions in the Polish capital. He supported the establishment of manufactures and the development of mining. He remodeled the Royal Castle
in Warsaw, and erected the elegant Royal Baths complex in Warsaw's most romantic park. He created a numismatic collection, a picture gallery, and an engravings room. His plan to create an even larger painting gallery in Warsaw was interrupted by the destruction of Poland; nonetheless, most of the paintings he had ordered can now be seen at the Dulwich Picture Gallery
in London.
After the final, Third Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
, Stanisław August was forced to abdicate
(25 November 1795) and left for Saint Petersburg, Russia. There, a virtual prisoner, he subsisted on a pension granted to him by Empress Catherine the Great, and died deeply in debt. He was buried at the Catholic Church of St. Catherine
in St. Petersburg.
In 1938 his remains were transferred to a church at Wołczyn, his birthplace, and in 1995, to St. John's Cathedral
in Warsaw, where, on 3 May 1791, he had celebrated the adoption of the Constitution he had co-authored and/or endorsed. Among his living relatives is Elena Poniatowska
, a famous Mexican journalist and author.
, Bishop and Martyr, in honor of Poland's and his own patron saint, as Poland's second order of chivalry to reward Poles for noteworthy service to their king. In 1792 he also founded a third order, the Order of Virtuti Militari to reward Poles for exceptional military leadership and courage in combat.
The King is one of the figures immortalized in Jan Matejko
's 1891 painting, Constitution of May 3, 1791
.
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
(1764–95). He was the son of Count Stanisław Poniatowski, Castellan
Castellan
A castellan was the governor or captain of a castle. The word stems from the Latin Castellanus, derived from castellum "castle". Also known as a constable.-Duties:...
of Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, and Princess Konstancja Czartoryska
Konstancja Czartoryska (1700-1759)
Princess Konstancja Czartoryska was a daughter of the Polish–Lithuanian magnate Kazimierz Czartoryski....
; brother of Michał Jerzy Poniatowski, (1736–94), Primate of Poland; and uncle to Prince Józef Poniatowski, (1763–1813).
Royal titles
English translation of the Polish text of the 1791 Constitution: Stanisław August, by the grace of God and the will of the people King of PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Grand Duke of Lithuania
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state from the 12th /13th century until 1569 and then as a constituent part of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until 1791 when Constitution of May 3, 1791 abolished it in favor of unitary state. It was founded by the Lithuanians, one of the polytheistic...
and Duke of Ruthenia
Ruthenia
Ruthenia is the Latin word used onwards from the 13th century, describing lands of the Ancient Rus in European manuscripts. Its geographic and culturo-ethnic name at that time was applied to the parts of Eastern Europe. Essentially, the word is a false Latin rendering of the ancient place name Rus...
, Prussia
Royal Prussia
Royal Prussia was a Region of the Kingdom of Poland and of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth . Polish Prussia included Pomerelia, Chełmno Land , Malbork Voivodeship , Gdańsk , Toruń , and Elbląg . It is distinguished from Ducal Prussia...
, Masovia
Duchy of Masovia
The Duchy of Masovia with its capital at Płock was a medieval duchy formed when the Polish Kingdom of the Piasts fragmented in 1138. It was located in the historic Masovian region of northeastern Poland...
, Samogitia, Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, Volhynia
Volhynia
Volhynia, Volynia, or Volyn is a historic region in western Ukraine located between the rivers Prypiat and Southern Bug River, to the north of Galicia and Podolia; the region is named for the former city of Volyn or Velyn, said to have been located on the Southern Bug River, whose name may come...
, Podolia
Podolia
The region of Podolia is an historical region in the west-central and south-west portions of present-day Ukraine, corresponding to Khmelnytskyi Oblast and Vinnytsia Oblast. Northern Transnistria, in Moldova, is also a part of Podolia...
, Podlasie, Livonia
Duchy of Livonia
The Duchy of Livonia was a territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania — and later the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth — that existed from 1561 to 1621...
, Smolensk
Smolensk
Smolensk is a city and the administrative center of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, located on the Dnieper River. Situated west-southwest of Moscow, this walled city was destroyed several times throughout its long history since it was on the invasion routes of both Napoleon and Hitler. Today, Smolensk...
, Severia
Severia
Severia or Siveria is a historical region in present-day northern Ukraine and southwestern Russia, centered around the city of Novhorod-Siverskyi in Ukraine.-Severians:...
and Chernihiv
Chernihiv
Chernihiv or Chernigov is a historic city in northern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Chernihiv Oblast , as well as of the surrounding Chernihivskyi Raion within the oblast...
.
Biography
Poniatowski was born in 1732 at Wołczyn, (now BelarusBelarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
). By the age of twenty, in 1752, as a Sejm
Sejm
The Sejm is the lower house of the Polish parliament. The Sejm is made up of 460 deputies, or Poseł in Polish . It is elected by universal ballot and is presided over by a speaker called the Marshal of the Sejm ....
deputy
Chamber of Deputies
Chamber of deputies is the name given to a legislative body such as the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or can refer to a unicameral legislature.-Description:...
, he had attracted attention with his oratory.
He owed his career ultimately, however, to his family connections with the powerful Czartoryski
Czartoryski
Czartoryski is the surname of a Polish-Ukrainian-Lithuanian magnate family also known as the Familia. They used the Czartoryski Coat of arms and were the leading noble family of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the 18th century.-History:The Czartoryski is a family of a Grand Ducal...
family, who in 1755 sent him to Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
, in the service of British ambassador Sir Charles Hanbury-Williams
Charles Hanbury Williams
Sir Charles Hanbury Williams, KB , diplomat, writer and satirist, son of John Hanbury, a Welsh ironmaster, assumed the name of Williams on succeeding to the estate of his godfather Charles Williams, in 1720....
. The same year, through the influence of Russian Empress Elizabeth and Chancellor Bestuzhev-Ryumin
Aleksei Petrovich Bestuzhev-Ryumin
Count Alexey Petrovich Bestuzhev-Ryumin , Grand Chancellor of Russia, was one of the most influential and successful European diplomats of the 18th century. He was chiefly responsible for Russian foreign policy during the reign of Empress Elizaveta Petrovna.-Early life and career:Alexey was born...
, he joined the Russian court as ambassador of Saxony
Electorate of Saxony
The Electorate of Saxony , sometimes referred to as Upper Saxony, was a State of the Holy Roman Empire. It was established when Emperor Charles IV raised the Ascanian duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg to the status of an Electorate by the Golden Bull of 1356...
.
At Saint Petersburg he met the twenty-six-year-old future Empress Catherine Alexeievna
Catherine II of Russia
Catherine II, also known as Catherine the Great , Empress of Russia, was born in Stettin, Pomerania, Prussia on as Sophie Friederike Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst-Dornburg...
(Catherine the Great). She was irresistibly drawn to the handsome, brilliant young Polish nobleman, for whom she forsook all other lovers. In 1755 he was appointed to the office of Stolnik Litewski and later he became Starosta
Starosta
Starost is a title for an official or unofficial position of leadership that has been used in various contexts through most of Slavic history. It can be translated as "elder"...
of Przemyśl
Przemysl
Przemyśl is a city in south-eastern Poland with 66,756 inhabitants, as of June 2009. In 1999, it became part of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship; it was previously the capital of Przemyśl Voivodeship....
.
In October 1763, upon the death of Poland's King August III
Augustus III of Poland
Augustus III, known as the Saxon ; ; also Prince-elector Friedrich August II was the Elector of Saxony in 1733-1763, as Frederick Augustus II , King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania in 1734-1763.-Biography:Augustus was the only legitimate son of Augustus II the Strong, Imperial Prince-Elector...
, negotiations began regarding who should be elected king. After a coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
on 7 September 1764, supported by Russian troops, the ambitious 32-year-old Poniatowski was elected King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
.
The formal coronation took place in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
on 25 November 1764. The new King's uncles in the "Familia
Familia
Familia was the name of a Polish political party led by the Czartoryski magnates and families allied with them, and formed toward the end of the reign of King August II...
" would have preferred another nephew, Prince Adam Kazimierz Czartoryski on the throne, characterized by his contemporary as débauché, sinon dévoyé (debauched if not depraved), but Czartoryski had declined to seek the office.
Stanisław August, as he now styled himself, combining the names of his two immediate royal predecessors, or "Ciołek" (bull calf, as he was derisively referred to in reference to his Coat-of-Arms), inaugurated economic changes by supporting the Familia's reform program until 1766, when he fell out with his uncles.
In 1768 the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth effectively became a protectorate
Protectorate
In history, the term protectorate has two different meanings. In its earliest inception, which has been adopted by modern international law, it is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity...
of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
.
As king, Poniatowski supported the Russian army's repression of the Bar Confederation
Bar Confederation
The Bar Confederation was an association of Polish nobles formed at the fortress of Bar in Podolia in 1768 to defend the internal and external independence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth against Russian influence and against King Stanisław August Poniatowski and Polish reformers who were...
between 1768-72. In 1770 the Council of the Bar Confederation had proclaimed him dethroned. In 1771 he was kidnapped by Bar Confederate sympathizers and briefly held prisoner outside of Warsaw.
Although he protested the first partition
Partitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland for 123 years...
of the Commonwealth (1772), he was powerless to do anything about it, and in the face of implacable opposition from the Polish magnates.
Moreover, Poniatowski was obliged to place his reliance in Russia's ambassador
Ambassadors and envoys from Russia to Poland (1763–1794)
Ambassadors and envoys from Russia to Poland-Lithuania in the years 1763-1794 were among the most important characters in the politics of Poland. Their powers went far beyond the those of most diplomats and can be compared to those of viceroys in the colonies of Spanish Empire, or Roman Republic's...
, Otto Magnus von Stackelberg
Otto Magnus von Stackelberg (ambassador)
Reichsgraf Otto Magnus von Stackelberg was a diplomat of the Russian Empire, an envoy in Madrid from 1767 to 1771, ambassador in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1772 to 1790 and in Sweden from 1791 to 1793....
.
In 1783/1784 he married morganatically his lover Elżbieta Szydłowska
Elżbieta Szydłowska
Elżbieta Szydłowska, married surname Grabowska, was a member of the Polish-Lithuanian gentry, a mistress and a morganatic wife of the last elective King of Poland, Stanisław August Poniatowski.- Biography :...
(1748–1810), whose first husband Jan Jerzy Grabowski was general inspektor wojsk litewskich, and by whom he had an only son, born before marriage, Count Stanisław Konopnicy-Grabowski (1780-Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
, 1845).
Poniatowski son married firstly Cecylia Dembowska (19 December 1787 - 17 January 1821 ), and secondly May 8, 1822 Countess Julia Zabiełło; he left issue, his descendants were the Counts Konopnicy-Grabowski. Acting in concert with him, he hoped to strengthen his authority and bring about essential reforms.
It was only during the Four-Year Sejm of 1788-1792 that he threw in his lot with the reformers, centered in the Patriotic Party
Patriotic Party
The Patriotic Party , also known as the Patriot Party or, in English, as the Reform Party, was a political movement in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the period of the Four-Year Sejm of 1788–92, whose chief achievement was the Constitution of 3 May 1791...
, and with them co-authored the Constitution
Constitution of May 3, 1791
The Constitution of May 3, 1791 was adopted as a "Government Act" on that date by the Sejm of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Historian Norman Davies calls it "the first constitution of its type in Europe"; other scholars also refer to it as the world's second oldest constitution...
of 3 May 1791.
Poniatowski's eloquent speech before the Sejm on taking an oath to uphold the newly adopted Constitution moved his audience to tears. Shortly thereafter, the Targowica Confederation was formed by Polish nobility to overthrow the Constitution. The confederates aligned with Russia's Catherine the Great, and the Russian army entered Poland, starting the Polish-Russian War of 1792
Polish-Russian War of 1792
The Polish–Russian War of 1792 or War in Defence of the Constitution was fought between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth on one side, and the Targowica Confederation and the Russian Empire on the other....
.
After a series of battles, Poniatowski, upon the advice of Hugo Kołłątaj and others, acceded to the Confederation. This undermined the operations of the Polish Army, which under Tadeusz Kościuszko
Tadeusz Kosciuszko
Andrzej Tadeusz Bonawentura Kościuszko was a Polish–Lithuanian and American general and military leader during the Kościuszko Uprising. He is a national hero of Poland, Lithuania, the United States and Belarus...
and the King's own nephew, Prince Jozef Poniatowski, had been performing prodigiously on the battlefield. The war was ended, and Russia and Prussia undertook the Second partition of Poland
Partitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland for 123 years...
in 1793.
King Stanisław August remains a controversial figure. He was accused by some of striving for absolutism, of doing away with the liberties of the szlachta
Szlachta
The szlachta was a legally privileged noble class with origins in the Kingdom of Poland. It gained considerable institutional privileges during the 1333-1370 reign of Casimir the Great. In 1413, following a series of tentative personal unions between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of...
(Polish nobility), of desiring the downfall of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
; by others, of weakness and subservience, even of treason, especially after he had joined the Targowica Confederation
Targowica Confederation
The Targowica Confederation was a confederation established by Polish and Lithuanian magnates on 27 April 1792, in Saint Petersburg, with the backing of the Russian Empress Catherine II. The confederation opposed the Polish Constitution of May 3, 1791, which had been adopted by the Great Sejm,...
.
Nevertheless, he did accomplish much in the realm of culture and education. He founded the School of Chivalry (otherwise "Corps of Cadets"), which functioned 1765-1794 and whose alumni included Tadeusz Kościuszko
Tadeusz Kosciuszko
Andrzej Tadeusz Bonawentura Kościuszko was a Polish–Lithuanian and American general and military leader during the Kościuszko Uprising. He is a national hero of Poland, Lithuania, the United States and Belarus...
; and the Commission of National Education (1773), the world's first national ministry of education. In 1765 he helped found the Monitor
Monitor (Polish newspaper)
The Monitor was the first newspaper in Poland, printed from 1765 to 1785, during the Polish Enlightenment. It was founded in March 1765 by Ignacy Krasicki and Franciszek Bohomolec, with active support from King Stanisław August Poniatowski. It came out weekly, later semi-weekly...
, the leading periodical of the Polish Enlightenment, and the Polish national theater. He hosted his famous "Thursday Dinners
Thursday Dinners
The Thursday Dinners were meetings of artists, intellectuals, and statesmen held by the last King of Poland, Stanislaus Augustus Poniatowski in the era of Enlightenment in Poland....
", the most brilliant social functions in the Polish capital. He supported the establishment of manufactures and the development of mining. He remodeled the Royal Castle
Royal Castle, Warsaw
The Royal Castle in Warsaw is a castle residency and was the official residence of the Polish monarchs. It is located in the Castle Square, at the entrance to the Warsaw Old Town. The personal offices of the king and the administrative offices of the Royal Court of Poland were located there from...
in Warsaw, and erected the elegant Royal Baths complex in Warsaw's most romantic park. He created a numismatic collection, a picture gallery, and an engravings room. His plan to create an even larger painting gallery in Warsaw was interrupted by the destruction of Poland; nonetheless, most of the paintings he had ordered can now be seen at the Dulwich Picture Gallery
Dulwich Picture Gallery
Dulwich Picture Gallery is an art gallery in Dulwich, South London. England's first purpose-built public art gallery, it was designed by Regency architect Sir John Soane and opened to the public in 1817. Soane arranged the exhibition spaces as a series of interlinked rooms illuminated naturally...
in London.
After the final, Third Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Partitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland for 123 years...
, Stanisław August was forced to abdicate
Abdication
Abdication occurs when a monarch, such as a king or emperor, renounces his office.-Terminology:The word abdication comes derives from the Latin abdicatio. meaning to disown or renounce...
(25 November 1795) and left for Saint Petersburg, Russia. There, a virtual prisoner, he subsisted on a pension granted to him by Empress Catherine the Great, and died deeply in debt. He was buried at the Catholic Church of St. Catherine
Catholic Church of St. Catherine
The Catholic Church of St. Catherine in St. Petersburg is one of the oldest Catholic churches in Russia. It is part of the Archdiocese of Moscow headed by H.E. Msgr. Paolo Pezzi. It is located on the Nevsky Prospekt.- Construction :...
in St. Petersburg.
In 1938 his remains were transferred to a church at Wołczyn, his birthplace, and in 1995, to St. John's Cathedral
St. John's Cathedral, Warsaw
St. John's Archcathedral in Warsaw is a Catholic church in Warsaw's Old Town, is the only one archcathedral in Warszawa, the other 3 are cathedrals in the Polish capital. St. John's stands immediately adjacent to Warsaw's Jesuit church, and is one of the oldest churches in the city and the main...
in Warsaw, where, on 3 May 1791, he had celebrated the adoption of the Constitution he had co-authored and/or endorsed. Among his living relatives is Elena Poniatowska
Elena Poniatowska
Elena Poniatowska is a Mexican journalist and author. Her generation of writers include Carlos Fuentes, José Emilio Pacheco and Carlos Monsiváis.-Life:Poniatowska was born in Paris to Prince Jean Joseph Evremont Sperry Poniatowski and Paula Amor Yturbe...
, a famous Mexican journalist and author.
Remembrance
In May 1765 Stanisław August Poniatowski established the Order of the knights of Order of Saint StanislausOrder of Saint Stanislaus
The Order of Saint Stanislaus , also spelled Stanislas, was an Order in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and The Kingdom of Poland between 1765 and 1831 and of Russian Empire from 1831 to 1917.-History of the Order of Saint Stanislaus:Stanisław August Poniatowski, King of Poland, established the...
, Bishop and Martyr, in honor of Poland's and his own patron saint, as Poland's second order of chivalry to reward Poles for noteworthy service to their king. In 1792 he also founded a third order, the Order of Virtuti Militari to reward Poles for exceptional military leadership and courage in combat.
The King is one of the figures immortalized in Jan Matejko
Jan Matejko
Jan Matejko was a Polish painter known for paintings of notable historical Polish political and military events. His most famous works include oil on canvas paintings like Battle of Grunwald, paintings of numerous other battles and court scenes, and a gallery of Polish kings...
's 1891 painting, Constitution of May 3, 1791
Constitution of May 3, 1791 (painting)
Constitution of May 3, 1791 is a late 19th century Romantic genre painting by the Polish artist Jan Matejko, commemorating the centenary of an important event in the history of Poland. It is an oil painting on canvas measuring 247 x 446 cm, and like many of Matejko's works, is a large and crowded...
.
Ancestors
Issue
| Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| By Elżbieta Szydłowska Elżbieta Szydłowska Elżbieta Szydłowska, married surname Grabowska, was a member of the Polish-Lithuanian gentry, a mistress and a morganatic wife of the last elective King of Poland, Stanisław August Poniatowski.- Biography :... |
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| Michał Grabowski | 1773 | 17 August 1812 | Brigadier general Brigadier General Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000... of the Army of the Duchy of Warsaw Duchy of Warsaw The Duchy of Warsaw was a Polish state established by Napoleon I in 1807 from the Polish lands ceded by the Kingdom of Prussia under the terms of the Treaties of Tilsit. The duchy was held in personal union by one of Napoleon's allies, King Frederick Augustus I of Saxony... , died during the Battle of Smolensk (1812) Battle of Smolensk (1812) The Battle of Smolensk, the first major battle of the French invasion of Russia took place on August 16–18, 1812, between 175,000 men of the Grande Armée under Napoleon Bonaparte and 130,000 Russians under Barclay de Tolly, though only about 50,000 and 60,000 respectively were actually engaged... ; no issue |
| Stanisław Grabowski | 29 October 1780 | 3 October 1845 | married twice |
| Izabela Grabowska | 26 March 1776 | 21 May 1858 | married to Walenty Sobolewski, three daughters |
| Aleksandra Grabowska | 13 April 1771 | 12 May 1789 | married to Franciszek Salezy Krasicki; no issue |
| By Catherine II of Russia | |||
| Anna Petrovna | 9 December 1757 | 8 March 1758 | |
| By Magdalena Agnieszka Lubomirska | |||
| Konstancja Żwanowa | 1768 | 1810 | married to Karol Żwan; no issue (divorced) |
| Michał Cichocki | September 1770 | 5 May 1828 | |
See also
- Ambassadors and envoys from Russia to Poland (1763–1794)Ambassadors and envoys from Russia to Poland (1763–1794)Ambassadors and envoys from Russia to Poland-Lithuania in the years 1763-1794 were among the most important characters in the politics of Poland. Their powers went far beyond the those of most diplomats and can be compared to those of viceroys in the colonies of Spanish Empire, or Roman Republic's...
- History of Poland (1569-1795)
- History of philosophy in Poland
Further reading
- Poniatowski's diaries and letters, held for many years in the Russian ministry of foreign affairs, appeared in the January 1908 Vestnik EvropyVestnik EvropyVestnik Evropy was the major liberal magazine of late-nineteenth-century Russia; it lasted from 1866 to 1918....
(Herald of Europe).