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153-806: The Mutual Assurance of the Two Nations stated implementing principles that had not been spelled out in the Constitution . The document specified the nature of the Polish–Lithuanian union and affirmed "the unity and indivisibility", within a single state, of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania . The document was to be an integral part of the pacta conventa and thus binding on King Stanisław August Poniatowski and all subsequent monarchs of

306-626: A bicameral legislature. As stated in Article V of the 3 May 1791 Constitution, the government was to ensure that "the integrity of the states, civil liberty, and social order shall always remain in equilibrium." Jacek Jędruch writes that the liberality of the 3 May 1791 Constitution's provisions "fell somewhere below [that of] the French Constitution of 1791 , above [that of the Canadas’] Constitutional Act of 1791 , and left

459-545: A de facto protectorate. "The worst possible news have arrived from Warsaw: the Polish king has become almost sovereign" was the reaction of one of Russia's chief foreign policy authors, Alexander Bezborodko , when he learned of the new constitution. The contacts of Polish reformers with the Revolutionary French National Assembly were seen by Poland's neighbors as evidence of a revolutionary conspiracy and

612-405: A " confederation " or belonged to one was a contrivance prominently used by foreign interests in the 18th century to force a legislative outcome. By the early 18th century, the magnates of Poland and Lithuania controlled the state, ensuring that no reforms that might weaken their privileged status (the " Golden Freedoms ") would be enacted. The ineffective monarchs who were elected to

765-761: A "moral constitution," most likely a Polish analog to the United States Bill of Rights and the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen . The Constitution called for the preparation of a new civil and criminal code , tentatively called the Stanisław August Code . The King also planned a reform improving the situation of the Jews. The constitutional formal procedures were performed for little over

918-654: A conflict between members of the Sejm and the King over civil rights for religious minorities, such as Protestants and Greek Orthodox whose positions, which were guaranteed equal with the Catholic majority by the Warsaw Confederation of 1573, had worsened considerably. Catherine and Frederick declared their support for the szlachta and their "liberties", and by October 1767 Russian troops had assembled outside Warsaw in support of

1071-606: A cultural center of the Classical era, competing with Paris, Dresden, and Vienna. The king himself was a passionate cellist. When government affairs allowed, he spent about 2 hours daily with the instrument. With 70 permanently employed musicians, the king's court orchestra was considered one of the largest in Europe. Buildings constructed under his reign were the Marmorpalais in Potsdam and

1224-548: A distinguished and fair empress, our neighboring friend and ally", who "respects the nation's need for well-being and always offers it a helping hand", they wrote. Russian armies entered Poland and Lithuania, starting the Polish–Russian War of 1792 . The Sejm voted to increase the army of the Commonwealth to 100,000 men, but owing to insufficient time and funds this number was never achieved and soon abandoned even as

1377-500: A goal. The Polish King and the reformers could field only a 37,000-man army, many of them untested recruits. This army, under the command of Józef Poniatowski and Tadeusz Kościuszko , defeated or fought to a draw the Russians on several occasions, but in the end, a defeat loomed inevitable. Despite Polish requests, Prussia refused to honor its alliance obligations. Stanisław August's attempts at negotiations with Russia proved futile. As

1530-621: A great power and defend Silesia, but had accepted immense economic and cultural damage in return. Plagues, hunger and disease caused the loss of over 300,000 civilians in Prussia alone. Frederick II aimed at publicly humiliating his heir to the throne. He expressed his regret that his other nephew, Charles William Ferdinand, Duke of Brunswick , could not succeed him on the throne. The art historian Alfred Hagemann interprets this behaviour as meaning that Frederick wanted to enhance his own image in history by deliberately dismantling his own successor. At

1683-531: A lackey of Russia and Catherine, and formed a confederation at the town of Bar . The Bar Confederation focused on limiting the influence of foreigners in Commonwealth affairs, and being pro-Catholic was generally opposed to religious tolerance . It began a civil war to overthrow the King, but its irregular forces were overwhelmed by Russian intervention in 1772. The defeat of the Bar Confederation set

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1836-614: A major European power only a century earlier and was still the largest state on the continent. In the 1590s, at the peak of the nobles' democracy, King Sigismund III Vasa 's court preacher—the Jesuit Piotr Skarga —had condemned the weaknesses of the Commonwealth. In the same period, writers and philosophers such as Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski and Wawrzyniec Grzymała Goślicki , and the egzekucja praw (Execution-of-the-Laws) reform movement led by Jan Zamoyski had advocated political reforms. In 1656, in what came to be known as

1989-567: A majority of both chambers voting jointly. The Senate had a suspensive veto over laws that the Sejm passed, valid until the next Sejm session, when it could be overruled. Article VI recognized the Prawo o sejmikach , the act on regional assemblies ( sejmiks ) passed on 24 March 1791. By reducing the enfranchisement of the noble classes, this law introduced major changes to the electoral ordinance . Previously, all nobles had been eligible to vote in sejmiks , which de facto meant that many of

2142-434: A minister. The King was the nation's commander-in-chief ; there is no mention of hetman s (the previous highest-ranking military commanders). The King had the right to grant pardons , except in cases of treason . The royal council's decisions were implemented by commissions, whose members were elected by the Sejm. The Constitution changed the government from an elective to a hereditary monarchy . This provision

2295-626: A new legal code . By 1780, he and his collaborators had produced the Zamoyski Code ( Zbiór praw sądowych ). It would have strengthened royal power, made all officials answerable to the Sejm, placed the clergy and their finances under state supervision, and deprived landless szlachta of many of their legal immunities. The Code would also have improved the situation of non-nobles—townspeople and peasants. Zamoyski's progressive legal code, containing elements of constitutional reform, met with opposition from native conservative szlachta and foreign powers;

2448-593: A new constitution for a reformed Poland. Mably submitted his recommendations Du gouvernement et des lois en Pologne ( The Government and Laws of Poland ) in 1770–71, whereas Rousseau finished his Considerations on the Government of Poland in 1772 when the First Partition was already underway. Works advocating the need for reform and presenting specific solutions were published in the Commonwealth by Polish–Lithuanian thinkers: On an Effective Way of Councils or on

2601-428: A partition by Russia , Brandenburg and Austria . As the Sejm failed to implement sufficient reforms, the state machinery became increasingly dysfunctional. A significant cause of the Commonwealth's downfall was the liberum veto ("free veto"), which, since 1652, had allowed any Sejm deputy to nullify all the legislation enacted by that Sejm. As a result, deputies bribed by magnates or foreign powers—primarily from

2754-525: A seizure, Frederick William II died on 16 November 1797 at 8:58 a.m., at the age of 53, in the "paneled writing cabinet" of the Marmorpalais. The burial of the deceased king took place on 11 December 1797, with a simple procession. Eight major generals carried the coffin. After the sermon, the service concluded with a cannon salute. The court society mourned for six weeks, during which time amusements such as theater and music events were forbidden both at

2907-406: A solid knowledge of Greek, Roman, Assyrian and Jewish history in particular. Occasionally Béguelin relaxed the lessons by taking the prince on excursions to Berlin manufactories, workshops and art studios. Dancing, fencing and riding were also on the programme. However, he did not receive an education that would have prepared Frederick William for the affairs of state of a reigning monarch. In 1751,

3060-461: A threat to the absolute monarchies. The Prussian statesman Ewald von Hertzberg expressed the fears of European conservatives: "The Poles have given the coup de grâce to the Prussian monarchy by voting a constitution", elaborating that a strong Commonwealth would likely demand return of the lands that Prussia had acquired in the First Partition. Magnates who had opposed the constitution draft from

3213-517: A tripartite separation of powers) in Europe and the second in the world, after that of the United States . The Constitution sought to implement a more effective constitutional monarchy , introduced political equality between townspeople and nobility, and placed the peasants under the government's protection, mitigating the worst abuses of serfdom . It banned pernicious parliamentary institutions such as

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3366-505: A union of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania . It specified that they shared a common government, military and treasury, but Lithuanian tax revenues were to be spent only within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The military and treasury commissions were to have equal numbers of Polish and Lithuanian members and were to be presided over by Polish and Lithuanian officials on an alternating basis. The membership of

3519-456: A week. This Prince is not often at the King's parties, nor is it imagined that he enjoys a great share of his uncle's favor. In what degree he possesses the talents of a general is not known, as he was too young to have any command during the late war. But he certainly has a very just understanding, which has been improved by study. He has taken some pains to acquire the English language, to which he

3672-615: A year before being stopped by Russian armies allied with conservative Polish nobility in the Polish–Russian War of 1792 , also known as the War in Defense of the Constitution. With the wars between Turkey and Russia and Sweden and Russia having ended, Empress Catherine was furious over the adoption of the document, which she believed threatened Russian influence in Poland. Russia had viewed Poland as

3825-454: Is also evidenced by the Potsdam apartment assigned to the "Prince of Prussia" on the corner of Neuer Markt. Given his high position, he lived there very cramped amidst the burghers. The building on Neuer Markt, known today as the "Kabinettshaus", had originally been erected in 1753 for the country preacher Krumbholz and had to be makeshiftly converted into the Crown Prince's Palace in 1764. In

3978-513: The liberum veto , which had put the Sejm at the mercy of any single deputy, who could veto and thus undo all the legislation adopted by that Sejm. The Commonwealth's neighbours reacted with hostility to the adoption of the Constitution. King Frederick William II of Prussia broke the Prussian alliance with the Commonwealth, joining with Imperial Russia under Catherine the Great and the anti-reform Targowica Confederation of Polish magnates, to defeat

4131-488: The Commission of National Education ( Komisja Edukacji Narodowej )—the first ministry of education in the world. New schools were opened, uniform textbooks were printed, teachers received better education and poor students were provided with scholarships. The Commonwealth's military was to be modernized and funding to create a larger standing army was agreed. Economic and commercial reforms—including some intended to cover

4284-512: The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania , of 22 October 1791, affirming the unity and indivisibility of Poland and Lithuania within a single state and their equal representation in state-governing bodies. The Mutual Pledge strengthened the Polish–Lithuanian union while keeping many federal aspects of the state intact. The manuscript in Lithuanian language of

4437-561: The French Revolution in particular could not have been predicted at the time. Frederick II selected Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick as Frederick William's new wife, and had them married in 1765. This unhappy marriage ended after only four years during which both spouses had been unfaithful. Frederick II, granted a divorce reluctantly. Frederick William was then married to Frederica Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt in 1769 which lasted until his death in 1797. From 1769 to 1782 Wilhelmine Enke

4590-611: The Friends of the Constitution ( Zgromadzenie Przyjaciół Konstytucji Rządowej )—which included many participants in the Great Sejm—was organised to defend the reforms already enacted and to promote further ones. It is now regarded as the first modern-style political party in Poland's history. The response to the new constitution was less enthusiastic in the provinces, where the Hetmans' Party enjoyed considerable influence. General support among

4743-632: The Grand Duchy of Lithuania , which had existed since the Union of Lublin (1569), with a unitary Polish Commonwealth, or Polish Republic. Constitution of 3 May 1791 The Constitution of 3 May 1791 , titled the Government Act , was a written constitution for the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that was adopted by the Great Sejm that met between 1788 and 1792. The Commonwealth

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4896-514: The Henrician Articles and the Pacta conventa ; the concept of individual liberties; and the notion that the monarch owed duties to his subjects. This system, which primarily benefited the Polish nobility ( szlachta ), came to be known as the " nobles' democracy ." The 1791 Constitution was a response to the increasingly perilous situation in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , which had been

5049-571: The House of Wettin , which had provided the two kings before Stanisław August. This provision was contingent upon Frederic Augustus' consent. He declined when Adam Czartoryski offered him the throne. Discussed in Article ;VIII, the judiciary was separated from the two other branches of the government, and was to be served by elective judges. Courts of first instance existed in each voivodeship and were in constant session, with judges elected by

5202-505: The Lwów Oath , Sigismund's son King John II Casimir Vasa made a solemn vow on behalf of the entire Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth that he would free the Polish peasants "from the unjust burdens and oppression." As he was struggling with the Sejm , in 1661 John Casimir—whose reign saw highly destructive wars and obstructionism by the nobility—correctly predicted that the Commonwealth was in danger of

5355-573: The Polish communists , and it competed for attention with the communist-endorsed 1 May Labor Day celebrations in the Polish People's Republic ; this led to its "rebranding" as Democratic Party Day and removal from the list of national holidays by 1951. Until 1989, 3 May was a frequent occasion for anti-government and anti-communist protests. 3 May was restored as an official Polish holiday in April 1990 after

5508-502: The Roman Catholic faith as the "dominant religion" but guaranteed tolerance and freedom to all religions. It was less progressive than the 16th-century Warsaw Confederation , and placed Poland clearly within the Catholic sphere of influence. Article II confirmed many old privileges of the nobility , stressing that all nobles were equal and should enjoy personal security and the right to property. Article III stipulated that

5661-595: The Rosicrucians . During this time, the Rosicrucians believed they were chosen by God to free people's souls from sin, lust, and pride. Deeply religious Crown Prince Frederick William was enthused by these ideals and joined the Order in 1781. Two of the leading representatives of the order, Johann Christoph von Wöllner and Johann Rudolf von Bischoffwerder, managed to convince the crown prince of their teachings. By highlighting

5814-526: The Russian Empire , the Kingdom of Prussia and France , which had an ongoing revolution —or deputies who believed they were living in an unprecedented "Golden Age" paralysed the Commonwealth's government for over a century. The threat of the liberum veto could only be overridden by the establishment of a " confederated sejm ", which was immune to the liberum veto . Declaring that a sejm either constituted

5967-482: The fall of communism . Polish-American pride has been celebrated on the same date, for instance in Chicago , where since 1982 Poles have marked it with festivities and the annual Polish Constitution Day Parade . Frederick William II of Prussia Frederick William II ( German : Friedrich Wilhelm II. ; 25 September 1744 – 16 November 1797) was King of Prussia from 1786 until his death in 1797. He

6120-628: The liberum veto . Concurrent world events appeared to have been opportune for the reformers . Russia and Austria were at war with the Ottoman Empire , and the Russians found themselves simultaneously fighting in the Russo-Swedish War, 1788–1790 . A new alliance between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Prussia seemed to provide security against Russian intervention, and King Stanisław August drew closer to leaders of

6273-406: The young Polish state . The emergence of parliamentary bodies, the sejm and sejmiki , followed in the first half of the 16th century. By the 17th century, Poland's legal and political tradition was characterized as parliamentary institutions and a system of checks and balances on state power, which was itself limited by decentralization . The idea of a contractual state embodied in texts like

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6426-544: The 1760s onwards. While Frederick II was critical of religious practice, Frederick William II was a devout Protestant. While Frederick II was only a patron of French culture, Frederick William II as king supported German music and theatre. While Frederick II withdrew into small elite circles, Frederick William II as king sought representative appearances. Frederick William was a man of his time, interested in spiritualism, clairvoyance and astrology, which would have repelled his predecessor. Frederick II's contempt for his successor

6579-407: The 1780 Sejm did not adopt it. An opportunity for reform occurred during the "Great Sejm"—also called the "Four-Year Sejm"—of 1788–92, which began on 6 October 1788 with 181 deputies. In accordance with the Constitution's preamble, from 1790 it met "in dual number" when 171 newly elected deputies joined the earlier-established Sejm. On its second day, the body became a confederated sejm to avoid

6732-541: The 1788 ratification of the United States Constitution. Poland and the United States, though geographically distant from each other, showed similar approaches to the designing of political systems. The 3 May Constitution has been called the second constitution in world history. Constitutional-law expert Albert Blaustein calls it the "world's second national constitution", and Bill Moyers writes that it

6885-427: The 1791 Constitution helped keep alive Polish aspirations for the eventual restoration of the country's sovereignty. In the words of two of its principal authors, Ignacy Potocki and Hugo Kołłątaj , the 1791 Constitution was "the last will and testament of the expiring Homeland". Polish constitutionalism can be traced to the 13th century, when government by consensus and representation was already well established in

7038-458: The 20th century by Bogusław Leśnodorski . The document's official name was Ustawa Rządowa ("Government Act"), where "government" referred to the political system. In the Commonwealth, the term "constitution" (Polish: konstytucja ) had previously denoted all the legislation, of whatever character, that had been passed by a given Sejm. 3 May was declared a Polish holiday (Constitution Day— Święto Konstytucji 3 Maja ) on 5 May 1791. The holiday

7191-840: The Berlin Crown Prince's Palace and Oranienburg Palace . He had Frederick William brought to the Berlin Palace and decided on an education in the spirit of the Age of Enlightenment , selecting a tutor for his four-year-old nephew. Nicolas de Béguelin was selected by the king to fulfill this role. Béguelin had studied law and mathematics, then worked at the Imperial Chamber Court in Wetzlar and had been in Prussian service since 1743. He had already come into personal contact with Frederick II and enjoyed his esteem. Béguelin strictly regulated

7344-520: The Berlin court life. He never left the Marmorpalais in Potsdam again. Only a few confidants, such as Countess Lichtenau, as well as French nobles who had fled before the French Revolution, gathered around the dying king. On 9 November 1797 Frederick William handed over the government affairs to his son because he was no longer physically capable of doing so due to shortness of breath and immobility. During

7497-468: The Commonwealth in the Polish–Russian War of 1792 . The 1791 Constitution was in force for less than 19 months. It was declared null and void by the Grodno Sejm that met in 1793, though the Sejm's legal power to do so was questionable. The Second and Third Partitions of Poland (1793, 1795) ultimately ended Poland's sovereign existence until the close of World War I in 1918. Over those 123 years,

7650-457: The Commonwealth throne in the early 18th century, Augustus II the Strong and Augustus III of Poland of the House of Wettin , did not improve matters. The Wettins, used to the absolute rule practiced in their native Saxony , tried to govern through intimidation and the use of force, which led to a series of conflicts between their supporters and opponents—including another pretender to

7803-465: The Commonwealth's inhabitants and made it clear to progressive minds that the Commonwealth must either reform or perish. In the thirty years before the Constitution, there was a rising interest among progressive thinkers in constitutional reform. Before the First Partition, a Polish noble, Michał Wielhorski was sent to France by the Bar Confederation to ask the philosophes Gabriel Bonnot de Mably and Jean-Jacques Rousseau for their suggestions on

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7956-468: The Commonwealth's peasantry under the protection of the national law—a first step toward enfranchising the country's largest and most oppressed social class. Their low status compared to other classes was not eliminated, as the constitution did not abolish serfdom . The Second Partition and Kościuszko's Proclamation of Połaniec in 1794 would later begin to abolish serfdom. Article V stated that "all power in civil society [should be] derived from

8109-722: The Conduct of Ordinary Sejms (1761–63), by Stanisław Konarski , founder of the Collegium Nobilium ; Political Thoughts on Civil Liberties (1775) and Patriotic Letters (1778–78), by Józef Wybicki , author of the lyrics of the Polish National Anthem ; ( Anonymous Letters to Stanisław Małachowski (1788–89) and The Political Law of the Polish Nation (1790), by Hugo Kołłątaj , head of the Kołłątaj's Forge party; and Remarks on

8262-460: The Constitution is mythologized and viewed as a national symbol and as the culmination of the Enlightenment in Polish history and culture. In the words of two of its authors, Ignacy Potocki and Hugo Kołłątaj , it was "the last will and testament of the expiring Homeland." Since Poland's recovery of independence in 1918, the 3 May anniversary of the Constitution's adoption has been observed as

8415-522: The Constitution was made and it was also later published in English-, French-, and German-language editions. The Constitution provided for potential amendments, which were to be addressed at an extraordinary Sejm to be held every 25 years. The Constitution remained to the last a work in progress. The Government Act was fleshed out in a number of laws passed in May and June 1791: on sejm courts (two acts of 13 May),

8568-673: The Education Commission—and five ministers appointed by the King: a minister of police, a minister of the seal ( internal affairs ), a minister of foreign affairs , a minister belli (of war), and a minister of treasury. Council members also included—without a vote—the Crown Prince , the Marshal of the Sejm , and two secretaries. This royal council descended from similar councils that had functioned since King Henry's Articles (1573), and from

8721-526: The English manners and language as few foreigners, even after a long residence in the capital, could attain. The Prince said he was aware of all this, yet he was determined to struggle hard for some acquaintance with an author so much admired by the English nation. That though he should never be able to taste all his excellencies, he was convinced he should understand enough to compensate him for his trouble. That he had already studied some detached parts, which he thought superior to anything he had ever met with in

8874-472: The Government Act was executed as a quasi- coup d'état . No recall notices were sent to known opponents of reform, while many pro-reform deputies secretly returned early. The royal guard under the command of the King's nephew Prince Józef Poniatowski were positioned about the Royal Castle, where the Sejm was gathered, to prevent opponents from disrupting the proceedings. On 3 May, the Sejm convened with only 182 members, about half its "dual" number. The bill

9027-406: The Guardians of the Laws (1 June), the national police commission (a ministry, 17 June), and municipal administration (24 June). The Constitution's co-author Hugo Kołłątaj announced that work was underway on "an economic constitution ... guaranteeing all rights of property [and] securing protection and honor to all manner of labor ..." A third planned basic law was mentioned by Kołłątaj:

9180-572: The Laws being the newly established top governmental entity) and judicial branches. It advanced the democratization of the polity by limiting the excessive legal immunities and political prerogatives of landless nobility. Legislative power , as defined in Article VI, rested with the bicameral parliament (an elected Sejm and an appointed Senate) and the king. The Sejm met every two years, and when required by national emergency. Its lower chamber —the Chamber of Deputies ( Izba Poselska )—had 204 deputies (2 from each powiat , 68 each from

9333-405: The Life of Jan Zamoyski (1787), by Stanisław Staszic . Ignacy Krasicki 's satires of the Great Sejm era were also seen as crucial to giving the constitution moral and political support. A new wave of reforms supported by progressive magnates such as the Czartoryski family and King Stanisław August were introduced at the Partition Sejm. The most important included the 1773 establishment of

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9486-424: The Police Commission was to be two-thirds Polish-Crown and one-third Lithuanian. Poland and Lithuania were to have the same numbers of principal officials . In the view of historians Stanisław Kutrzeba , Oskar Halecki and Bogusław Leśnodorski , the legislation adopted by the Four-Year Sejm , including the Mutual Pledge of the Two Nations, replaced the erstwhile union of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and

9639-458: The Polish throne, King Stanisław Leszczyński . Those conflicts often took the form of confederations—legal rebellions against the king permitted under the Golden Freedoms—including the Warsaw Confederation (1704) , Sandomierz Confederation , Tarnogród Confederation , Dzików Confederation and the War of the Polish Succession . Only 8 out of 18 Sejm sessions during the reign of Augustus II (1694–1733) passed legislation. For 30 years during

9792-430: The Polish-Lithuanian state. The document defined the federal character of the state and asserted the equal representation within the bodies of state governance of its two constituents (the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ). The document declared that the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (now to be known as Rzeczpospolita Polska , the Polish Republic, or Polish Commonwealth) remained

9945-432: The Prince of Prussia took part in the Siege of Schweidnitz and the Battle of Burkersdorf . Although Frederick II praised him for his bravery and appointed him commander of a Potsdam infantry regiment, over time the relationship between the monarch and his heir to the throne cooled noticeably. The Seven Years' War finally ended with the Treaty of Hubertusburg on 15 February 1763. Prussia had been able to assert itself as

10098-440: The Sejm and seats in the executive commissions of the Treasury, Police, and Judiciary. Membership in the nobility ( szlachta ) was also made easier for burghers to acquire. With half a million burghers in the Commonwealth now substantially enfranchised, political power became more equally distributed. Little power was given to the less politically conscious or active classes, such as Jews and peasants. Article IV placed

10251-424: The Sejm comprised representatives of the nobility and clergy, the reformers were supported by the burghers, who in late 1789 organized in Warsaw a " Black Procession " demanding full political enfranchisement of the bourgeoisie . On 18 April 1791 the Sejm—fearing that the burghers' protests, if ignored, could turn violent, as they had in France not long before—adopted the Free Royal Cities Act. The new constitution

10404-440: The Sejm into session. Only 102 of about 200 deputies attended what became known as the Partition Sejm . The rest were aware of the King's decision and refused. Despite protests from the deputy Tadeusz Rejtan and others, the treaty—later known as the First Partition of Poland—was ratified. The first of the three successive 18th-century partitions of Commonwealth territory that would eventually remove Poland's sovereignty shocked

10557-417: The Swedish heir to the throne Adolf Frederick were chosen as godparents in keeping with his status. The choice of godparents also demonstrated the king's attempt to isolate Austria in terms of alliance policy. These foreign rulers were not personally present at the baptism, but had themselves represented. In 1747, King Frederick II removed his three-year-old nephew from the care of his family, who lived in

10710-416: The Targowica Confederation, as the Empress had demanded. The Polish Army disintegrated. Many reform leaders, believing their cause was for now lost, went into self-imposed exile. Some hoped that Stanisław August would be able to negotiate an acceptable compromise with the Russians, as he had done in the past. But the King had not saved the Commonwealth and neither had the Targowica Confederates, who governed

10863-505: The Uprising's defeat to have been a foregone conclusion in face of the superiority in numbers and resources of the three invading powers. The defeat of Kościuszko's forces led in 1795 to the third and final partition of the Commonwealth. The Constitution of 3 May 1791 has been both idealized, and criticized for either not going far enough or being too radical. As its provisions remained in force for only 18 months and 3 weeks, its influence was, in any case, limited. However, for generations,

11016-529: The [1794] General State Laws for the Prussian States far behind, but did not equal [that of] the American Constitution [that went into force in 1789]." King Stanisław August Poniatowski was reported to have said that the 3 May 1791 Constitution was "founded principally on those of England and the United States of America, but avoiding the faults and errors of both, and adapted as much as possible to

11169-494: The arts. "The hereditary Prince of Prussia lives in a small house in the town of Potsdam. His appointments do not admit of that degree of magnificence, which might be expected in the Heir of the Crown, but he displays a spirit of hospitality far more obliging than magnificence; and doubly meritorious, considering the very moderate revenue allowed him. We generally sup there two or three times

11322-537: The autumn of 1757, Frederick II dishonourably dismissed his brother from the Prussian Army over accusations of multiple failures. Some historians suggest that Frederick deliberately used his brother as a scapegoat to distract attention from his own failures as a general, and later transferred his contempt for the younger brother to Frederick William. In fact, Frederick II had treated his nephew no more viciously than those around him before Augustus William's death. After

11475-619: The child's behaviour and willingness to perform on a daily basis left little room for carefree hours and child-friendly activities. If the prince did not feel like performing certain tasks or showed defiance, Béguelin would take away his favourite toy or even threaten to beat him. Frederick William was taught mathematics, law, philosophy and history. Members of the Royal Prussian Academy of Sciences , which under Frederick II brought together important, predominantly French scholars, repeatedly acted as educational mentors. The future king had

11628-461: The conservative Radom Confederation . The King and his adherents had little choice but to acquiesce to Russian demands. During the Repnin Sejm (named after the unofficially presiding Russian ambassador Nicholas Repnin ) the King accepted the five "eternal and invariable principles" which Catherine had vowed to "protect for all time to come in the name of Poland's liberties": the election of kings,

11781-481: The constitution for contributing to "contagion of democratic ideas" following "the fatal examples set in Paris ." It asserted that "The parliament ... has broken all fundamental laws, swept away all liberties of the gentry and on the third of May 1791 turned into a revolution and a conspiracy." The Confederates declared an intention to overcome this revolution. We "can do nothing but turn trustingly to Tsarina Catherine,

11934-472: The construction of the Marienkirchthurm, the construction of several gates and city walls, an iron and other bridges, the construction of new city prisons, etc.), as well as admirable monuments. As long as there is still a sense of nature and a taste for art among the inhabitants of Berlin, that is, as long as Berlin exists, the name of the king cannot fade, who, at the end of the most beautiful street and at

12087-498: The convenience of transportation and the advantage of residents through canals (in the Ruppin area, after the rebuilding of the burned-down city). Many places and regions, especially the capital of the empire, were equipped by him with substantial residential buildings and palaces, with beneficial institutions of all kinds (just to name a few: the expansion of the Charité , the veterinary school,

12240-695: The country for a short while. To their surprise, the Grodno Sejm , bribed or intimidated by the Russian troops, enacted the Second Partition of Poland . On 23 November 1793, it concluded its deliberations under duress, annulling the constitution and acceding to the Second Partition. Russia took 250,000 square kilometres (97,000 sq mi), while Prussia took 58,000 square kilometres (22,000 sq mi). The Commonwealth now comprised no more than 215,000 square kilometres (83,000 sq mi). What

12393-408: The country's most important civil holiday. The 3 May Constitution was a milestone in the history of law and in the growth of democracy. The 18th-century Irish statesman Edmund Burke described it as "the noblest benefit received by any nation at any time ... Stanislas II has earned a place among the greatest kings and statesmen in history." The 3 May Constitution was the first to follow

12546-416: The court and in the country. Additional religious services were held. Frederick William's eulogy was published in the "Berlinische Zeitung" on 14 December 1797: "Frederick William completed the great legislative work begun by Frederick . And if this were the only deed that glorified his regal life: how surely must he achieve immortality through it alone! - He will forever live in the annals of our history as

12699-630: The cultural focus of the country away from the French culture that Frederick II had established. For instance, the French Theatre was transformed into the National Theater on Gendarmenmarkt where performances of German opera and plays were performed. During its opening, Frederick William declared, "We are Germans, and we intend to remain so." The Royal Opera played works by Johann Frederick Reichardt and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart . Berlin developed into

12852-516: The daily routine of the four- and five-year-old prince: in the morning, the prince learned German and French, the language of the European courts. At noon, he had to invite cavaliers of the court to be introduced to diplomatic manners. After lunch, the language lessons continued in written form, since he could already read and write at the age of five. Only then did he have time to play. But even at this time of day, he had to act out what he had learned with

13005-482: The death of Frederick William's father, it was not until December 1758 that both Frederick William and his brother Henry were able to visit King Frederick II in his winter camp in Torgau . On this occasion Frederick II confirmed his nephew's position as heir to the throne and on 13 December 1758 bestowed on him the title and name Prince of Prussia. In this way Frederick II signalled to the outside world that Prussia's existence

13158-534: The deterioration of the Commonwealth, abhorred the thought of a resurgent and democratic power on their borders. With the Commonwealth Army reduced to around 16,000, it was easy for its neighbors to intervene directly—the Imperial Russian Army numbered 300,000 and the Prussian Army and Imperial Austrian Army had 200,000 each. Russia's Empress Catherine and Prussia's King Frederick II provoked

13311-451: The earlier Free Royal Cities Act ( Miasta Nasze Królewskie Wolne w Państwach Rzeczypospolitej ), of 18 (or 21) April 1791, was integral to the Constitution. Personal security— neminem captivabimus , the Polish version of habeas corpus —was extended to townspeople (including Jews ). Townspeople also gained the right to acquire landed property and became eligible for military officers' commissions and public offices, such as reserved seats in

13464-698: The entrance to the most beautiful pleasure forest, had the magnificent gate erected, which so boldly opposes the Greek architectural works." Frederick William was interred in a vault of the old Berlin Cathedral. Countess Lichtenau, who had cared for the dying king, was no longer allowed to see the deceased and was placed under house arrest. Frederick William III had the father's despised lover sent into exile in Glogau and most of her wealth confiscated. Dieter Brozat reported in "Der Berliner Dom und die Hohenzollerngruft" (1985) that

13617-638: The front lines kept shifting to the west and in July 1792 Warsaw was threatened with siege by the Russians, the King came to believe that victory was impossible against the numerically superior enemy, and that surrender was the only alternative to total defeat. Having received assurances from the Russian ambassador Yakov Bulgakov that no territorial changes will occur, the Guardians of the Laws cabinet voted 8:4 to surrender. On 24 July 1792, King Stanisław August Poniatowski joined

13770-971: The happy enlarger of his country. The grandchildren of our new brothers in Franconia and on the Vistula will always celebrate the day when they became Prussians, and humanity itself can celebrate him because these acquisitions were not the result of terrible wars [...]. His contemporaries called him 'The Kind One,' and centuries later, people will still joyfully appreciate his benevolent deeds. He built, benefiting and enhancing, for posterity. Thanks to him, several of our provinces received paved and sturdy roads, which our country had been lacking until then (Chausseen in Westphalia, in Silesia, in Magdeburg, in Brandenburg). Elsewhere, he elevated

13923-494: The help of puppets. Frederick II constantly intervened in education. At the reception of the cavaliers at noon, for example, he demanded that Frederick William not be brought up to be modest and reserved. As a possible successor to the kingship, he was to gain respect among the country's nobility through "Dreistigkeit" (audacity), in accordance with Frederick II's will. The rather shy Frederick William could not meet these demands of his uncle. The high expectations that were placed on

14076-452: The increased military budget previously shunned as unimportant by the szlachta —were introduced. A new executive assembly, the 36-strong Permanent Council comprising five ministries with limited legislative powers, was established, giving the Commonwealth a governing body in constant session between Sejms and therefore immune to their liberum veto disruptions. In 1776, the Sejm commissioned former chancellor Andrzej Zamoyski to draft

14229-419: The integrity of a German, and is beloved by the public in general, on account of his good-nature, affability, and humane turn of mind." Frederick William's accession to the throne (17 August 1786) was followed by a series of measures for lightening the burdens of the people, reforming the oppressive French system of tax-collecting introduced by Frederick, and encouraging trade by the diminution of customs dues and

14382-532: The introduction of a national customs tariff, which was soon abandoned due to opposition from Prussia's Frederick the Great . These measures had already been authorized by the Convocation Sejm; more legislative and executive improvements inspired by the Familia or the King were implemented during and after the 1764 Sejm. The Commonwealth's magnates viewed reform with suspicion and neighboring powers, content with

14535-419: The king chose the well-read and highly educated Major Heinrich Adrian von Borcke for Frederick William's military training. The 36-year-old count showed little pedagogical sensitivity. Reports that Borcke had to write regularly to Frederick II to report on the child's progress show that Frederick William often behaved rebelliously and was punished for it with beatings. When this did not help either, Borcke forbade

14688-462: The king failed - likely through malice - to introduce the heir to the throne to political processes and contexts. He was only allowed to attend the sessions of the Berlin Court of Appeal. Frederick II, however, forbade his ministers to grant Frederick William insights into day-to-day political business. Due to his upbringing, he possessed solid knowledge only in constitutional law, military matters and

14841-465: The king not wait for a change in the European alliance system, but rather actively bring it about. The transatlantic and European revolutions formed the background of Frederick Wilhelm's foreign policy. In his world, which was essentially the world of the Ancien Régime , they initially only appeared to Prussia as distant rumblings of thunder. However, the consequences of the upheavals associated with

14994-481: The latest, the two forced marriages to Elisabeth Christine of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel , and then Frederica Louisa of Hesse-Darmstadt , arranged by Frederick II led to the tense relationship between king and crown prince. Frederick William began to distance himself more and more from Frederick II in terms of character: While King Frederick II lived in a purely male world, the crown prince built up an emotional and bourgeois love life with his mistress Wilhelmine Encke from

15147-580: The law on towns, complemented this system. Article IX covered procedures for regency , which should be taken up jointly by the council of the Guardians, headed by the Queen, or in her absence by the Primate. Article X stressed the importance of education of royal children and tasked the Commission of National Education with this responsibility. The last article of the constitution, Article XI, concerned

15300-497: The local and particular circumstances of the country." However, Polish historians report the Constitution as having been described as "based mainly on the United States Constitution , but minus the latter's flaws, and adapted to Poland's circumstances." George Sanford writes that the Constitution of 3 May 1791 provided "a constitutional monarchy close to the English model of the time." Article I acknowledged

15453-639: The making of roads and canals. This gave the new king much popularity with the masses; the educated classes were pleased by Frederick William's reversal of his uncle's preference for the French language and the promotion of the German language , with the admission of German writers to the Prussian Academy of Arts , and by the active encouragement given to schools and universities. Frederick William also terminated his predecessor's state monopolies for coffee and tobacco and

15606-487: The memory of the Constitution—recognized by political scientists as a progressive document for its time—helped keep alive Polish aspirations for an independent and just society, and continued to inform the efforts of its authors' descendants. Bronisław Dembiński , a Polish constitutional scholar, wrote a century later that "The miracle of the Constitution did not save the state but did save the nation." In Poland

15759-417: The middle nobility was crucial and still very substantial; most of the provincial sejmiks deliberating in 1791 and early 1792 supported the constitution. The Constitution of 3 May 1791 reflected Enlightenment influences, including Rousseau 's concept of the social contract and Montesquieu 's advocacy of a balance of powers among three branches of government—legislative, executive, and judicial—and of

15912-519: The nation," parallels the British constitutional principle that " The King can do no wrong ." (In both countries, the pertinent minister was responsible for the King's acts.) The ministers were responsible to the Sejm, which could dismiss them by a two-thirds vote of no confidence of both houses. Ministers could also be held accountable by the Sejm Court , where a simple-majority vote sufficed to impeach

16065-416: The national standing army. Said army was defined as a "defensive force" dedicated "solely to the nation's defense." The army was to be increased in strength to 100,000 men. To further enhance the Commonwealth's integration and security, the Constitution abolished the erstwhile union of Poland and Lithuania in favor of a unitary state . Its full establishment, supported by Stanisław August and Kołlątaj,

16218-478: The near future." - Letter from King Frederick II to his younger brother Augustus William of Prussia Frederick William's youth was overshadowed by the experiences of the Third Silesian War and Seven Years' War (1756–1763). The war exacerbated tensions between King Frederick II and Frederick William's father, Augustus William, who had been presumptive heir to the throne as Prince of Prussia since 1744. In

16371-573: The peasants and ownership of land to all who fought in the insurrection. Revolutionary tribunals administered summary justice to those deemed traitors to the Commonwealth. After initial victories at the Battle of Racławice (4 April), the capture of Warsaw (18 April) and the Wilno (22 April)—the Uprising was crushed when the forces of Russia, Austria and Prussia joined in a military intervention. Historians consider

16524-450: The poorest, landless nobles—known as "clients" or "clientele" of local magnates—voted as the magnates bade them. Now right to vote was tied to a property qualification: one had to own or lease land and pay taxes, or be closely related to somebody who did, to vote. 300,000 of 700,000 previously eligible nobles were thus disfranchised . Voting rights were restored to landowners in military service. They had lost these rights in 1775. Voting

16677-401: The previously binding nature of their instructions to their Sejm deputies. The confederations were declared "contrary to the spirit of this constitution, subversive of government and destructive of society." Thus the new constitution strengthened the powers of the Sejm, moving the country towards a constitutional monarchy. Executive power , according to Article V and Article VII,

16830-496: The prince to have contact with his younger brother Henry . Frederick II approved of this educational practice. On 19 August 1754, he demanded that Frederick William move from Berlin to Potsdam , to his court. The king stated that the aim was to transform Frederick William's sensitive and reserved nature: "As he (Frederick William) is somewhat shy, I have told all who come to me to tease him in order to make him speak. I am convinced that he will not be embarrassed in front of anyone in

16983-406: The principle of wanting to be the first servant of his state. To this end, he devoted himself in depth to politics, government work and state philosophy, sometimes attending to the smallest details. He often changed his advisors and officials and was reluctant to delegate tasks and power to others. He ruled as an autocrat until the end. Although Frederick II gave his nephew an educational upbringing,

17136-561: The provinces of Greater Poland , Lesser Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ) and 21 plenipotentiaries from royal cities (7 from each province). The royal chancellery was to inform the sejmiks of the legislation it intended to propose in advance, so deputies could prepare for the discussions. The Sejm's upper chamber —the Chamber of Senators ( Izba Senacka )—had between 130 and 132 (sources vary) senators ( voivodes , castellans , and bishops, as well as governments ministers without

17289-412: The recent Permanent Council. Acts of the King required the countersignature of the pertinent minister. A minister was required to countersign a law, unless all other ministers endorsed his objection to that law. In that case, the King could withdraw the law or press the issue by presenting it to parliament. The stipulation that the King, "doing nothing of himself, ... shall be answerable for nothing to

17442-667: The recently proclaimed policies. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth had legally and practically become a protectorate of the Russian Empire. Nonetheless, several minor beneficial reforms were adopted, political rights of the religious minorities were restored and the need for more reforms was becoming increasingly recognized. King Stanisław August's acquiescence to the Russian intervention encountered some opposition. On 29 February 1768, several magnates—including Józef Pułaski and his young son Kazimierz Pułaski (Casimir Pulaski)—vowing to oppose Russian influence, declared Stanisław August

17595-433: The reform-minded Patriotic Party . The Sejm passed few major reforms in its first two years, but the subsequent two years brought more substantial changes. The Sejm adopted the 1791 Free Royal Cities Act , which was formally incorporated into the final constitution. This act addressed a number of matters related to the cities, crucially expanding burghers' (i.e., townspeople's) rights, including electoral rights. While

17748-459: The reformist Czartoryski Familia and was backed by Russian military forces invited by the Czartoryskis. In exchange for passing decrees favorable to them, the Russians and Prussians let the confederated Convocation Sejm enact a number of reforms, including the weakening of the liberum veto and its no longer applying to treasury and economic matters. A more comprehensive reform package

17901-453: The regional sejmik assemblies. Appellate tribunals were established for the provinces, based on the reformed Crown Tribunal and Lithuanian Tribunal . The Sejm elected from its deputies the judges for the Sejm Court, a precursor to the modern State Tribunal of Poland . Referendary courts were established in each province to hear the cases of the peasantry. Municipal courts, described in

18054-525: The reign of Augustus III, only one session was able to pass legislation. The government was near collapse, giving rise to the term "Polish anarchy", and the country was managed by provincial assemblies and magnates. Other reform attempts in the Wettin era were led by individuals such as Stanisław Dunin-Karwicki , Stanisław A. Szczuka , Kazimierz Karwowski and Michał Józef Massalski ; these mostly proved to be futile. The Enlightenment greatly affected

18207-517: The rented neighbouring house at Schwertfegerstrasse 8, the future Prussian King Frederick William III was born on 3 August 1770. In the house, the crown prince invited Potsdam's distinguished society to concerts and balls, which, however, were soon moved to the old orangery at the Lustgarten due to lack of space. Frederick's lifestyle and conception of the state differed fundamentally from those of his nephew. Frederick lived ostentatiously according to

18360-465: The right of liberum veto , the right to renounce allegiance to and raise rebellion against the king ( rokosz ), the szlachta 's exclusive right to hold office and land, and landowners' power over their peasants. Thus all the privileges ("Golden Freedoms") of the nobility that had made the Commonwealth ungovernable were guaranteed as unalterable in the Cardinal Laws . The Cardinal Laws and

18513-572: The right to vote). The king presided over the Senate and had one vote, which could be used to break ties. The king and all deputies had legislative initiative , and most matters—known as general laws , and divided into constitutional, civil, criminal, and those for the institution of perpetual taxes—required a simple majority, first from the lower chamber, then the upper. Specialized resolutions, including treaties of alliance, declarations of war and peace, ennoblements and increases in national debt, needed

18666-535: The rights of "religious dissenters" passed by the Repnin Sejm were personally guaranteed by Empress Catherine. By these acts of legislation, for the first time, Russia formally intervened in the Commonwealth's constitutional affairs. During the 1768 Sejm, Repnin showed his disregard for local resistance by arranging the abduction and imprisonment of Kajetan Sołtyk , Józef A. Załuski , Wacław Rzewuski and Seweryn Rzewuski , all vocal opponents of foreign domination and

18819-524: The scene for the partition treaty of 5 August 1772, which was signed at Saint Petersburg by Russia, Prussia, and Austria. The treaty divested the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth of about a third of its territory and population—over 200,000 km (77,220 sq mi) and 4 million people. The three powers justified their annexation, citing anarchy in the Commonwealth and its refusal to cooperate with its neighbors' efforts to restore order. King Stanisław August yielded and on 19 April 1773, he called

18972-428: The second with Sophie Juliane Gräfin von Dönhoff . His favourite son —with Wilhelmine Enke— was Graf Alexander von der Mark. His daughter from Sophie Juliane was Countess Julie of Brandenburg (4 January 1793, Neuchâtel – 29 January 1848, Vienna), who later married Frederick Ferdinand, Duke of Anhalt-Köthen . Frederick William was a passionate supporter of the arts. Upon ascending to the throne Frederick William turned

19125-619: The start, Franciszek Ksawery Branicki , Stanisław Szczęsny Potocki , Seweryn Rzewuski , and Szymon and Józef Kossakowski , asked Tsarina Catherine to intervene and restore their privileges—the Cardinal Laws abolished under the new statute. To that end these magnates formed the Targowica Confederation . The Confederation's proclamation, prepared in St. Petersburg in January 1792, criticized

19278-591: The strongest branch of government. Kołłątaj wanted a "gentle" revolution, carried out without violence, to enfranchise other social classes in addition to the nobility. The proposed reforms were opposed by the conservatives, including the Hetmans' Party . Threatened with violence by their opponents, the advocates of the draft began the debate on the Government Act two days early, while many opposing deputies were away on Easter recess. The debate and subsequent adoption of

19431-469: The sugar monopoly. Under his reign the codification known as Allgemeines Preußisches Landrecht , initiated by Frederick II, continued and was completed in 1794. In the 18th century, the field of foreign policy was considered the highest statecraft and the "main business" of an absolutist prince. Accordingly, Frederick William II was best prepared in this political area. Officially, he alone decided on war and peace. In terms of alliance politics, Prussia

19584-430: The supposed godlessness of his previous lifestyle, which had been unconcerned with matters of sexuality, they saw the opportunity to displace his most significant competitor, Frederick William's Mistress, Wilhelmine Enke. In reality, Frederick William gave up his sexual relationship with the future countess but remained closely connected to her in a friendly manner. In early October 1797, Frederick William II withdrew from

19737-402: The thinking of influential Commonwealth circles during the reign (1764–95) of its last king, Stanisław II August Poniatowski . The King was an "enlightened" Polish magnate who had been a deputy to several Sejms between 1750 and 1764 and had a deeper understanding of Polish politics than previous monarchs. The Convocation Sejm of 1764 , which elected Poniatowski to the throne, was controlled by

19890-529: The throne. Frederick II of Prussia took advantage of the Austrian succession crisis to annex Habsburg Silesia . He thus began the first of a total of three Silesian Wars which, with brief interruptions, were to last until 1763. On 11 October 1744, Frederick William was baptised in the predecessor of today's Berlin Cathedral. In addition to members of the Prussian royal family, Charles VII, Holy Roman Emperor , Tsarina Elisabeth of Russia , Louis XV of France and

20043-410: The will of the people." The constitution referred to the country's "citizens," which for the first time included townspeople and peasants. The document's preamble and 11 individual articles introduced the principle of popular sovereignty applied to the nobility and townspeople, and the separation of powers into legislative (a bicameral Sejm), executive ("the King and the Guardians," the Guardians of

20196-399: The works of any other poet. His Royal Highness attends to military business with as much assiduity as most officers of the same rank in the army, for in the Prussian service, no degree of eminence in the article of birth can excuse a remission in the duties of that profession. He is much esteemed by the army and considered as an exceedingly good officer. To the frankness of a soldier, he joins

20349-445: The world-famous Brandenburg Gate in Berlin. It is worth mentioning another distinctly characteristic inclination of Frederick William II, namely, occultism . At the end of the 18th century, the circles of the bourgeoisie and the nobility, unsettled by the Enlightenment , were in search of mystical Christian experiences. Since the official church could not alleviate this uncertainty, they turned to various religious orders, including

20502-424: Was "Europe's first codified national constitution (and the second oldest in the world)." Historian Norman Davies calls it "the first constitution of its type in Europe." The 3 May Constitution and the Great Sejm that adopted it have been the subjects of a large body of works by Polish scholars, starting with the still often cited 19th-century works of Walerian Kalinka and Władysław Smoleński , and continued in

20655-515: Was a dual monarchy comprising the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ; the new constitution was intended to address political questions following a period of political agitation and gradual reform that began with the Convocation Sejm of 1764 and the election that year of the Commonwealth's last king, Stanisław August Poniatowski . It was the first codified, modern constitution (possessing checks and balances and

20808-617: Was also the prince-elector of Brandenburg and (through the Orange-Nassau inheritance of his grandfather) sovereign prince of the Canton of Neuchâtel . As a defensive reaction to the French Revolution , Frederick William II ended the German Dualism between Prussia and Austria . Domestically, he turned away from the enlightened style of government of his predecessor and introduced a tightened system of censorship and religious control. The king

20961-592: Was an important patron of the arts especially in the field of music. As a skilled cellist he enjoyed the dedication of various cello-centric compositions by composers Mozart , Haydn , Boccherini , and Beethoven . He was also responsible for some of the most notable architecture in Prussia, including the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, the Marble Palace , and Orangery in the New Garden, Potsdam . Frederick William

21114-525: Was banned during the partitions of Poland but reinstated in April 1919 under the Second Polish Republic —the first holiday officially introduced in the newly independent country. It was again outlawed during World War II by both the Nazi and Soviet occupiers. It was celebrated in Polish cities in May 1945, although in a mostly spontaneous manner. The 1946 anti-communist demonstrations did not endear it to

21267-513: Was born in Berlin on 25 September 1744, the eldest son of the Prussian Prince Augustus William of Prussia (1722–1758) and Duchess Luise of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel . Initially, Frederick William was second in line to the Prussian throne after his father. Due to his childlessness, King Frederick II had designated his next younger brother Augustus William, Frederick William's father, as Prince of Prussia in 1744. Frederick William

21420-518: Was born into a time of war, for Prussia had again been at war (1744–1745) with Austria since 10 August 1744. Since 1740, or the death of Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor of the House of Habsburg , Vienna had been without a male heir to the throne. Although Charles VI had appointed his daughter Maria Theresa as heir with the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713 , this document contradicted the previously valid Salic law , which only provided for male heirs to

21573-414: Was drafted by the King, with contributions from Ignacy Potocki , Hugo Kołłątaj and others. The King is credited with writing the general provisions and Kołłątaj with giving the document its final shape. Stanisław August wanted the Commonwealth to become a constitutional monarchy similar to that of Great Britain, with a strong central government based on a strong monarch. Potocki wanted the Sejm to be

21726-500: Was his mistress. Following this relationship she became his closest confidant and advisor. In 1794–1797 he had a palace built for her on the Pfaueninsel . Frederick William was involved with two more mistresses during his life, both conducted through morganatic marriage , which were also bigamous , since his wife queen Frederica Louisa was still alive. The first was with Elisabeth Amalie, Gräfin von Voß, Gräfin von Ingenheim in 1787, and

21879-633: Was in a difficult situation when Frederick II died: the Austro-Russian Alliance (1781) , the unreliability of the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Franco-Austrian Alliance in 1756 led to Prussia's foreign policy isolation. Frederick William II's goal of consolidating the kingdom's position as a major power, which it had achieved under Frederick II, was therefore seriously endangered from the start. Above all, Frederick William's Minister of War Ewald Friedrich von Hertzberg demanded that

22032-523: Was in the hands of "the King in his council," a cabinet of ministers that was called the Guardians of the Laws (or Guard of the Laws, Straż Praw ). The ministries could not create or interpret laws, and all acts of the foreign ministry were provisional and subject to Sejm approval. The King presided over his council, which comprised the Roman Catholic Primate of Poland —who was also president of

22185-475: Was induced by an admiration of several English authors whose works he had read in French and German. He is now able to read English prose with tolerable facility and has been of late studying Shakespeare, having actually read two or three of his plays. I took the liberty to observe that as Shakespeare's genius had traced every labyrinth and penetrated into every recess of the human heart, his sentiments could not fail to please his Royal Highness. But, as his language

22338-534: Was intended to reduce the destructive influence of foreign powers at each election. The royal dynasty was elective, and if one were to cease, a new family would be chosen by the nation. The king reigned by the "grace of God and the will of the Nation," and "all authority derives from the will of the Nation." The institution of pacta conventa was preserved. On Stanisław August's death the Polish throne would become hereditary and pass to Frederick Augustus I of Saxony of

22491-603: Was left of the Commonwealth was merely a small buffer state with a puppet king, and Russian garrisons keeping an eye on the reduced Polish army. For a year and a half, Polish patriots waited while planning an insurrection. On 24 March 1794 in Kraków, Tadeusz Kościuszko declared what has come to be known as the Kościuszko Uprising . On 7 May, he issued the Proclamation of Połaniec ( Uniwersał Połaniecki ), granting freedom to

22644-458: Was limited to men aged at least 18. The eligible voters elected deputies to local powiat s, or county sejmiks, which elected deputies to the General Sejm. Finally, Article VI explicitly abolished several institutional sources of government weakness and national anarchy, including the liberum veto , confederations and confederated sejms, and the excessive influence of sejmiks stemming from

22797-586: Was opposed by many Lithuanian deputies. As a compromise, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania received numerous privileges guaranteeing its continued existence. Related acts included the Declaration of the Assembled Estates ( Deklaracja Stanów Zgromadzonych ) of 5 May 1791, confirming the Government Act adopted two days earlier, and the Mutual Pledge of the Two Nations ( Zaręczenie Wzajemne Obojga Narodów ), i.e., of

22950-429: Was presented by Andrzej Zamoyski , but opposition from Prussia, Russia, and the Polish nobility thwarted this ambitious program, which had proposed deciding all motions by majority vote. In part because his election had been imposed by Empress Catherine the Great , Poniatowski's political position was weak from the start. He proceeded with cautious reforms, such as the establishment of fiscal and military ministries and

23103-501: Was read and overwhelmingly adopted, to the enthusiasm of the crowds outside. A protest was submitted the next day by a small group of deputies, but on 5 May the matter was officially concluded and protests were invalidated by the Constitutional Deputation of the Sejm. It was the first time in the 18th century that a constitutional act had been passed in the Commonwealth without the involvement of foreign powers. Soon after,

23256-467: Was secure through the heir. In fact, however, Prussia faced complete dissolution several times during this war. The Prussian court was often on the run or had to entrench itself in the fortress of Magdeburg . In the final stages of the Seven Years' War, Frederick II viewed the popularity of the heir to the throne with the soldiers with concern, as it threatened to overshadow his own military fame. In 1762,

23409-404: Was uncommonly bold and figurative and full of allusions to national customs and the manners of our island two centuries ago, the English themselves, who had not made a particular study of his works, did not always comprehend their full energy. I added that to transfuse the soul of Shakespeare into a translation was impossible, and to taste all his beauties in the original required such a knowledge of

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