. The popular history of England : an illustrated history of society and government from the earliest period to our own times . he Polish territory was divided amongstthem. To Eussia was assigned great part of Lithuania; to Austria, Galiciaand portions of Podolia and Cracow ; to Prussia, Pomerauia, and the countryof the Vistula. Prussia acquired by far the smallest share of the spoil inextent of territory, but incomparably the most valuable, when she obtainedDantzie, and the best trading towns of the dismembered country. Theevents which led to this partition, or rather which were the excuses f
. The popular history of England : an illustrated history of society and government from the earliest period to our own times . he Polish territory was divided amongstthem. To Eussia was assigned great part of Lithuania; to Austria, Galiciaand portions of Podolia and Cracow ; to Prussia, Pomerauia, and the countryof the Vistula. Prussia acquired by far the smallest share of the spoil inextent of territory, but incomparably the most valuable, when she obtainedDantzie, and the best trading towns of the dismembered country. Theevents which led to this partition, or rather which were the excuses for it,were connected with the religious and political dissensions of the Polishnobles, priests, and commonalty. An elective monarchy was necessarilysubject to the intrusive control of a powerful neighbour. After the death ofJohn Sobieski, at the end of the seventeenth century, his successors AugustusII. and Augustus III. were little more than the representatives of the cotirtof Eussia. The influence of the Czarina, Catherine, procured the election ofStanislaus Poniatowski. The favorite of the profligate empress was lifted. Stanislaus Augustus. into a throne by the intrigues of one party of the nobles, supported by aRussian army. From 17C4 to 1772 two factions were struggling about civiland religious privileges, whilst their country was more and more exposed tothe danger of an entire loss of its independence. Poland could scarcely becalled a nation, if by a nation we mean a communitv of various classes, with alarge intermediate class between the highest and the lowest. Poland was acountry of nobles and of serfs. When Eussia was about to seize the terri-tories which she coveted, Prussia demanded a share; and to prevent theopposition of the other great neighbour, Austria was propitiated with anothershare. Maria Theresa, personally, was opposed to the scheme ; but heropposition was not of that nature which was likely to interfere with itscompletion. I let thiugs go their own way, s
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade188, bookpublisherlondon, bookyear1883
