POLISH UPRISING OF 1794 POLISH UPRISING OF 1794

POLISH UPRISING of 1794, national liberation uprising in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (cm. POLISH-LITHUANIAN COMMONWEALTH) against the regime of power established by the Targowica Confederation (cm. TARGOVITSKAYA CONFEDERATION) with the support of Russia and Prussia.
Background to the uprising (1791-1794)
Constitution of the Third of May 1791 (cm. THIRD OF MAY 1791 CONSTITUTION) laid the foundations for the transformation of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth into a viable state with a strong central government. The restriction of class privileges caused displeasure among some magnates (cm. MAGNATS) and gentry (cm. gentry), who in May 1792 organized the Targowitz Confederation against the constitution. King Stanisław August Poniatowski (cm. PONIATOWSKI Stanislav August) declared the Targovichans rebels and ordered the confederation troops to be dispersed by force. However, the Russian Empress Catherine II (cm. CATHERINE II), who did not want the strengthening of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, came out in support of the confederation and ordered the troops of General Mikhail Kakhovsky to enter Poland, and General Krechetnikov to enter Lithuania. Heated up fighting.
To Catherine II in Polish question Prussian King Frederick William II joined (cm. FRIEDRICH WILHELM II). The Polish army resisted for about three months. But under pressure from superior forces, King Stanislav Augustus was forced to capitulate and submit to the demands of the Targovichans and interventionists. The new Sejm, convened in the city of Grodno, proclaimed the abolition of the Constitution of the Third of May. Garrisons of Russian and Prussian troops were stationed in major cities Rzeczpospolita, including in Warsaw. The Polish army was being reorganized, many of its units were supposed to be disbanded.
In December 1792, Catherine II and Frederick William II agreed on a new, second partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. On April 9, 1793, the terms of the division were announced: Prussia received Greater Poland with the cities of Poznan, Torun and Gdansk, Russia - Eastern Belarus and Right-Bank Ukraine. In September 1793, the terms of the division were accepted by the Polish Sejm, which was controlled by the Targovichans.
Not all Polish patriots have come to terms with the dictates of foreign powers. Organized everywhere secret societies who set as their goal the preparation of a general uprising. The head of the patriotic movement was General Tadeusz Kosciuszko, who had proven himself well in the fight against the Targovichans and a participant in the American Revolution. (cm. KOSTIUSZKO Tadeusz). Big hopes the conspirators were associated with revolutionary France, which was at war with Austria and Prussia - participants in the division of Poland.
Beginning of the uprising (March-June 1794)
The uprising began on March 12, 1794 in Pułtusk with a mutiny of the cavalry brigade of General Anton Madalinski (Madalinski, d. 1805), which refused to obey the decision to disband. Other units of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth army began to join the rebels. A few days later, Madalinski's cavalry captured Krakow, which became the center of the uprising. On March 16, 1794, the leader of the rebels was chosen - proclaimed dictator Tadeusz Kosciuszko. On March 24, the Act of Uprising was published in Krakow, which proclaimed slogans for the full restoration of the sovereignty of Poland, the return of territories seized in 1773 and 1793 (see Partitions of Poland (cm. SECTIONS OF POLAND)), continuation of reforms initiated by the Four-Year Sejm (cm. FOUR-YEAR SEIM) 1788-1792.
The rebels were supported by wide sections of Polish society, and the arming of the population and the formation of rebel groups began everywhere. The Russian Ambassador in Warsaw and the commander of Russian troops on the territory of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, General I. A. Igelstrom, sent a detachment of General A. P. Tormasov to suppress the uprising (cm. TORMASOV Alexander Petrovich). But on April 4, 1794, in the battle near Roslawice (Raclawice), the Poles managed to defeat a detachment of Russian troops. Following this, uprisings of the townspeople liberated Warsaw (April 17-18) and Vilna (April 22-23). Having accepted the title of Generalissimo, Kosciuszko announced a general mobilization. The number of the rebel army was increased to 70 thousand, but a significant part of it was armed with pikes and scythes. By May the rebels had gained control of for the most part Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
The democratically minded leaders of the uprising tried to start reforms in Poland. On May 7, 1793, Tadeusz Kościuszko published the Polaniec Universal, which granted serfs personal freedom, subject to their settlement with the landowners and payment of state taxes, and recognized the hereditary right of peasants to cultivated land. This act was received with hostility by the gentry and the Catholic clergy, who sabotaged its actual implementation.
Influenced by the French Revolution (cm. THE FRENCH REVOLUTION) the most radical part of the rebels formed into a group of Polish Jacobins (cm. POLISH JACOBINS) and tried to unleash revolutionary terror in Poland. On May 9 and June 28, 1794, the Jacobins provoked in Warsaw popular unrest, during which the executions of leaders of the Targowica Confederation took place. The extremism of the Jacobins pushed many moderate Poles away from the rebel camp.
Russia, Prussia and Austria decided to suppress the uprising by armed means and force the Poles to recognize the partitions of Poland. Russian troops operated in two directions: Warsaw and Lithuania. General Saltykov's 30,000-strong covering corps was deployed in the second echelon of Russian troops. The corps of Chief General A.V. Suvorov was urgently transferred from the Turkish border to Poland (cm. SUVOROV Alexander Vasilievich). The Austrians focused on southern borders Rzeczpospolita 20,000-strong building. Under the personal command of King Frederick William II, a 54,000-strong force invaded Poland from the west. Prussian army. Another 11 thousand Prussians remained to cover their borders.
The main forces of the Poles - a 23,000-strong corps under the personal command of Kosciuszko - were located in the vicinity of Warsaw. The rebel reserve of seven thousand was stationed in Krakow. Smaller detachments covered the directions to Vilno, Grodno, Lublin, Rava-Russkaya.
Fighting in the summer of 1794
In the summer of 1794, active hostilities broke out between the opponents. Having superior forces, Kosciuszko tried to destroy the Cossack detachment of Ataman Denisov, who remained in Poland, near Radom. But the Cossacks avoided the battle and retreated to join the Prussians. In the battle of Szczekocin, Kosciuszko's corps was defeated and was forced to retreat to Warsaw. Developing success, the Prussian general Elsner captured Krakow. In July 1794, Frederick William II began the siege of Warsaw, where he met desperate resistance from its defenders.
In the eastern direction, the Russian detachment of General Derfelden operated successfully, which, advancing from the Pripyat River, defeated the Polish corps of General Jozef Zajonczek (Zajaczek, 1752-1826), occupied Lublin and reached Pulawy. Field Marshal Prince Nikolai Repnin (cm. REPNIN Nikolay Vasilievich), appointed commander of the Russian troops in Lithuania, waited for the arrival of Suvorov’s corps from the Turkish border and did not take decisive action. Repnin's passivity allowed the Poles to develop successful military activities in Lithuania. While the detachments of Count Grabowski and Jakub Jasinsky (Jasinsky, d. 1794) held Vilna and Grodno, Count Mikhail Oginsky (cm. OGINSKY Mikhail Kleofas) launched a partisan fight in the rear of the Russian troops, and the 12,000-strong rebel corps entered Courland and occupied Libau. Only the unsuccessful actions of the commander of the Polish troops in Lithuania, Mikhail Vilyegorsky, did not allow the rebels to achieve decisive successes.
After a double attack, Russian troops captured Vilna and on August 1, 1794 defeated the main forces of the rebels in Lithuania. After this, the Russians firmly seized the initiative, which was facilitated by a confederation in support of Russia, organized by Count Xavier Branicki from part of the Lithuanian gentry.
Meanwhile, in the rear of the Prussian troops, in the previously annexed Greater Poland, an uprising broke out. The rebels managed to occupy several cities. Having failed to achieve success, the Prussians were forced to retreat from Warsaw in September 1794. Kosciuszko pursued the retreating Frederick William II, General Madalinski successfully acted on the Lower Vistula. Taking advantage of the fact that the main forces of the Poles were occupied in other directions, Austrian troops occupied Krakow, Sandomierz and Kholm, and limited their actions there.
Suppression of the uprising (September-November 1794)
At the beginning of September 1794, Alexander Suvorov's 10,000-strong corps arrived at the theater of military operations in Belarus. On September 4, he took Kobrin, and on September 8, near Brest, he defeated the rebels under the command of Sierakovsky. On September 28 (October 9), 1794, the Russian corps of General Ivan Ferzen defeated the main forces of the rebel troops in the Battle of Maciejowice near the city of Siedlce in Eastern Poland. Tadeusz Kosciuszko himself was seriously wounded and captured. Of the 10 thousand rebels who took part in the battle, only two thousand managed to escape to Warsaw.
The news of the disaster near Maciewice caused panic in Warsaw, which there was no one to protect. The new commander-in-chief of the Polish army, Tomasz Wawrzecki, ordered all rebel troops to hurry to the capital. But the efforts made were in vain. Suvorov, having joined the detachments of Fersen and Derfelden, took Prague, the right bank part of Warsaw, by storm on October 24 (November 4). Under the threat of artillery bombardment, the Warsaw residents decided to capitulate. On October 26 (November 6), 1794, Suvorov’s troops occupied the capital of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
After the fall of the capital, Polish resistance began to fade. Part of the remains Polish army crossed the Prussian border and joined the rebels in Greater Poland. But here, too, the uprising was soon suppressed. Another part of the rebel army tried to break through to the south, across the Austrian border into Galicia. Near Opochno, the rebels were overtaken by the Prussian detachment of General Kleist and the Cossacks of Ataman Denisov. In the battle, the Poles were completely defeated and only a few of them managed to escape to Galicia.
The desperate resistance of the rebels absorbed a significant part of the forces of the anti-French coalition and eased the position of revolutionary France during the most tense period. The defeat of the uprising predetermined the third partition of Poland in 1795 and the complete liquidation of Polish statehood. The heroism and selfless patriotism of the rebels, the democratic orientation of the leadership of the uprising had a significant influence on the traditions of the subsequent national liberation struggle and the mentality of the Polish people.

encyclopedic Dictionary. 2009 .

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION OF THE REPUBLIC OF BELARUS

EE "BELARUSIAN STATE ECONOMIC UNIVERSITY"

Department of Economic History

ABSTRACT

in the discipline: History of Belarus in the context of world civilizations

on the topic: “The liberation uprising of T. Kosciuszka of 1794”

Students E.M. Semitko

FMK, 1st year, DMV-1 (signature)

I checked

candidate

historical sciences, (signature) T.V. Voronich

Associate Professor (date)

Introduction 7

Brief biography of Andrei Tadeusz Bonaventura Kosciuszko 9

Causes of the uprising 11

The course of hostilities and the results of the uprising 14

Beginning of the uprising 14

Progress of hostilities 15

The final part of the uprising, its results. 17

Conclusion 20

Introduction

The 18th century was a difficult period in history for the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Many events undermined the former power of this state and destroyed all illusions about its strength. Military conflicts at the beginning of the century, and internal disagreements played an important role in this. Although various attempts were made to reform the existing state order, and these attempts were quite progressive, they were perceived extremely negatively by countries such as Russia and Prussia. Later, they took advantage of the disagreement between the gentry of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth at the Sejm of 1766 regarding the equal rights of Orthodox and Protestants with Catholics and, supporting the dissident Torun and Slutsk confederations, brought their troops into the country. As a result, at the Sejm of 1767-1768. non-Catholics were not only given equal rights, but most of the previously adopted reforms were also repealed. Although the patriotic gentry tried to prevent such obvious interference in the internal affairs of the state of other countries, it was defeated, the main result of which was the first partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1772. After it, the country lost a sufficient number of territories: eastern Belarus went to the Russian Empire, southern Poland And Western Ukraine- to Austria, and Pomerania - to Prussia.

But the attempts at reform did not end there. Already in 1775, a new attempt was made to improve the situation in the country. Several decisions were made regarding different areas of society. At that time, the Permanent Rada was created, which is the executive body under the king, attention was paid to improving the transport system of the state, and the situation of the enslaved peasantry changed. By the way, the latter led to the decomposition of the Belarusian village and the emergence of wealthy peasant farmers.

At the same time, further economic development nevertheless, it was not possible without reforming the state system. A new attempt at reform took place at the Great Sejm of 1788-1792. In addition to various important decisions made at it regarding the army, the role of the burghers, self-government bodies, etc., the crown of its activities was the adoption on May 3, 1791 of the Constitution of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which opened the way for bourgeois transformations in the country. And, despite the fact that this document was positively assessed by countries such as England and France, Russia and Prussia did not accept it. They were unhappy with the revival of their neighbor. That is why in 1772 these states provided military support to opponents of reforms from the conservative gentry, as a result of which they, in turn, achieved the abolition of the Constitution on May 3, 1791. But the most important result of these events was the adoption of a decision on the second partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Russia captured central Belarus and most of Ukraine, and Prussia captured western Poland. The Grodno Seimas in 1792 was forced to recognize this division and abandon the previously approved reforms.

The reaction to the actual transformation of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth into a puppet state was the national liberation uprising raised on March 24, 1794 by a native of Belarus T. Kosciuszka in Krakow. In this work I will try to reveal to the fullest extent the causes, events and results of the underlying historical fact.

Brief biography of Andrei Tadeusz Bonaventura Kosciuszka

In order to fully understand the reason for T. Kosciuszko’s participation in the national liberation movement of 1794, some facts of his biography should be mentioned, thanks to which it will be possible to understand how the character and worldview of this historical figure was formed, his values ​​and principles, what exactly pushed him to carrying out an uprising.

T. Kosciuszko - statesman and military leader, leader of the 1794 uprising. It is believed that he was born on February 4, 1746 in the Merechovshchina estate. He was baptized twice: into Orthodoxy and Catholicism. Father, Louis Kosciuszko, was a swordsman in the Brest Voivodeship. Mother, Teklya from the Ratomsky family, was from the Orsha district. T. Kosciuszko's father died early, leaving behind his wife and four young children.

In 1755-1760 T. Kosciuszko studied at the Lyubeshov PR College. In 1765 he was admitted to the Knight School ( Cadet Corps) in Warsaw. He graduated from his studies with the rank of captain. In 1774 he returned to his homeland, but due to the difficult financial situation he was unable to enroll in military service. In 1776 he went to the USA, where he participated in the struggle of the South American states for independence. He was awarded the rank of brigade commander, and for his military services Kosciuszko was awarded the highest military order of the United States - the Order of Cincinnatus and was accepted as a member of the "Cincinnatus Fellowship".

In 1783 Kosciuszko returned to Poland. In 1789, he was again enlisted in the royal army with the rank of general and appointed commander of a brigade located near the Prussian border. During the war with Russia in defense of the reforms of the Four-Year Sejm of 1788-1792. T. Kosciuszko distinguished himself in the battle of Dubenka as a division commander in the army of Yu. Poniatowski.

In 1793 he went to France for help in preparing the uprising. But, not finding support, he returned to Leipzig and took over the leadership of the 1794 uprising.

Having suffered defeat, he was taken to the St. Petersburg fortress and released only in 1796 after the death of Catherine II. In the same year he emigrated to the USA, where he stayed until 1798. At the same time he met with Napoleon I, who wanted to use his name to organize an uprising in the territory of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, occupied by Austria. But T. Kosciuszko did not make a deal with Bonaparte.

In 1815 he moved to Solur, Switzerland. He died on October 15, 1817 and was buried in Krakow.

Causes of the uprising

At the end of the 18th century. The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was not in the best position. It was subject to great influence from other countries, primarily from Russia and Prussia. And, no matter how politicians and the gentry tried to carry out any reforms in the country, all their attempts were in vain, were suppressed and, therefore, brought very minor changes into the life of society. This, in addition to the intervention of other states, was also due to many disagreements among the gentry, the reluctance of conservative aristocrats to accept any reforms, since they could undermine their influence, powers and power in the state. Many simply resigned themselves to the situation that existed then in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. But there were also those who firmly believed in the possibility of radical changes in this state. Soon they began to make their dreams come true. The idea of ​​a national liberation uprising was conceived.

So, its reasons were primarily the abolition of the Constitution of May 3, 1791 and the second section of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

In 1792, the country's international situation became more complicated. Prussia sought to quarrel with Russia, and then made a deal with tsarism. At the beginning of 1792, the activity of magnates and the top of the Catholic clergy, the so-called Old Nobility Party, intensified against the progressive laws adopted in 1791. After negotiations in St. Petersburg with Catherine II, having secured her promise to support their rebellion, representatives of the Old Nobility Party on April 27, 1792 signed an act of confederation in St. Petersburg, which was then read out in the Ukrainian town of Torgovitsa under the false date of May 14.

The act declared the activities of the Sejm, which allegedly “violated fundamental rights, abolished all noble liberties, and on May 3 carried out a revolutionary conspiracy, established new uniform power with the help of mestichs, zhovners, uhlans... He turned the republic into a monarchy, and removed the landless gentry from equality and freedoms.” It was further said that the confederation was created in the name of protecting the Catholic religion, preserving the integrity of the borders of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and preserving the old liberties of the gentry. Lacking widespread support within the country, traders turned to royal power, which on May 18, 1792 sent an army of 100,000 to help them. Subsequently, the merchants defended their point of view and finally canceled all progressive reforms carried out on the territory of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

But their triumph was short-lived. The merchants contributed to the military defeat they organized in carrying out such an act in 1793 as the second partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Prussia captured the Throne and Gdansk with lands, and Volyn, Podolia, and the Minsk Voivodeship with a total area of ​​4,550 square miles and a population of three million people went to Russia. On March 27, the Manifesto of Chief General Krochetnikov was announced in all churches and churches of the annexed lands, which explained to these three million what had happened to them.

In order for the annexation of lands and the solemn oaths to acquire the fantastic character of goodwill, on the orders of Catherine, the Gorodno Seym met, which was called the “mute”. According to its results, the second section of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was considered praised. At the same Sejm, the dissolution of the merchant and the creation of the Sejm Gorodno Confederation was announced. The Gorodensky Sejm abolished the constitution on May 3, 1791 and adopted a new one. But even this constitution of 1793 remained only on paper, because the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was losing its independence.

It is quite natural that the leading circles of the country, patriotic feelings, and the historical consciousness of the majority of the population could not come to terms with the mockery of the state that was perpetrated by the monarchs of Prussia, Russia and Austria, these, according to V.I. Lenin, “crowned robbers”. “The greatest evil,” Lenin specified, “was that Poland was divided between German, Austrian and Russian capital.”

So, on March 24, 1794, a national liberation uprising began in Krakow, led by T. Kosciuszko. The goal of the uprising was “the restoration of the independence of the nation and the establishment of universal freedom”, the revival of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth within the borders of 1772. For the Belarusian people, this meant the final Catholicization and Polonization of the Belarusian region.

The course of hostilities and the results of the uprising

The beginning of the uprising

The constant interference of neighboring monarchical regimes in the internal affairs of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the powerlessness of “their” state bodies caused protest and dissatisfaction among wide sections of the population and especially the progressive gentry, whose representatives began preparing for the uprising. T. Kosciuszko took an active part in it. His principles are expressed in his own statement: “I will not fight only for the gentry. I wish freedom for the entire people and I am ready to sacrifice my life only for it.”

Polish patriots, outwardly resigned, secretly plotted, hoping for help from France, where the revolution was then in full swing. They elected T. Kostyushka as leader, who had already declared himself a brave and efficient warrior. He went to Paris, where he negotiated with the Minister of Foreign Affairs and gave him a memorial about the tasks of the revolution in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. It spoke of the need to overthrow royalty and the Senate, the highest clergy, about freedom to acquire land property, about suffrage for all landowners and persons who pay taxes, about the abolition of serfdom, about freedom and equality for all. In a word, the memorial proclaimed all the goals of the bourgeois revolution. But hopes for French support did not materialize, and T. Kosciuszko was forced to return to his homeland.

In 1794, preparations for an uprising intensified, which was supposed to begin simultaneously in Krakow, Warsaw and Vilna. It was led by a group of patriots forced to leave for Leipzig and Dresden. Among them, in addition to T. Kosciuszko, were G. Kolontai, I. Pototsky and others. On the territory of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth there were secret partnerships of supporters of the uprising on the forehead with I. Delinsky, K. Prozor and others. T. Kosciuszko understood that with the weakness of the city bourgeoisie and the downtrodden enslaved peasants, it was necessary to attract the progressive gentry to the struggle. However, this led to a compromise and completely pushed the peasants away from active struggle, because the significant majority of the gentry did not want a social revolution, but sought only to restore order in accordance with the Constitution of May 3. This dual situation was especially evident at the beginning of the uprising.

General Madalinsky, refusing to obey the decision of the Grodno Sejm and disband his cavalry brigade, surprised the Russian regiment and took possession of its treasury, and then, having dispersed the Prussian squadron in Shrensk, headed towards Krakow. T. Kosciuszko, having learned about this, hurried there. On March 16, 1794, the inhabitants of Krakow proclaimed him dictator of the republic. In the same city, the Act of Uprising was proclaimed and T. Kosciuszko took a public oath. This Act proclaimed him the supreme commander of the national armed forces and gave him full power in the country. Townspeople and some peasants took part in the uprising. An attempt has already been made in the literature to determine the social portrait of the uprising on the basis of interrogation forms of almost 2 thousand captured rebels, whom Russian generals sent for investigation to Smolensk. The researcher of this issue concluded that a third of the rebels were gentry and about half were peasants.

On March 24, T. Kosciuszko addressed the population, releasing four patriotic appeals: “To the army,” “To the citizens,” “To the priests,” “To the women.” In different places of the region, the population began to arm itself. The Russian ambassador and chief of Russian troops in Warsaw, General Igelstrom, sent Denisov and Tormasov’s detachments against Madalinsky; at the same time, Prussian troops also entered Poland.

Progress of hostilities

Citizens' uprisings liberated Warsaw (April 17-18) and Vilna (April 22-23). On April 19, the Act of the Mozovia Voivodeship on joining the uprising under the leadership of T. Kosciuszka was announced. From the very beginning, a struggle for power in the city began in Warsaw. A Temporary Substitute Rada was created. The Rada was headed by the President of Warsaw Zakrzewski, a supporter of the royal government, General S. Myakronovsky, was appointed military commandant, who tried to warn against punishing the traitor-merchants. From the very beginning of the uprising in Warsaw, this Provisional Rada did not enjoy the trust of the townspeople and especially the revolutionary-minded “Jacobins”.

The subsequent siege of Warsaw by the united Russian-Prussian army ended in failure, largely due to the skillful leadership of the defense by Kosciuszko. May 7, 1794 Kosciuszko published the Polonetsky Universal, in which the peasants were promised personal liberation and a reduction in duties. But many of the provisions of the station wagon were not implemented on the ground and remained only on paper. The top of the Catholic clergy also spoke out against the revival of the Polonetsky universal.

T. Kosciuszko's appeals to the common people often aroused mistrust of the peasants and sabotage of the landowners. Yu. Nemtsevich, T. Kostyushka’s shoulder-bearer, wrote about this in his memoirs: “The gentry, who were accustomed to using the property of their peasants without obstacles, resisted the execution of the Chief’s (Kostyushka’s) order to send the fifth peasant with a scythe to the army. Even the peasant people, who lived in captivity for so long, for the most part did not foresee a better future, without knowing it, they were indifferent. It was in vain that Kosciuszko, with his station wagon from near Polonets, on May 7, 1794, declared the village people free, declared their freedom. These generalists either didn’t make it, or they weren’t believed.”

This characterization given by Yu. Nemtsevich to the attitude of the serfs towards the uprising reflected the current situation and largely explained the failures of the uprising.

Then Kosciuszko hurried to the aid of General Madalinsky, against whom General Tormasov’s 5,000-strong detachment was sent. Kosciuszko managed not only to unite with the rebel general, but also to choose a position advantageous for the battle and strengthen it. Now under his overall command there were up to four thousand infantry and cavalry with twelve guns.

On April 4, a battle broke out, lasting all day and distinguished by rare tenacity on both sides. All Russian attacks were repulsed, and then the Poles themselves went on the offensive and forced the enemy to retreat. Kosciuszko's victory caused general rejoicing in Poland and brought new supporters to his banner.

At the end of April, Kościuszko declared the “Pospolitan Ruin,” according to which the entire male population of Poland from fifteen to fifty years of age was called upon to join the ranks of the Polish army. And on May 7, a manifesto was released, which called on all Poles to unite to fight a common enemy.

The manifesto was not successful - the landowners saw in it a violation of their centuries-old privileges, the peasants also treated it with distrust, since the manifesto stated that the promised benefits and freedoms were subject to revision at a future Sejm.

The rebel treasury was empty, taxes were not paid, and there were few donations for the army. An attempt to form an army of volunteers was unsuccessful. By the beginning of autumn, instead of the 400,000-strong army planned according to the uprising plan, Kosciuszko managed to gather only 40,000 people. His main apartment was located near the village of Polentsy, where 16 thousand regular troops and about 10 thousand volunteers were camped.

To prevent the connection of three Russian detachments, Kosciuszko decided to attack and defeat them separately. In the first battle with the Russian detachment under the command of Denisov, the Poles were defeated. This failure was followed by others. Krakow capitulated, and the threat of a siege by Russian-Prussian allied forces loomed over Warsaw. Kosciuszko ordered all forces to be drawn to the Polish capital. However, the Prussian troops, having stood near Warsaw for more than two months, lifted the siege themselves.

The final part of the uprising, its results.

The position of Kosciuszko's army remained difficult; there was an acute shortage of soldiers and funds. There were constant quarrels and misunderstandings among the generals subordinate to Kosciuszko, which negatively affected the entire course of military operations. The enthusiasm that gripped everyone at the beginning of the uprising gradually began to give way to general grumbling, and discipline began to decline.

Faith in the successful outcome of the uprising was completely lost when it became known that A.V. had been placed at the head of the Russian troops in Poland. Suvorov,
and the impression among the troops of Suvorov’s victory was so strong that Kosciuszko issued an order in which he announced: “If anyone says that it is impossible to resist the Muscovites, or during the battle begins to shout that the Muscovites have gone to the rear, he will be shot. I order the infantry unit to keep a line with cannons behind them, from which they will fire at those running. Let everyone know that by going forward he receives victory and glory, but by leaving the battlefield he encounters shame and death.”

But even such harsh measures did not lead to success. Intending to prevent Suvorov from uniting with other forces, Kosciuszko secretly left Warsaw for the camp of Polish troops in Korytinets. Here he intended to give a general battle, although the entire force of the Poles did not exceed nine thousand, while the enemy had no less than 18 thousand.

On September 17, not far from Kobrin, near the village of Krupchitsy, the most powerful battle since the uprising of 1794 in Belarus continued from morning until three o'clock. About 20 thousand people took part in it on both sides. Among them were almost 2 thousand cosigner peasants. Suvorov was well aware of the side paths and approaches of the Carmelites who rebelled in front of the Krupczyca monastery. With a flanking maneuver, having crossed the Trostenitsa River, Suvorov’s departments were able to reach the rear of the rebels. This predetermined the outcome of the battle. In order not to surrender his main forces to the destructive artillery fire, Serokovsky gave the order to retreat to Brest. But already on September 19, again, with an unexpected roundabout maneuver through Mukhovets, Suvorov struck at dawn the positions of the rebels near Terespol. This unexpected attack led to the complete defeat of Serokovsky's corps, in which only 700 people survived, 2645 were captured, killed or wounded.

On October 10, a battle began near the village of Maciovica, which became fatal for Kosciuszko. At dawn they were attacked by the numerically larger corps of General Fersen. The battle continued until the first hour of the day. The Poles were surrounded on all sides and, despite persistent resistance, were defeated. Thousands of rebels died. Kosciuszko himself, seriously wounded in the head and leg, was captured. He was sent to St. Petersburg under a false name and in strict secrecy, where he was kept in captivity until the death of Empress Catherine II.

Paul I, who ascended the throne, granted him and other captive Poles freedom. All of them were sworn to allegiance to Russia and Emperor Paul. On October 12, 1794, the Supreme Rada appointed T. Vouzhetsky as the head of the armed forces instead of T. Kosciuszko. However, neither his authority nor his military abilities gave him the opportunity to equal Kosciuszka.

On November 4, the army under the command of Suvorov captured the fortified suburb of Warsaw - Prague. The storming of Prague by Suvorov went down in history as the “Prague massacre.” Thousands died there civilians and 10 thousand rebels. Among the defenders of Prague there were many Belarusians, whom Kosciuszko called upon to defend the last citadel of the uprising. Only after the capture of Prague was the decision made to capitulate Warsaw.

In August 1795, Russia, Austria and Prussia carried out the final division of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (it went to Russia western Belarus and Lithuania), and on November 25, 1795. in Grodno, Stanislav Augustus renounced the throne. The peasants, along with their lands on the territory of Belarus, were given to the new lords, Russian nobles.

Conclusion

The leaders of any uprising always strive for change in better side in your state. This uprising 1794 led by T. Kosciuszka was no exception. He, inspired by the struggle of the American people for their independence from monarchical England, the bourgeois revolutions in France, seeing the deplorable situation of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, sought to carry out radical, progressive and, as it seemed to him, correct transformations in this state. Under his leadership, many victories were achieved in the struggle for the idea of ​​an independent Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. At first he was able to unite the Polish, Belarusian and Lithuanian people in the fight against Russian-Prussian oppression. But, due to the lack of cohesion in the commander-in-chief circles, the inconclusiveness and disagreement in their actions, the uprising simply could not succeed. It was doomed to failure, which is what happened as a result. It led to a decline in the spirit of the Polish, Belarusian and Lithuanian people.

Thus, the uprising of 1794 under the leadership of T. Kosciuszko did not save the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, did not give freedom and independence to its inhabitants. But its participants tried to do it! Not in dreams, assumptions or verbal plans, but on the battlefield, where many of them remained. And this is much more substantial. As well as the fact that through this uprising, and after many years of hard times, having understood their own interests, those peoples who two hundred years ago were brothers in arms began their long-suffering path to revival and independence. T. Kosciuszko showed that path. Standing on it, their best sons already knew that they had to fight for freedom! And with weapons in hands and without them. One of T. Kosciuszka’s shoulder pads, our national hero Ya. Yasinsky. Addressing the residents of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania during the uprising, he said: “Do you want to be free? So be them!

List of sources used liberation movement, Tadeusz Kosciuszko born on February 4, 1746 in Western... the bourgeoisie, although it took part in the national liberation uprising 1794 g.po was still too weak...

History of Poland

Abstract >> History

In March 1794 year began the national liberation insurrection Kosciuszko. Kosciuszko, proclaimed in Krakow “chief uprising", defeated... granted to Poland in 1815. National liberation uprisings took place in 1846 in Poznań (...

History of the southern and western Slavs in the Middle Ages

Presentation >> History

Kosovo field. Failure uprisings 1072 liberation did not stop the Bulgarians’ struggle... political reforms, the first national liberation uprisings and sections of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth... 1794 of the year. Kosciuszko stood at the head of the rebellious army, proclaimed an act uprisings ...

Lecture notes on the history of the southern and western Slavs in the Middle Ages and modern times

Lecture >> History

Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. 1794 , March 12 - November 6. Polish national liberation insurrection under the leadership of Tadeusz Kosciuszko. ... servants", who prepared armed insurrection. 1830-1831. National liberation insurrection in the Kingdom of Poland, suppressed...

Background to the uprising (1791-1794)

The Constitution of the Third of May 1791 laid the foundations for the transformation of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth into a viable state with a strong central authority. The restriction of class privileges caused displeasure among some of the magnates and gentry, who in May 1792 organized the Targowitz Confederation against the constitution. King Stanisław August Poniatowski declared the Targowicz people rebels and ordered the confederation troops to be dispersed by force.

Stanislav August Poniatowski

However, the Russian Empress Catherine II, who did not want the strengthening of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, came out in support of the confederation and ordered the troops of General Mikhail Kakhovsky to enter Poland, and General Krechetnikov to enter Lithuania. Fighting broke out.

Catherine II was joined on the Polish issue by the Prussian king Frederick William II.

Friedrich Wilhelm II

The Polish army resisted for about three months. But under pressure from superior forces, King Stanislav Augustus was forced to capitulate and submit to the demands of the Targovichans and interventionists. The new Sejm, convened in the city of Grodno, proclaimed the abolition of the Constitution of the Third of May. Garrisons of Russian and Prussian troops were stationed in major cities of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, including Warsaw. The Polish army was being reorganized, many of its units were supposed to be disbanded.
In December 1792, Catherine II and Frederick William II agreed on a new, second partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. On April 9, 1793, the terms of the division were announced: Prussia received Greater Poland with the cities of Poznan, Torun and Gdansk, Russia received Eastern Belarus and Right-Bank Ukraine. In September 1793, the terms of the division were accepted by the Polish Sejm, which was controlled by the Targovichans.

Not all Polish patriots have come to terms with the dictates of foreign powers. Secret societies were organized everywhere, with the goal of preparing a general uprising. The head of the patriotic movement was General Tadeusz Kosciuszko, who had proven himself well in the fight against the Targovichans and a participant in the American Revolution.

Tadeusz Andrzej Bonaventura Kosciuszko

The conspirators pinned great hopes on revolutionary France, which was at war with Austria and Prussia—participants in the partition of Poland.

Beginning of the uprising (March-June 1794)

The uprising began on March 12, 1794 in Pułtusk with a mutiny of the cavalry brigade of General Anton Madalinski (Madalinski, d. 1805), which refused to obey the decision to disband.

Anton Madalinsky

Other units of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth army began to join the rebels. A few days later, Madalinski's cavalry captured Krakow, which became the center of the uprising. On March 16, 1794, the leader of the rebels was chosen - proclaimed dictator Tadeusz Kosciuszko.

taking the oath in Krakow

On March 24, the Act of Uprising was published in Krakow, which proclaimed slogans for the full restoration of the sovereignty of Poland, the return of territories seized in 1773 and 1793 (see Partitions of Poland, the continuation of the reforms begun by the Four-Year Sejm of 1788-1792.
The rebels were supported by wide sections of Polish society, and the arming of the population and the formation of rebel groups began everywhere.

rebels (cosigners)

The Russian Ambassador in Warsaw and the commander of Russian troops on the territory of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, General I. A. Igelstrom, sent a detachment of General A. P. Tormasov to suppress the uprising.

Joseph Andreevich Igelstrom Alexander Petrovich Tormasov

But on April 4, 1794, in the battle near Roslawice (Raclawice), the Poles managed to defeat a detachment of Russian troops.

Battle of Roslavice

Following this, uprisings of the townspeople liberated Warsaw (April 17-18) and Vilna (April 22-23). Having accepted the title of Generalissimo, Kosciuszko announced a general mobilization.

The number of the rebel army was increased to 70 thousand, but a significant part of it was armed with pikes and scythes. By May, the rebels had established control over most of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
The democratically minded leaders of the uprising tried to start reforms in Poland. On May 7, 1793, Tadeusz Kościuszko published the Polaniec Universal, which granted serfs personal freedom, subject to their settlement with the landowners and payment of state taxes, and recognized the hereditary right of peasants to cultivated land. This act was received with hostility by the gentry and the Catholic clergy, who sabotaged its actual implementation.
Under the influence of the Great French Revolution, the most radically minded part of the rebels formed into a group of Polish Jacobins and tried to unleash revolutionary terror in Poland. On May 9 and June 28, 1794, the Jacobins provoked popular unrest in Warsaw, during which leaders of the Targowica Confederation were executed.

The extremism of the Jacobins pushed many moderate Poles away from the rebel camp.
Russia, Prussia and Austria decided to suppress the uprising by armed means and force the Poles to recognize the partitions of Poland. Russian troops operated in two directions: Warsaw and Lithuania. General Saltykov's 30,000-strong covering corps was deployed in the second echelon of Russian troops. The corps of Chief General A.V. Suvorov was urgently transferred from the Turkish border to Poland.

Alexander Vasilievich Suvorov

The Austrians concentrated a 20,000-strong corps on the southern borders of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Under the personal command of King Frederick William II, a 54,000-strong Prussian army invaded Poland from the west. Another 11 thousand Prussians remained to cover their borders.
The main forces of the Poles - a 23,000-strong corps under the personal command of Kosciuszko - were located in the vicinity of Warsaw. The rebel reserve of seven thousand was stationed in Krakow. Smaller detachments covered the directions to Vilno, Grodno, Lublin, Rava-Russkaya.

Fighting in the summer of 1794

In the summer of 1794, active hostilities broke out between the opponents. Having superior forces, Kosciuszko tried to destroy the Cossack detachment of Ataman Denisov, who remained in Poland, near Radom. But the Cossacks avoided the battle and retreated to join the Prussians. In the battle of Szczekocin, Kosciuszko's corps was defeated and was forced to retreat to Warsaw.

The Battle of Szczekocin - a battle between the Russian-Prussian army and a detachment of Polish rebels during Kosciuszko uprising May 26 (June 6) 1794 near the village of Shchekociny (on the Pilica River, 70 km from Krakow). General leadership on the part of the Allies was carried out by Friedrich Wilhelm II, with which the remnants of Russian troops from Warsaw under the leadership of General I. A. Ingelstrom and the corps of General P. F. Denison joined.

A significant part of the Polish army was made up of Polish peasants armed with straightened scythes - cosigners, who, with the support of regular troops, attacked the enemy and then repelled the onslaught of their cavalry. The calculation of the Russian-Prussian command, which hoped that the peasants would run away at the sight of horsemen rushing towards them, did not come true. Having formed a formation, the Poles successfully repelled cavalry attacks . Prussian troops were forced to retreat. The cosigners tried to capture a Prussian artillery battery of 12 guns, but were almost completely destroyed by grapeshot on level ground.

The Don Cossacks, in turn, put the Polish lancers to flight and captured 16 cannons. Kosciuszko's army was defeated and only the uprising that broke out in the rear of the Prussians prevented them from soon besieging Warsaw. Developing success, the Prussian general Elsner captured Krakow. In July 1794, Frederick William II began the siege of Warsaw, where he met desperate resistance from its defenders.
In the eastern direction, the Russian detachment of General Derfelden operated successfully, which, advancing from the Pripyat River, defeated the Polish corps of General Jozef Zajonczek (Zajaczek, 1752-1826), occupied Lublin and reached Pulawy. Field Marshal General Prince Nikolai Repnin, appointed commander of the Russian troops in Lithuania, waited for the arrival of Suvorov’s corps from the Turkish border and did not take decisive action.

Nikolai Vasilievich Repnin

Repnin's passivity allowed the Poles to develop successful military activities in Lithuania. While the detachments of Count Grabowski and Jakub Jasinsky (Jasinsky, d. 1794) held Vilna and Grodno, Count Mikhail Oginsky launched a partisan fight in the rear of the Russian troops, and the 12,000-strong rebel corps entered Courland and occupied Libau.

Jakub Jasinski Mikhail Kleofas Oginski

Only the unsuccessful actions of the commander of the Polish troops in Lithuania, Mikhail Vilyegorsky, did not allow the rebels to achieve decisive successes.
After a double attack, Russian troops captured Vilna and on August 1, 1794 defeated the main forces of the rebels in Lithuania. After this, the Russians firmly seized the initiative, which was facilitated by a confederation in support of Russia, organized by Count Xavier Branicki from part of the Lithuanian gentry.

Meanwhile, in the rear of the Prussian troops, in the previously annexed Greater Poland, an uprising broke out. The rebels managed to occupy several cities. Having failed to achieve success, the Prussians were forced to retreat from Warsaw in September 1794. Kosciuszko pursued the retreating Frederick William II, General Madalinski successfully acted on the Lower Vistula. Taking advantage of the fact that the main forces of the Poles were occupied in other directions, Austrian troops occupied Krakow, Sandomierz and Kholm, and limited their actions there.

Suppression of the uprising (September-November 1794)

At the beginning of September 1794, Alexander Suvorov's 10,000-strong corps arrived at the theater of military operations in Belarus. On September 4, he took Kobrin, and on September 8, near Brest, he defeated the rebels under the command of Sierakovsky.

On September 28 (October 9), 1794, the Russian corps of General Ivan Ferzen defeated the main forces of the rebel troops in the Battle of Maciejowice near the city of Siedlce in Eastern Poland.

Ivan Evstafievich Ferzen

Kosciuszko's goal was to prevent Fersen's corps from connecting with the detachment heading towards him A. V. Suvorova. In total, under the command of Kosciuszko there were 11 thousand people, of which 7 thousand made up the division Serakovsky and Polonsky’s 4 thousand division, which was located at a distance from the main forces.

Karol Jozef Sierakowski

September 28 ( October 9) Kościuszko set out from Zelechowa in the direction of Maciejowice. Having arrived there, he positioned his troops on a hill, which gave certain advantages, however, in the rear there was a swampy Okrzejka River, which made a possible retreat difficult. Fersen, knowing about the presence of Polonsky’s division, which could reinforce Kosciuszko’s army on September 29 ( October 10) decided to attack in order to defeat the Poles before reinforcements arrived. In addition, the courier sent by Kosciuszko to Polonsky with the order to move to his aid was captured by a Russian Cossack patrol (a repeated order sent 6 hours later could no longer change the situation).

The battle began with a clash of cavalry forces, then the infantry entered. Fersen attacked Kosciuszko's left flank and after the third attack the Polish resistance was broken. At the same time, General Rakhmanov’s detachment crossed the Okrzeika and entered the Poles’ right flank. Polish cavalry began to retreat, Kosciuszko galloped after them to stop them and direct them into a counteroffensive, but collided with Russian soldiers, was wounded and captured.

The retreat turned into flight, until Warsaw Only about 2 thousand people were able to get there, the rest were killed, captured or fled. The defeat at Maciejowice predetermined the defeat of the entire Polish uprising.

According to legend, the wounded Kosciuszko, falling to the ground, exclaimed “finis Poloniae!” ( lat. Poland perished!). He himself subsequently denied this.

capture of Tadeusz Kosciuszko

The news of the disaster near Maciewice caused panic in Warsaw, which there was no one to protect. The new commander-in-chief of the Polish army, Tomasz Wawrzecki, ordered all rebel troops to hurry to the capital. But the efforts made were in vain. Suvorov, having joined the detachments of Fersen and Derfelden, took Prague, the right bank part of Warsaw, by storm on October 24 (November 4).

Under the threat of artillery bombardment, the Warsaw residents decided to capitulate. On October 26 (November 6), 1794, Suvorov’s troops occupied the capital of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

After the fall of the capital, Polish resistance began to fade. Part of the remnants of the Polish army crossed the Prussian border and joined the rebels in Greater Poland. But here, too, the uprising was soon suppressed. Another part of the rebel army tried to break through to the south, across the Austrian border into Galicia. Near Opochno, the rebels were overtaken by the Prussian detachment of General Kleist and the Cossacks of Ataman Denisov.

Andrian Karpovich Denisov

In the battle, the Poles were completely defeated and only a few of them managed to escape to Galicia.

The desperate resistance of the rebels absorbed a significant part of the forces of the anti-French coalition and eased the position of revolutionary France during the most tense period. The defeat of the uprising predetermined the third partition of Poland in 1795 and the complete liquidation of Polish statehood. The heroism and selfless patriotism of the rebels, the democratic orientation of the leadership of the uprising had a significant influence on the traditions of the subsequent national liberation struggle and the mentality of the Polish people.

10/25/1794 (11/7). – Capture of Warsaw by the troops of A.V. Suvorov. Suppression of the T. Kosciuszko uprising

Kosciuszko's subsequent fate was inglorious. Back on October 10, 1794, in a battle near Maciejowice, Kosciuszko was wounded, captured and imprisoned. Peter and Paul Fortress, however, he lived in the house of the commandant of the fortress as a guest and enjoyed complete freedom within the fortress. In November 1796, immediately after the death of Catherine II, he was released, to whom he took the oath of allegiance. Paul I sent him abroad, allocating 12 thousand rubles, a carriage, a sable fur coat and silverware for the journey. Kosciuszko headed to the USA, but in 1797 he returned to Europe and lived near Paris. With Napoleon common language did not find it, because he demanded the restoration of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth within the borders of 1772. For the same reason, in 1815, Kosciuszko refused the invitation to head the administration of the Kingdom of Poland.

Kosciuszko died completely alone on October 15, 1817 in the Swiss city of Solothurn. His ashes were transported for burial to Krakow. IN Soviet time Many streets and squares were named after the fighter against tsarism Kosciuszko. In the USA, the name Kosciuszko is given to one of the counties in Indiana, a city in Mississippi, an island in Alaska, a subway station in New York and other toponymic objects.

The course of the uprising of 1794 in Belarus.

The uprising began with Kosciuszko's proclamation of the "Act of Insurrection" in Krakow. The document defined the goal of the speech - the restoration of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth within the borders of 1772. The implementation of the “Act of Uprising” required the withdrawal of foreign troops, the return of selected lands, and the implementation of reforms. The slogan of the rebels in Poland became the motto: “Freedom, integrity, independence.”

The uprising swept through the territory of Lithuania and the western part of Belarus in the second half of April 1794. Total its participants on the territory of Belarus numbered about 25 thousand people. Among them were nobles, clergy, townspeople, and there were also cosiners. This was the name given to peasants armed with scythes. They took part in the battles near the villages of Polyany, Lipnishki, Soly, Krupchitsy.

The Polanetsky universal, proclaimed on May 7, allowed peasants to gain personal freedom on the condition that they settle accounts with the lords and pay state taxes. However, this document met with opposition from the gentry.

Vilna became the center of the uprising in the Belarusian-Lithuanian lands. On the night of April 23, the city fell into the hands of the rebels. They were led by engineer-colonel and poet Jakub Jasinski (1761-1794). He represented the “Jacobin” trend in the uprising.

Historical reference

“Vilna Jacobins” were the name given to some participants in the 1794 uprising in Lithuania and Belarus. These were mostly noble officers. They advocated the abolition of corvee, the gradual abolition of serfdom, and the elimination of class restrictions for the bourgeoisie. The “Vilna Jacobins” openly supported French Revolution, which began in 1789, expressed hope for help from revolutionary France.

An independent governing body for the uprising was created in Vilna - the Highest Lithuanian Rada. But Tadeusz Kosciuszko was recognized as the leader of the uprising. On April 30, earlier than in Poland, the Rada adopted an appeal “To farmers and rural people.” It mentioned “will before the law and freedom...” and restored the Constitution on May 3. In addition, representatives of various religious denominations took part in the uprising on the territory of Belarus.

Large rebel detachments were led by Michal Kleofas Oginski, Stefan Grabowski, Karol Sierakowski. They carried out quick transitions, deep raids behind enemy lines, and ambushes. The rebels occupied Grodno, Brest, Novogrudok, Slonim, Volkovysk, Lida, Oshmyany, Kobrin, Braslav.

The suppression of the uprising was carried out personally by Catherine II and the Prussian king Frederick II. After the battle near the village of Krupczycy (near Kobrin), which took place on September 17, 1794, the troops of Karol Sierakowski were forced to retreat. Then the rebel army was defeated near Brest. On October 10, 1794, near Maciejowice (near Warsaw), about 15 thousand rebels gave battle to the numerically superior corps of General I. Fersen. The battle ended in victory for the Russian troops. Thousands of rebels died or were captured. The seriously wounded T. Kosciuszko was taken to the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg.

The Highest National Council in Warsaw appointed Tomasz Wawrzecki, a native of Belarus, as the head of the armed forces of the October 12 uprising. November 4 Russian troops under the command of A. Suvorov, they captured the fortified suburb of Warsaw - Prague. Only after this was the decision made to capitulate the city. Assault on the suburbs Russian army went down in history as the “Prague massacre.” During it, thousands of civilians and about 10 thousand rebels died. The legendary Jakub Jasinski also died on the barricades of Prague. Warsaw capitulated on November 6. The uprising was suppressed.

It was for the brutal suppression of the uprising that A. Suvorov received from Catherine II the title of field marshal, as well as more than 13 thousand serfs of the Kobrin povet. In total, more than 80 thousand serfs from Belarusian lands were distributed to Russian military personnel and civilian officials.

There was little chance of victory in the uprising of 1794. He was not supported by the bulk of the peasants and townspeople, and the gentry sought to prevent a widespread uprising of the urban lower strata and peasantry. In addition, failure to comply with T. Kosciuszko’s orders, and sometimes outright betrayal, undermined the rebel forces.