The Partitioning of Poland

The partitions of Poland was where Russia, Prussia, and Austria, divided Poland amongst themselves until Poland was virtually gone.  August 5, 1772, Russia, Prussia, and Austria had signed a treaty that would partition Poland.  This treaty made it so that Poland lost about half of its population and one-third of its outer land.  Russia, Prussia, and Austria each acquired parts of Poland’s land.  Russia took the eastern part (around the city of Vitebsk).  Austria took the southern part (known as Galicia).  Prussia took parts of Great Poland.  During this time Poland had been weakened by the civil war.  On May 3, 1792, Poland made a new liberal constitution.  This caused the confederation of Targowica to form.  That in turn asked Russia to restore Poland’s past constitution.  Russia agreed to this. Also, Prussia sent troops into Poland.  Russia and Prussia then agreed on having a second partitioning of Poland.  In this partition Poland lost about 115,000 square miles of its land.  Russia most of western Ukraine and all of the eastern parts of Lithuania.  Prussia took Danzig (Gdansk), Thorn (Torun), and part of Mazovia.  Austria did not take any land during the second partition.  Polish officer, Thaddeus Kosciuszko, was furious and led a national uprising.  This occurred in 1794 from March to November.  Russia and Prussia decided to intervene.  On October 24, 1795, Russia and Prussia made an agreement with Austria to divide up the rest of Poland.  Which was about 83,000 square miles.  Russia claimed the rest of Lithuania, the Ukraine, Volhynia, and the Duchy of Courland.  Prussia got the remainder of Mazovia and Warsaw.  Warsaw was under Prussia’s rule until 1815.  Austria claimed the remainder of Little Poland and Krakow.  In 1918, the Polish Republic was established which reversed these partitions.  Only certain sections of the partitioning were used to build present day Poland.  

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/466910/Partitions-of-Poland

http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Poland,+partitions

http://www.chain.to/?m3=1119

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~polwgw/ausgeruss.html