For how many years in the eighteenth century were Russian soldiers present within the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth borders?
Upvote:4
By "present" i understand you mean stationing in peace time. There were obviously many times foreign troops entered the Commonwealth for military campaigns or possibly raiding. Sometimes it's not even obvious whether we talk about stationing or campaigning as 18th century Commonwealth was sometimes called "Open Inn", throughout which the foreign troops moved and stayed at their own will and pleasure.
Silent Sejm, 1717
During the Northern war August II angered enough of the Szlachta to form Tarnogród Confederation which invited the Russian tsar Peter the Great in 1715 to bring his troops "for peacekeeping and mediation". The mediation effort included calling of the infamous Silent Sejm in 1717. The Russian troops remained for another two years and left in 1719.
So they stayed for about four years total. More importantly the Commonwealth lost it's independence in all but name and became Russian protectorate until it's dissolution through the Partitions 1772–1795. Even without the troops physically present, the Russian ambassadors became a de-facto governors of the conquered country.
War of the Polish Succession, 1733–35
After the death of August II the Commonwealth had double election again, with his son August III and his original rival Stanislaw Leszczynski both announced kings by opposing factions. It sparked the War of the Polish Succession with Russian forces participating. They entered in 1733. They were not disturbed during their march back from France in 1735. It's not clear when they left for good.
Seven Years' War, 1756–1763
Russian troops entered again during the Seven Years' War, in which the Commonwealth did not officially participate. So in a sense they were stationed in a vassal state for the purpose of fighting a third party (Prussia). Russia maintained military bases and magazines in the Commonwealth's territory.
The last election, 1764
Russian troops were definitely present during the election of Stanisław August Poniatowski in 1764. Their presence led to the Bar Confederation and the first partition in 1772. The Russian troops remained at least until the Partition Sejm in 1773–1775.
That's about eleven years.
The End, 1792–1795
Enacting the May Constitution by the Commonwealth under Prussian inspiration, was perceived by Russia as an attempt to end the protectorate, and prompted the invasion in 1792, the Second and Third Partition and the end of the Commonwealth in 1795.
So that's about three years of irregular fighting and occupation.
Summary
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 18th century was a de-facto Russian protectorate, since the Northern War, slowly losing it's independence piece-by-piece. But most of the time the Russian troops did not have to station in it's territory. It was probably about twenty years in total, that they stationed or operated within the Commonwealth borders.
During the reign of August III, the Saxon troops were also a de-facto arm of Russian Empire, as he was neither willing nor able to conduct an independent politics. Stanislaw Poniatowski is often singled out as Russian puppet, although I'm not sure why as he was not much different from August III in this respect.
The presence of Russian diplomats corrupting the magnates was enough to keep the Commonwealth in the state of anarchy and subjugation. Thus the private Magnate armies were also in a sense funded by Russia indirectly, and could be counted on, to some extent at least, to project Russian power.
The problem was not so much the actual presence of the foreign troops but the fact they could enter and stay at any point, without any realistic chance of preventing them from doing so.
More post
- 📝 Why was Benedict Arnold liked by the Tories but scorned by the Whigs?
- 📝 Did the Nazis regard chemical warfare as inhumane and "Jewish"?
- 📝 Have there been government conspiracies that were successful for over 25 years?
- 📝 Why did everyone try getting to the Pole via the Ross Sea, not the Weddell Sea?
- 📝 "Hat Hair" in History
- 📝 Are the dimensions of bricks used in Sumerian monuments like the great Ziggurat of Ur the same as in the Indus Valley Civilization?
- 📝 Did an Irishman talk a German unit out of a bridge in World War 2?
- 📝 Were there trains to anonymous concentration camps?
- 📝 Why do people refuse to acknowledge the Holocaust?
- 📝 What was the program of the Mensheviks in their later years? How did they hope to achieve it?
- 📝 What to do about historical Wikipedia articles contradicting each other in different languages?
- 📝 Who invented the Airplane?
- 📝 Why do some countries call Germany "Alman" too?
- 📝 How widespread was practice of fusion of Graeco-Roman and barbarian names?
- 📝 What were the advantages of dual power in the beginning of Castro's Cuba
- 📝 Who were some famous Vietnam War Hawks and Doves?
- 📝 Why did Sheikh Mujibur Rahman refuse to negotiate on Six Points [after] the 1970 election?
- 📝 What symbolism is incorporated in this illustration for a book by Riccati?
- 📝 When did blade fuller appear?
- 📝 When was the last cavalry charge?
- 📝 Was there any way to deal with infections in pre-modern times?
- 📝 Why was the Me262 not suited for a bomber role?
- 📝 What did Thomas Jefferson say about "what I say now is only valid now; I can change my thoughts?"
- 📝 Why is former Portuguese flag similar to Finnish one?
- 📝 What caused the turning point in Hundred Years' War?
- 📝 What are the origins of the "News Reel Voice"?
- 📝 How much louder was a Napoleonic era cannon than a musket?
- 📝 What autonomy did Bosnia lose when it was annexed by Austria-Hungary in 1908?
- 📝 How much did Spanish California officials earn?
- 📝 Why did European countries become more economically advanced than non European countries?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 For how many years in the eighteenth century were Russian soldiers present within the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth borders?
- 📝 How many soldiers were present at the charge down Little Round Top?
- 📝 How many acres per person were needed for the early American settlers vs. the native Americans?
- 📝 How many citizens were in each century of the Roman electoral system?
- 📝 How many tons of steel were produced in Russia during the Russian Civil War?
- 📝 How many Scots were present at the Battle of Bauge?
- 📝 How did knights in full suits of armor eventually die in combat? What were the most common causes of death for soldiers in full-body plate armor?
- 📝 How many ministerial deferments were there during WWII for the United States?
- 📝 Are there any documented examples of wooden ships which were in active service for 100 years or more? If not, what is the longest?
- 📝 How likely it is that a nobleman of the eighteenth century would give written instructions to his maids?
- 📝 How many lives were estimated to have been saved by the Hiroshima and Nagasaki bombs?
- 📝 About how many immigrants were on the Titanic?
- 📝 How many barons were there in feudal 10th century France?
- 📝 How rich were carpenters in Roman Galilee in the 1st century AD?
- 📝 How many British navy officers were from lower classes at the end of 18th century?
- 📝 How were taxes collected for traveling merchants in the middle ages?
- 📝 How common was it for people to live 80+ years in the 17th century?
- 📝 How were the holes for the guns in battleships' turrets protected?
- 📝 How many pens were used by MacArthur to end the final chapter of World War II and where are they now?
- 📝 How have African countries kept the boundaries divided by colonists and countries unified for decades, despite the many ethnical groups and conflicts?
- 📝 How many people were affected by the Holodomor [Famine-Genocide in Ukraine]
- 📝 How many Germans were killed in action in the taking of Paris, 1940?
- 📝 Before the use of Anno Domini dating (BCE/CE), how were years numbered?
- 📝 How many troops would the White Armies have had at their peak during the Russian Civil War?
- 📝 How many people were killed by Protestant Inquisition style tribunals? Asking for references/estimates
- 📝 How many British prisoners of war were taken by the Wehrmacht and how many died?
- 📝 How were ethnographic maps in the 19th century made?
- 📝 How many people were beheaded by the Guillotine in France during the French Revolution (1789-1794)?
- 📝 How economically profitable for Nazi Germany were the occupied countries in Western Europe?
- 📝 How many defensive lines did China build for the Second Sino-Japanese War?