Series – The Partitions of Poland Part Three

The Second Partition of Poland (1793)

    The second partition of the Poland-Lithuanian Commonwealth happened after the Russian military invaded the lands of the Ukraine. Prussia invaded from the west and solidified the defeat of the Poland-Lithuanian Commonwealth. In 1793, after the defeat of the Poland-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the victorious Prussian and Russian armies gained more land for their empires (See Figure 3). Prussia received the port city of Gdansk and the area of Great Poland, including Poznan (Posen), Kalisz (Kalisch), Gniezno (Gnesen), Plock, and Brzesc Kujawy (Brest). The lands were incorporated into South Prussia. The Russian spoils included the eastern half of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania and Western Ukraine. The notable cities were Minsk and Pinsk. The total land area lost, during for the Poland-Lithuanian Commonwealth, was roughly 118,700 square miles. The total population that was assimilated into Prussia and Russia was about 4,000,000 inhabitants. Peace was settled after the remainder of the Poland Republic granted free movement of all Russian troops within the borders of Poland. The Poland-Lithuanian Commonwealth was no longer a viable entity (Magocsi, 2002).

Figure 3. Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth after the Second Partition

Source: Halibutt, Tomekpe, Mareklug, & Dcoetzee, Wikimedia Commons, 2005.

To be continued on The Partitions of Poland Part Four…..