Constitution of 3 May 1791 and Related Topics

Stanisław August Poniatowski

22 links

King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1764 to 1795, and the last monarch of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Sir Charles Hanbury Williams, Poniatowski's mentor, by John Giles Eccardt

Grand Duchess Catherine Alexeyevna, 1745, by Louis Caravaque

Banner of Poland during the reign of Stanisław II

Stanisław August's 1764 election as king, depicted by Bernardo Bellotto.

Tadeusz Rejtan's famous gesture of protest at the Partition Sejm, as depicted by Matejko

Constitution of 3 May 1791, by Matejko, 1891

The three Partitions of Poland-Lithuania: Russian (purple and red), Austrian (green), Prussian (blue)

Portrait by Élisabeth-Louise Vigée-Le Brun, 1797

Poniatowski on his deathbed, 1798, by Bacciarelli

Artwork with the Coat of arms of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, 1780

Łazienki Park: monument to John III Sobieski, meant to recall anti-Ottoman sentiment during the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)

Polish coin bearing the coat of arms of King Stanisław II August, c. 1766

Manuscript of the Constitution of 3 May 1791

Poniatowski: pencil drawing by Jan Matejko

Elżbieta Szydłowska Grabowska, by Johann Baptist von Lampi the Elder

Coat of Arms of Stanisław August Poniatowski with colland of Order of White Eagle

The later part of his reign saw reforms wrought by the Diet (1788–1792) and the Constitution of 3 May 1791.

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth

21 links

Country and a federation of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch in real union, who was both King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania.

The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (green) with vassal states (light green) at their peak in 1619

The Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1526.

The Union of Lublin joined the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1569.

The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth at its greatest extent in 1619.

Sigismund III Vasa was a religious zealot and an enlightened despot who presided over an era of prosperity and achievement. His reign also marked the Commonwealth's largest territorial expansion.

Sejm of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (parliment) in the early 17th century

John III Sobieski, victor over the Ottoman Turks at the Battle of Vienna in 1683.

Augustus II the Strong, King of Poland and Elector of Saxony, wearing the Order of the White Eagle which he established in 1705.

Partitions of Poland in 1772, 1793 and 1795.

Royal Castle in Warsaw was the formal residence of Polish kings after the capital was moved from Kraków in 1596

Crown Tribunal in Lublin was the highest court of appeals in the Kingdom of Poland

Palace of the Lithuanian Tribunal in Vilnius, which exclusively was the highest appeal court for the Lithuanian nobility in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania

The Republic at the Zenith of Its Power, the Royal Election of 1573

The Constitution of 3 May adopted in 1791 was the first modern constitution in Europe.

Cereals exports in the years 1619–1799. Agriculture, once extremely profitable to the nobility, became much less so after the mid-17th century.

A historical re-enactor dressed in the Polish Winged Hussars armour

Multi-stage rocket from Artis Magnæ Artilleriæ pars prima by Kazimierz Siemienowicz

Krasiczyn Castle was built between 1580-1631 in the mannerist style.

Wilanów Palace, completed in 1696, exemplifies the opulence of royal and noble residences in the Commonwealth.

Nieborów Palace designed by Dutch architect Tylman van Gameren and built in 1697

Social strata in the Commonwealth's society in 1655. From left: Jew, barber surgeon, painter, butcher, musician, tailor, barmaid, pharmacist, shoemaker, goldsmith, merchant and Armenian

Population density of the Commonwealth per each voivodeship in 1650

Saints Peter and Paul Church in Kraków was built between 1597-1619 by the Jesuit order

Original act of the Warsaw Confederation in 1573, the first act of religious freedom in Europe

First anniversary anthem of the Constitution of 3 May 1791 (1792) in Hebrew, Polish, German and French

Topographical map of the Commonwealth in 1764

Statuta Regni Poloniae in ordinem alphabeti digesta (Statutes of the Polish Kingdom, Arranged in Alphabetical Order), 1563

Grand Marshal of the Crown Łukasz Opaliński portraited with the insignium of his power in the parliament - the Marshal's cane, 1640

Rococo iconostasis in the Orthodox Church of the Holy Spirit in Vilnius, designed by Johann Christoph Glaubitz, 1753–1756

$18th century amber casket. Gdańsk patronized by the Polish court flourished as the center for amber working in the 17th century.<ref name="gordon_campbell">{{cite book |author=Gordon Campbell |title=The Grove encyclopedia of decorative arts |year=2006 |page=13 |publisher=Oxford University Press US |isbn=01-95189-48-5}}</ref>$

Stanisław Poniatowski, Commander of the Royal Guards and Grand Treasurer. Painted by Angelika Kauffmann in 1786.

Equestrian portrait of King Sigismund III of Poland, by Peter Paul Rubens, 1624

Tapestry with the arms of Michał Kazimierz Pac, Jan Leyniers, Brussels, 1667–1669

Silver tankard by Józef Ceypler, Kraków, 1739–1745

Example of the merchant architecture: Konopnica's tenement house in Lublin, 1575

Hussars' armours, first half of the 17th century

De republica emendanda (1554) by Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski, proposed a deep programme of reforms of the state, society and church.

Merkuriusz Polski Ordynaryjny, the first Polish newspaper published on the orders of Queen Marie Louise Gonzaga in 1661

Title page of Treny (1580) by Jan Kochanowski, a series of elegies upon the death of his beloved daughter, is an acknowledged masterpiece.

A plate from Michał Boym's Flora Sinensis (1656), the first description of an ecosystem of the Far East published in Europe<ref>{{cite book |author1=Gwei-Djen Lu |author2=Joseph Needham |author3=Vivienne Lo |title=Celestial lancets: a history and rationale of acupuncture and moxa |year=2002 |page=284 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=07-00714-58-8}}</ref>

Taurus Poniatovii, constellation originated by Marcin Poczobutt in 1777 to honor the king Stanisław II Augustus<ref>{{cite web |author=Ian Ridpath |url=http://www.ianridpath.com/startales/poniatowski.htm |title=Taurus Poniatovii - Poniatowski's bull |work=www.ianridpath.com |access-date=2009-05-18}}</ref>

Branicki Palace in Białystok, designed by Tylman van Gameren, is sometimes referred to as the "Polish Versailles."

Pažaislis Monastery in Kaunas, Pietro Puttini, built 1674–1712

Zamość City Hall, designed by Bernardo Morando, is a unique example of Renaissance architecture in Europe, consistently built in accordance with the Italian theories of an "ideal town."<ref name="unesco.org">{{cite web |url=http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/564 |title=Old City of Zamość |publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre |date=2009-09-23 |access-date=2011-09-15}}</ref>

Plafond Allegory of Spring, Jerzy Siemiginowski, 1680s, Wilanów Palace

Łańcut Synagogue was established by Stanisław Lubomirski, 1733.<ref>After a fire had destroyed a wooden synagogue in 1733 Stanislaw Lubomirski decided to found a new bricked synagogue building. {{cite web |author=Polin Travel |url=http://www.jewish-guide.pl/sites/lancut |title=Lancut |work=www.jewish-guide.pl|access-date=2010-09-02}}</ref>

Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Vilnius, Pietro Puttini, built 1675-1704

The Constitution of 1791 acknowledged Catholicism as the "dominant religion", unlike the Warsaw Confederation, but freedom of religion was still granted with it.

Great, or Four-Year, Sejm (1788–92) and Senate adopt Constitution of 3 May 1791 at the Royal Castle in Warsaw.

Great Sejm

17 links

Sejm (parliament) of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that was held in Warsaw between 1788 and 1792.

Stanisław Małachowski, Marshal of the Great Sejm

Royal Castle Senate Chamber, where May 3 Constitution was adopted

The Sejm's great achievement was the adoption of the Constitution of 3 May 1791, often described as Europe's first modern written national constitution, and the world's second, after the United States Constitution.

Polish–Russian War of 1792

12 links

Polish soldiers of 3rd Lithuanian Infantry Regiment in 1792

After the Battle of Zieleńce, by Wojciech Kossak

The Polish–Russian War of 1792 (also, War of the Second Partition, and in Polish sources, War in Defence of the Constitution ) was fought between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth on one side, and the Targowica Confederation (conservative nobility of the Commonwealth opposed to the new Constitution of 3 May 1791) and the Russian Empire under Catherine the Great on the other.

Targowica Confederation

10 links

Confederation established by Polish and Lithuanian magnates on 27 April 1792, in Saint Petersburg, with the backing of the Russian Empress Catherine II.

Russian general Vasili Stepanovich Popov, author of the text of confederation

The confederation opposed the Constitution of 3 May 1791 and fought in the Polish–Russian War of 1792, which led to the Second and Third Partitions of Poland.

Scene after the battle of Zieleńce 1792, Polish withdrawal; painting by Wojciech Kossak

Second Partition of Poland

9 links

The second of three partitions that ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by 1795.

The Treaty of Grodno between Prussia and Poland (a French edition), later referred to as the Second Partition Treaty

The May Constitution of 1791 enfranchised the bourgeoisie, established the separation of the three branches of government, and eliminated the abuses of Repnin Sejm.

Ignacy Potocki

10 links

Polish nobleman, member of the influential magnate Potocki family, owner of Klementowice and Olesin (near Kurów), a politician, writer, and office holder.

He co-authored the Constitution of 3 May 1791.

Sejm

9 links

Lower house of the bicameral parliament of Poland.

In 1791, the "Great Sejm" or Four-Year Sejm of 1788–1792 and Senate adopted the May 3rd Constitution at the Royal Castle in Warsaw

Tadeusz Rejtan tries to prevent the legalisation of the first partition of Poland by preventing the members of the Sejm from leaving the chamber (1773). Painting by Jan Matejko

Stanisław Dubois speaking to envoys and diplomats in the Sejm, 1931

Józef Beck, Minister of Foreign Affairs, delivers his famous Honour Speech in the Sejm, 5 May 1939.

Sessions chamber viewed from the rostrum

The liberum veto was abolished with the adoption of the Constitution of 3 May 1791, a piece of legislation which was passed as the "Government Act", and for which the Sejm required four years to propagate and adopt.

The first Polish royal election, of Henry III of France in 1573 (1889 Painting by Jan Matejko).

Royal elections in Poland

6 links

Royal elections in Poland (Polish: wolna elekcja, lit. free election) were the elections of individual kings, rather than dynasties, to the Polish throne.

Election of Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki (Michael I) as King of Poland at Wola, outside Warsaw (1669).

Plan of the elective camp of Polish Kings in Wola near Warsaw.

Election of August II the Strong at Wola, outside Warsaw (1697). Painting by Jean-Pierre Norblin de La Gourdaine.

Election of Stanisław August Poniatowski (Stanisław II Augustus) in 1764.

The "free election" was abolished by the Constitution of 3 May 1791, which established a constitutional-parliamentary monarchy.

Grand Duchy of Lithuania

5 links

European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria.

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania at the height of its power in the 15th century (on a modern day map)

Lithuania in the Mappa mundi of Pietro Vesconte, 1321. The inscription reads: Letvini pagani - pagan Lithuanians.

Lubart's Castle in Ukraine, built by the son of Gediminas' Liubartas in the mid-14th century, is famous for the Congress of Lutsk which took place in 1429

Grand Duchy of Lithuania under the rule of Vytautas the Great

Trakai Island Castle, residence of the Grand Duke Vytautas

The Battle of Grunwald, 1410, with Ulrich von Jungingen and Vytautas at center

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth c. 1635

Lithuania and its administrative divisions in the 17th century

Church of St. Johns in Vilnius. Example of Vilnius Baroque style

St. Anne's Church and the church of the Bernardine Monastery in Vilnius

Constitution of 3 May, one of the first official state documents issued in both Polish and Lithuanian, Lithuanian edition

Lithuanian primer for kids, published in Vilnius, Grand Duchy of Lithuania, 1783 edition

Area where Lithuanian was spoken in the 16th century

Lithuania proper (in green) and Samogitia (in red) within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in a map from 1712

Panegyric to Sigismund III Vasa, visiting Vilnius, first hexameter in Lithuanian, 1589

The Statute of Grand Duchy of Lithuania (1588) in Ruthenian printed in Vilnius

The first printed book in Lithuanian Catechism of Martynas Mažvydas by Martynas Mažvydas

Lithuanian ancient hill fort in Rudamina

Lithuanian ancient hill fort mounds in Kernavė, now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site

Ruins of Navahrudak Castle. Current state (2004)

Mir Castle - a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Belarus.

Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania in Vilnius

Vilnius University and the Church of St. John

Pažaislis Monastery church, decorated with expensive marble

Royal insignias of the rulers of Lithuania in the Vilnius Cathedral, 1931

thumb|right|Showcase of the Crimean Karaites traditional lifestyle in Trakai, Lithuania

Žemaitukas, a historic horse breed from Lithuania, known from the 6–7th centuries, used as a warhorse by the Lithuanians

"Christianization of Lithuania in 1387", oil on canvas by Jan Matejko, 1889, Royal Castle in Warsaw

Priest, lexicographer Konstantinas Sirvydas, the cherisher of the Lithuanian language in the 17th century

Lithuanian national coats of arms: Columns of Gediminas, Double Cross of the Jagiellonians (Jogaila) and Samogitian bear

Coat of arms of the Grand Chancellors of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania

Coat of arms of the Grand Marshals of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania

Reciprocal Guarantee of Two Nations which distinguishes Poles, Lithuanians, Ruthenians, and others, adopted on 20 October 1791

The federation was terminated by the passing of the Constitution of 3 May 1791, when it was supposed to become a single country, the Commonwealth, under one monarch, one parliament and no Lithuanian autonomy.

A report on Constitution of 3 May 1791

58 related topics with Alpha