The Partitions of Poland-Lithuania

TOPIC 4

UKRAINE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY

At the end of the 18^th century Poland differed sharply from its neighbors (Russia, Prussia, and Austria) which were strong and centralized absolutist monarchies. Poland in contrast became very weak. Its nobility boasted of “golden freedoms” that, practically speaking, provided the nobles with immunity before the law. That also meant that the land became almost impossible to govern. The king’s power was very weak. He was elected by the nobility and depended on them. The nobles did not want to submit to anybody and there were numerous wars among them. The nobles had the right to raise their private armies and build fortresses. In fact, anarchy reigned in Poland at that time. So it was a matter of time for Poland to be destroyed by its powerful neighbors. Finally, the Commonwealth’s three aggressive neighbors: Russia, Prussia, and Austria decided to take advantage of the situation and to divide the weak country among themselves. As a result of three partitions – those of 1772, 1775, and 1795 – Poland-Lithuania ceased to exist. That was the end of one of the biggest European states where the szlachta (nobility) placed their personal liberties and wellbeing above the interests of the state. These radical changes in the political map of Eastern Europe affected Ukrainians directly. Ukrainian ethnic lands were divided between Russia (80%) and Austria (20%). Austria received Galicia, Bukovyna, and Transcarpathia (Закарпаття), the rest of Polish-ruled Ukraine was attached to Russia. These divisions had a great impact on the formation of Ukrainian mentality. They deepened the differences between eastern and western Ukrainians.

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