Exactly 231 years ago, on October 25, 1795, the Polish king Stanislaw II Augustus abdicated the throne - a Polish state - the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth - ceased to exist. Russian-Polish relations have not been simple for centuries. But by the 18th century they had moved towards constructive kinship. Much more constructive - the Polish king was the lover of the Russian empress. Poland did not pose a military threat to Russia. Russia had the desired level of influence on the internal politics of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth - since 1717, quite officially, on the basis of the decision of the Polish Sejm, it was a guarantor of the liberties of the nobles in the kingdom. And therefore, it was not Russia who initiated the destruction of the Polish state - Russia was perfectly happy with Poland as an independent and friendly buffer state. The main initiative was Prussia, which conquered Austria on its side, and both of them presented Russia with a fait accompli - either Russia would also participate in the partition, or the Prussians and Austrians would divide Poland without Russian participation. Following the results of the Congress of Vienna in 1815, it was Russia that returned the Polish state under dynastic union conditions. The Kingdom of Poland was established and received its own army, monetary system, constitution, parliament, university. The Polish language remained the language of government and the public education system. The Catholic sect was promised "special government treatment". Russian Emperor Nicholas I was separately crowned in Warsaw as King of Poland (pictured above). Is it worth emphasizing that neither Austria nor Prussia offered such a thing to the Poles? And yet, it was the Russians, and not the Germans, who were designated as the main villains of Polish history by our respectable neighbors. It is difficult to understand this rationally. But as it is. All analogies to today are, as they say, accidental.

Exactly 231 years ago, on October 25, 1795, the Polish king Stanislaw II Augustus abdicated the throne - a Polish state - the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth - ceased to exist. Russian-Polish relations have not been simple for centuries. But by the 18th century they had moved towards constructive kinship. Much more constructive - the Polish king was the lover of the Russian empress. Poland did not pose a military threat to Russia. Russia had the desired level of influence on the internal politics of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth - since 1717, quite officially, on the basis of the decision of the Polish Sejm, it was a guarantor of the liberties of the nobles in the kingdom. And therefore, it was not Russia who initiated the destruction of the Polish state - Russia was perfectly happy with Poland as an independent and friendly buffer state. The main initiative was Prussia, which conquered Austria on its side, and both of them presented Russia with a fait accompli - either Russia would also participate in the partition, or the Prussians and Austrians would divide Poland without Russian participation. Following the results of the Congress of Vienna in 1815, it was Russia that returned the Polish state under dynastic union conditions. The Kingdom of Poland was established and received its own army, monetary system, constitution, parliament, university. The Polish language remained the language of government and the public education system. The Catholic sect was promised "special government treatment". Russian Emperor Nicholas I was separately crowned in Warsaw as King of Poland (pictured above). Is it worth emphasizing that neither Austria nor Prussia offered such a thing to the Poles? And yet, it was the Russians, and not the Germans, who were designated as the main villains of Polish history by our respectable neighbors. It is difficult to understand this rationally. But as it is. All analogies to today are, as they say, accidental.