The January Uprising (Polish: Powstanie Styczniowe, Lithuanian: 1863 m. Polish ( język polski, polszczyzna) is the Official language of Poland. Lithuanian ( lietuvių kalba) is the official state language of Lithuania and is recognised as one of the official languages of the European Union. sukilimas) was an uprising by the citizens of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (present-day Poland, Lithuania, Belarus, Latvia, parts of Ukraine, western Russia) against the Russian Empire. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, officially the Commonwealth of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania also known as the Most Serene Republic The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya It began January 22, 1863, and lasted until the last insurgents were captured in 1865. Events 565 - Eutychius is deposed as Patriarch of Constantinople by John Scholasticus. Year 1863 ( MDCCCLXIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common An insurgency is a violent internal uprising against a sovereign government that lacks the organization of a revolution
The uprising began as a spontaneous protest by young Poles against conscription into the Russian Army, and was soon joined by high-ranking Lithuanian officers and various politicians. Conscription (also known as the draft, the call-up or national service) is a general term for involuntary labor demanded by some established authority The insurrectionists, severely outnumbered and lacking serious outside support, were forced to resort to guerrilla warfare tactics. Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc They failed to win any major military victories or capture any major cities or fortresses in Russian-occupied lands. But they did blunt the effect of the Tsar's abolition of serfdom in the Russian partition, which had been designed to draw the support of peasants away from the nation. The Emancipation Reform of 1861 in Russia was the first and most important of liberal reforms affected during the reign of Alexander II of Russia. Severe reprisals against insurgents, such as public executions and deportations to Siberia, led many people to abandon armed struggle and turn instead to the idea of "organic work": economic and cultural self-improvement. Deportation, not to be confused with Extradition, generally means the expulsion of someone from a place or Country. Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving Organic work (praca u podstaw lit work at the bases is a term coined by 19th century Polish positivists, denoting an ideology demanding that the vital powers
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Eve of the uprising
After the Russian Empire lost the Crimean war and was weakened economically and politically, an unrest started in the former Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth. The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya The Crimean War, also known in Russia as the Eastern War (Восточная война Vostochnaya Vojna) (March 1854–February 1856 was fought The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, officially the Commonwealth of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania also known as the Most Serene Republic Inspired with ideas of Giuseppe Garibaldi, Karl Marx, Mikhail Bakunin and others peasants and students started organizing manifestations. Garibaldi redirects here for other meanings see Garibaldi (disambiguation. Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin ( - July 1 1876) was a well-known Russian Revolutionary and theorist of Collectivist anarchism. In Vilnius alone 116 demonstrations were held in 1861. After series of patriotic riots, the Russian namestnik of Tsar Alexander II, General Karl Lambert, introduced martial law in Poland on 14 October 1861. Namestnik of the Kingdom of Poland (Namiestnik Królestwa Polskiego was the Title of the official representatives of the King of Poland (i Alexander (Aleksandr II Nikolaevich (Александр II Николаевич ( Moscow, 29 April 1818 – 13 March 1881 in St Karl Karlovich count Lambert (Карл Карлович Ламберт (1815 –1865 – Russian General of Cavalry Namestnik of the Kingdom of Poland from Martial law is the system of rules that takes effect when the military takes control of the normal administration of justice Public gatherings were banned and some public leaders made outlaws.
The future leaders of the uprising gathered secretly in St. Petersburg, Warsaw, Vilnius, Paris and London. Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River Warsaw (Warszawa; also known by other names) is the Capital and Largest city of Poland. Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. After this series of meetings two major factions emerged. The Reds united peasants, workers and some clergy and The Whites united landlords and intelligencia of the time. In 1862 two initiative groups were formed for the two components of the former Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, officially the Commonwealth of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania also known as the Most Serene Republic Reds lead the initiative in the Polish Kingdom and Whites held initiative in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Highly developed agricultural people have lived in the area that is now Poland for the last 7500 years the Slavic people have settled in this territory for over 1500 years and the The Grand Duchy of Lithuania (Lietuvos Didžioji Kunigaikštystė old literary Lithuanian Didi Kunigiste Letuvos, Ruthenian: Wialikaje Kniastwa Litowskaje
Uprising in the former Polish Kingdom
The uprising broke out at a moment when general quiet prevailed in Europe, and when the The Reds had not sufficient means to arm and equip the groups of young men who were hiding in forests to escape Alexander Wielopolski's order of conscription into the Russian army. Altogether about 10,000 men rallied around the revolutionary banner; they were recruited chiefly from the ranks of the city working classes and minor clerks, although there was also a considerable admixture of the younger sons of the poorer szlachta and a number of priests of lower rank. Szlachta ( refers to the noble class in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (since 1569 semi-federal semi-confederal
To deal with these ill-armed units the Russian government had at its disposal a well trained army of 90,000 men under General Ramsay in Poland. It looked as if the rebellion would be crushed in a short while. The die was cast, however, and the provisional government applied itself to the great task with fervor. It issued a manifesto in which it pronounced "all sons of Poland free and equal citizens without distinction of creed, condition and rank. Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland " It declared that land cultivated by the peasants, whether on the basis of rent-pay or service, henceforth should become their unconditional property, and compensation for it would be given to the landlords out of the general funds of the State. The revolutionary government did its very best to supply and provision the unarmed and scattered guerrillas who, during the month of February, met the Russians in eighty bloody encounters. Meanwhile, it issued an appeal to the nations of western Europe, which was received everywhere with a genuine and heartfelt response, from Norway to Portugal. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. Pope Pius IX ordered a special prayer for the success of the Catholic Polish in their defence against the Orthodox Russians, and was very active in arousing sympathy for the Polish rebels. Blessed Pope Pius IX (May 13 1792 &ndash February 7 1878 born Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti, was Pope from June 16 1846 until 1878
Uprising in the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania
In Lithuania, Belarus, Latvia, northern Ukraine and western Russia the uprising started on February 1st, 1863. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, officially the Commonwealth of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania also known as the Most Serene Republic Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland The Coat of arms of Lithuania, consisting of an armor-clad knight on horseback holding an olden Sword and Shield, is also known as The Pahonia (Паго́ня transliteration: Pahonia, pa'ɣonʲa translated as Chaser; Pogoń is a historical symbol of Belarus Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania (Lietuvos Respublika is a Country in Eastern often referred to as Northern Europe or in the Belarus ( Belarusian Беларусь / Biełaruś is a Landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered by Russia to the north and east Michael (מִיכָאֵל Micha'el or Mîkhā'ēl; Μιχαήλ Mikhaíl; Michael or Míchaël; ميخائيل Mikhā'īl) is an Ruthenia is a geographic and culturo-ethnic name applied to the parts of Eastern Europe populated by Eastern Slavic peoples, as well as to the past various A coalition government of the Reds and the Whites was formed. It was lead by Zygmunt Sierakowski, Antanas Mackevičius and Kastus Kalinouski. Konstanty Kalinowski (Касту́сь Каліно́ўскі ( Kastuś Kalinoŭski) also known under his Polish and Lithuanian names of Konstanty They fully supported their counterparts in Poland and adhered to the same policy.
Lithuanian and Belarusian insurgents were more numerous (up to 30,000 men at the peak of uprising) and a little better armed, but there were 135,000 Russian troops and 6,000 Cossacks in Lithuania and another 45,000 Russian troops in Volhynia. In every major military engagement of the uprising insurgents were outnumbered at least 10 to 1.
During the first 24 hours of the uprising armories across the country were looted, many Russian officials executed on sight. February 2nd 1863, saw the start of the first major military engagement of the uprising between Lithuanian peasants (mostly armed with scythae) and an escadron of Russian hussars near Čysta Būda. It ended with a massacre of the unprepared peasants. As hope of a short war was present, insurgent groups merged into bigger formations and recrouted new personnel.
On April 7th Zygmunt Sierakowski, who was able to recrout and arm 2500 men for the cause, was elected to be the military commander in chief of the reborn PLC. Under his command the peasant army was able to achieve several difficult victories near Raguva on April 21st, Biržai on May 2nd, Medeikiai on May 7th. Biržai ( is a town in northern Lithuania. Biržai is famous for its reconstructed Biržai Castle, and the whole region is renowned for its many traditional-recipe However, tired from a several week long march and combat, the insurgent army suffered a defeat on May 8th near Gudiškis.
Evolution of events
The provisional government counted on a revolutionary outbreak in Russia, where the discontent with the autocratic regime seemed at the time to be widely prevalent. It also counted on the active support of Napoleon III, particularly after Prussia, foreseeing an inevitable armed conflict with France, made friendly overtures to Russia and offered her assistance in suppressing the Polish uprising. Napoléon III, also known as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (full name Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte) (20 April 1808 9 January 1873 was the first President Prussia ( Latin: Borussia, Prutenia; Prūsija Prūsija Prusy Old Prussian: Prūsa) was most recently a historic state This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. On the 14th day of February arrangements had already been completed, and the British Ambassador in Berlin was able to inform his government that a Prussian military envoy "has concluded a military convention with the Russian Government, according to which the two governments will reciprocally afford facilities to each other for the suppression of the insurrectionary movements which have lately taken place in Poland and Lithuania. Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany. The Prussian railways are also to be placed at the disposal of the Russian military authorities for the transportation of troops through Prussian territory from one part of the former Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth to another. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, officially the Commonwealth of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania also known as the Most Serene Republic " This step of Bismarck's led to protests on the part of several governments and roused the nations of the Commonwealth. The result was the transformation of the insignificant uprising into another national war against Russia. Encouraged by the promises made by Napoleon III, all nations, acting upon the advice of Wladyslaw Czartoryski, the son of Prince Adam, took to arms. Prince Adam Jerzy Czartoryski (also known in English as Adam George Czartoryski; January 14 1770 – July 15 1861 was a Polish noble, Statesman Indicating their solidarity all Commonwealth citizens holding office under the Russian Government, including the Archbishop of Warsaw, resigned their positions and submitted to the newly constituted Government, which was composed of five most prominent representatives of the Lithuanian Whites.
The diplomatic intervention of the Powers in behalf of Poland, not sustained, except in the case of Sweden, by a real determination on their part to do something effective for her, did more harm than good, as mere verbosity often does. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. It alienated Austria which hitherto had maintained a friendly neutrality with reference to Poland and had not interfered with the Polish activities in Galicia. Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich Galicia (Галичина ( Halychyna) Galicja is a historical region in East Central Europe, currently divided between Poland and Ukraine, It prejudiced public opinion among the radical groups in Russia who, until that time, had been friendly because they regarded the uprising as of a social rather than a national character and it stirred the Russian Government to more energetic endeavors toward the speedy suppression of hostilities which were growing in strength and determination.
In addition to the thousands who fell in battles, 128 men were hanged personally by Mikhail Muravyov ('Muravyov the Hangman'), and 9,423 men and women were exiled to Siberia (2,500 men according to very lowered Russian data, Norman Davies gives the number of 80,000 noting it was the single largest deportation in Russian history [1]). Mikhail Nikolayevich Muravyov may refer to the following historical persons of the Imperial Russia. Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving Ivor Norman Richard Davies Fellow of the British Academy (born 8 June 1939 to Richard and Elizabeth Davies Whole villages and towns were burned down; all activities were suspended and the szlachta was ruined by confiscation and exorbitant taxes. Szlachta ( refers to the noble class in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (since 1569 semi-federal semi-confederal Such was the brutality of the Russian troops that their actions were condemned throughout Europe, and even in Russia itself Muravyov became ostracized [2]. Count Fyodor Berg, the newly appointed Namestnik of Poland, followed in Muravyov's footsteps, employing inhumanly harsh measures against the country. Count Friedrich Wilhelm Rembert von Berg (Фёдор Фёдорович Берг (Fyodor Fyodorovich Graf Berg (1793-1874 was a Russian Field Marshal and Governor-General Namestnik of the Kingdom of Poland (Namiestnik Królestwa Polskiego was the Title of the official representatives of the King of Poland (i The Reds criticized the Conservative government for its reactionary policy with reference to the peasants but, deluded in its hopes by Napoleon III, the Government counted on French support and persisted in its tactics. It was only after the highly respected and wise Romuald Traugutt took matters in hand that the aspect of the situation became brighter.
He reverted to the policy of the first provisional government and endeavored to bring the peasant masses into active participation by granting to them the land they worked and calling upon all classes to rise. The response was generous but not universal. The wise policy was adopted too late. The Russian Government had already been working among the peasants in the manner above described and giving to them liberal parcels of land for the mere asking. They were completely satisfied, and though not interfering with the revolutionaries to any great extent, became lukewarm to them. Fighting continued intermittently for several months. Among the generals Count Józef Hauke-Bosak distinguished himself most as a commander of the revolutionary forces and took several cities from the vastly superior Russian army. Józef Hauke-Bosak ( March 19 1834 &ndash January 21 1871) was a Polish General in the January Uprising, and commander When Romuald Traugutt and the four other members of the Polish Government were apprehended by Russian troops and executed at the Warsaw citadel, the war in the course of which six hundred and fifty battles and skirmishes were fought and twenty-five thousand Poles killed, came to a speedy end in the latter half of 1864, having lasted for eighteen months. Romuald Traugutt ( 16 January, 1826 - 5 August, 1864) was a Polish General and war hero best known for commanding It is of interest to note that it persisted in Samogitia and Podlachia, where the Greek-Catholic population, outraged and persecuted for their religious convictions, clung longest to the revolutionary banner. Samogitia ( Samogitian: Žemaitėjė, Žemaitija literally lowlands) is one of the five Ethnographic Regions of Lithuania. Podlachia, Podlesia, or Podlasie is a historical region in the eastern part of Poland and western Belarus. This article refers to Eastern Churches in full communion with the Holy See
The uprising was finally crushed by Russia in 1864.
After the collapse of the uprising, harsh reprisals followed. According to Russian official information, 396 persons were executed and 18,672 were exiled to Siberia. Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving Large numbers of men and women were sent to the interior of Russia and to Caucasus, Urals and other sections. The Caucasus ( also referred to as North Caucasus) is a geopolitical region located between Europe Asia & Middle East Riphean redirects here For the time period see Riphean stage The Ural Mountains (Ура́льские го́ры Uralskiye Altogether about 70,000 persons were imprisoned and subsequently taken out of Poland and stationed in the remote regions of Russia. The government confiscated 1,660 estates in Poland and 1,794 in Lithuania. A 10% income tax was imposed on all estates as a war indemnity. Only in 1869 was this tax reduced to 5% on all incomes. Besides the land granted to the peasants, the Russian Government gave them additional forest, pasture and other privileges (known under the name of servitutes) which have proven to be a source of incessant irritation between the landowners and peasants, and of serious difficulty to rational economic development. The government took over all the church estates and funds, and abolished monasteries and convents. With the exception of religious instruction, all other studies in the schools were ordered to be in Russian. Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages Russian also became the official language of the country, used exclusively in all offices of the general and local government. All traces of the former Polish autonomy were removed and the kingdom was divided into ten provinces, each with an appointed Russian military governor and all under complete control of the Governor-General at Warsaw. All the former government functionaries were deprived of their positions. This measures proved to be of limited success. In 1905, 41 years after Russian crushing of the uprising, the next generation of Poles rose once again in a new one. Year 1905 ( MCMV) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting
Famous insurgents
- Stanisław Brzóska (1832–1865) was a polish priest and commander at the end of the insurrection. Stanisław Brzóska (1832-1865 was a Polish priest general supreme leader of the Polish insurgency and the last partisan of the January Uprising.
- Władysław Niegolewski (1819–1885) was a liberal Polish politician and member of parliament, an insurgent in the Greater Poland Uprisings of 1846 and 1848 and of the January 1863 Uprising, and a co-founder (1861) of the Central Economic Society (TCL) and (1880) the People's Libraries Society (CTG). Władysław Niegolewski (1819-1885 was a Polish liberal politician and member of parliament insurgent in Greater Poland Uprising 1846, Greater Poland Uprising The 1846 Wielkopolska Uprising (powstanie wielkopolskie 1846 roku was a planned military insurrection by Poles in the land of Greater Poland against the occupying The Greater Poland Uprising of 1848 (powstanie wielkopolskie 1848 roku was an unsuccessful military Insurrection of Poles in the Grand Duchy of Posen (or The January Uprising ( Polish: powstanie styczniowe, Lithuanian: 1863 m The Central Economic Society for the Grand Duchy of Poznań (Polish Centralne Towarzystwo Gospodarcze dla Wielkiego Księstwa Poznańskiego) was a social-economic organization People's Libraries Society (Polish Towarzystwo Czytelni Ludowych, TCL) was an educational society established in 1880 for the Prussian partition of
- Konstanty Kalinowski (1838–1864) was one of the leaders of Lithuanian and Belarusian national revival and the leader of the January Uprising in the lands of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Konstanty Kalinowski (Касту́сь Каліно́ўскі ( Kastuś Kalinoŭski) also known under his Polish and Lithuanian names of Konstanty Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania (Lietuvos Respublika is a Country in Eastern often referred to as Northern Europe or in the Belarus ( Belarusian Беларусь / Biełaruś is a Landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered by Russia to the north and east The Grand Duchy of Lithuania (Lietuvos Didžioji Kunigaikštystė old literary Lithuanian Didi Kunigiste Letuvos, Ruthenian: Wialikaje Kniastwa Litowskaje
- Saint Raphael Kalinowski, born Joseph Kalinowski in Lithuania, resigned as a Captain from the Russian Army to become Minister of War for the Polish insurgents. Saint Raphael Kalinowski, OCD (Rafał Kalinowski Rapolas Kalinauskas (September 1 1835 &ndash November 15 1907 was a Polish Discalced He was arrested and sentenced to death by firing squad, but the sentence was then changed to 10 years in Siberia, including a grueling nine-month overland trek to get there.
- Aleksander Sochaczewski, painter
- Bolesław Prus, later a Polish writer
- Apollo Korzeniowski, Polish playwright and father of Joseph Conrad. Aleksander Sochaczewski ( March 3, 1843 &mdash April 15, 1923) was a Polish painter, participant of the Polish January Bolesław Prus (pronounced [bɔ'lεswaf 'prus]; Hrubieszów, August 20 1847 &ndash May 19 1912 Warsaw) whose actual name was Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski, 3 December 1857 – 3 August 1924 was a Polish-born English novelist
January Uprising in literature
- In the initial draft of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, Captain Nemo was a Polish nobleman whose family had been brutally murdered by the Russians during the January 1863 Uprising. For the 1954 film starring Kirk Douglas see 20000 Leagues Under the Sea. Jules Gabriel Verne ( February 8 1828 &ndash March 24 1905) was a French Author who pioneered the science-fiction Captain Nemo is a Fictional character featured in Jules Verne 's novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870 and The Mysterious Since France had only recently signed an alliance with Tsarist Russia, in the novel's final version Verne's editor, Pierre-Jules Hetzel, made him obscure Nemo's motives. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The Tsardom of Rus' (Царство Русское was the official name for the Russian state between Ivan IV 's assumption of the title of Tsar (Emperor in 1547 A novel (from Italian novella, Spanish novela, French nouvelle for "new" "news" or "short story Pierre-Jules Hetzel ( January 15, 1814 &ndash March 17, 1886) was a French editor and publisher
- In Guy de Maupassant's novel Pierre et Jean, the protagonist Pierre has a friend, an old Polish chemist that is said to come to France after the bloody events in his motherland. Guy de Maupassant (gi də mopasɑ̃ (5 August 1850 &ndash 6 July 1893 was a popular 19th-century French Writer and considered one of the fathers of the modern Pierre et Jean is a naturalist or Psycho-realist work written by Guy de Maupassant in Étretat in his native Normandy between June and September 1887. This story is believed to refer to the January Uprising.
See also
- Insurgence
- Polish National Government
- Polish uprisings
- Great Emigration
- Baikal insurrection 1866
- Sybirak
References
- Peter Kropotkin, Memoirs of a Revolutionist & Co. An insurgency is a violent internal uprising against a sovereign government that lacks the organization of a revolution Polish National Government 1863-1864 - underground Polish supreme authority during January Uprising against Russian occupation of Poland. Below is a list of military conflicts in which Polish armed forces participated or took place on Polish territory The Great Emigration (Wielka Emigracja was an emigration of political elites from Poland from 1831&ndash1870 Siberian Uprising or Baikal Insurrection (Powstanie zabajkalskie or Powstanie nad Bajkałem, Кругобайкальское восстание was a short-lived The Polish term sybirak (plural sybiracy) is synonymous to the Russian counterpart Sibiryak (a dweller of Siberia) and generally refers to all , 1899, pp. 174-180.
- Augustin O'Brien Petersburg and Warsaw: scenes witnessed during a residence in Poland and Russia in 1863-1864 (1864)
- William Ansell Day. The Russian government in Poland : with a narrative of the Polish Insurrection of 1863 (1867)
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