Tadeusz Kościuszko - a man of vision

At the time when many Europeans lived under absolute monarchies, Kosciuszko declared himself a Republican - which meant, above all, an allegiance to constitutional rule and the equality of all men before the law. Kościuszko distinguished himself with his ideological ardor. In 1798, an admiring Thomas Jefferson, who would become the third American President, wrote of Kościuszko: “He is the purest son of liberty I have ever known, and not just for the wealthy and high-born.”

Restrictions on the powers of Polish kings made the Sejm (Parliament), whose members came from the landed gentry, the country’s most powerful political institution.  However, during the second half of the 18th century, the powers of a citizen-led Sejm underwent sharp decline as wealthy and influential landowners (so-called magnates) began to dominate political life. Their wealth, derived from ownership of immense estates, enabled them to defy central authority and erode the influence of the lesser nobility. Fierce disputes between aristocratic families soon paralyzed the Sejm and led to failed attempts at political reform. The vacuum this stalemate caused prompted Poland’s powerful neighbors – Austria, Prussia and Russia – to meddle more and more in the country’s internal affairs.  It was a short step from there to the first partition in which Poland would be divided into three parts and ruled by these powerful, authoritarian neighbors.

Under King Poniatowski, educational reform took its place beside political, economic and military reforms as major priorities of the Polish state. In 1765, the King established The Nobles’ Academy of the Corps of Cadets, also known as the School of Chivalry.  Its goal was to develop young noblemen as good citizens as well as future political and military leaders.  One of the Corps first graduates was Tadeusz Kosciuszko. The country’s aspirations for its Corps of Cadets were inspiringly stated in a speech to the Cadets by Prince Adam Kazimierz Czartoryski, who said: “You should people this Fatherland of ours, left in the most wretched state, with the citizens caring for its fame, for increasing its external power and respect, for correcting its government of the worst possible kind. May you be led by this noble ambition of changing the face of your country.”.  In many ways, Tadeusz Kościuszko lived his life in ways that fulfilled this ideal.

Having returned from France, Kościuszko could expect a promotion to the rank of officer in the small Polish Army. He started working as a teacher in the house of Lord Józef Sosnowski. Soon, he and Sosnowski’s daughter, Ludwika, became bounded by strong love. Kościuszko asked for Ludwika’s hand in marriage, but the insolent magnate denied the request. The future Commander-in-Chief asked the king for support and after his refusal, allegedly on the advice of colleagues-officers, he planned to elope with Ludwika. The plan failed. According to other sources, Kościuszko followed the king’s advice and resigned the elopement.

Kościuszko served in the American army till the victorious completion of the War of Independence. Prior to his return to Europe, he was promoted to brigadier general and Congress  passed a resolution acknowledging the‘ high sense of his long, faithful, and meritorious service’.  An exceptional distinction bestowed upon Kościuszko was accepting him, as one of just three foreigners, in the ranks of the Society of the Cincinnati, founded by the veterans of the War of Independence. The society has been named after Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus, a Roman patrician, who was a dictator during the wartime, only to relinquish his power and to come back to plowing his farm after the victory.

After a dozen or so years following the First Partition of Poland, a new generation of gentry appeared in public life. They were more open to the ideas of the Enlightenment and the Western European state organization model. They were also open to introduce reforms that would strengthen the state and assist in regaining independence. In 1788, the proceedings of the Sejm (later to be called The Great) started. In one of its first resolutions, the Sejm enlarged the army to 100,000 soldiers. The execution of the military enlargement required hiring new officers. Since experienced officers were scarce, Kościuszko was offered a position as a general.

The Polish army, commanded by the king’s nephew, Prince Józef Poniatowski, yielded to the overwhelming forces of the enemy. Nevertheless, Poles achieved success. Kościuszko, as a division Commander, fought bravely, i.e. during the fierce battles of Zieleńce and Dubienka. Russian commander Mikhail Kachowski had the following memories of the latter encounter: ‘The enemy soldier was fiercely persistent, skillful and persevering. Having had a month of dealing with the Polish army, I faced the opponent in great order for the first time, with a fierce determination to resist and stubbornly defend in the back, which explains the high losses in our troops.’ For his merits Kościuszko was awarded the Virtuti Militari order, the highest Polish military decoration. However neither him nor any of the 526 recipients of that order could not turn the tide of war.

In March 1794, an announcement was made to downsize the Polish army. If it had happened, the chances of the planned insurrection occurring would have significantly decreased. The news of a riot by a cavalry brigade opposing army reductions made Kościuszko come back to Poland. On March 24, in the Kraków market square, the Act of Uprising was read out. Kościuszko became the Commander-in-Chief, the highest and the only commander of the Insurrection. An echo of his republican convictions resounded in his oath: ‘I swear in the face of God to the whole Polish Nation, that I shall not use the power entrusted to me for anyone's personal oppression, but only for the defence of the integrity of the borders, for retaking the sovereignty of the Nation, and for strengthening the universal freedom.’

The Battle of Racławice - a victory that boosted the morale of the insurgents - was a violent and bloody confrontation. A great role was played by peasant recruits, armed with war scythes, who boldly captured Russian guns. During the fight, peasant Wojciech Bartos stood out. He was recognized for his bravery and promoted to the rank of Standard-Bearer in the Regiment of Kraków Grenadiers. Under a new surname, as Bartosz Głowacki, he fought in the Battle of Szczekociny, where he was mortally wounded.

The lost Battle of Maciejowice (October 10, 1794) led to the defeat of the Kosciuszko Uprising. The Polish Corps was broken down. The Commander-in-Chief was wounded several times and taken captive. He was imprisoned in St. Petersburg. In spite of his poor condition he was interrogated. The situation changed when Paul I succeeded the throne. Several days after assuming power, the new Tsar visited Kościuszko, expressed compassion and promised to release him soon. To that end, the Emperor demonstrated his aversion to his late mother and made a gesture for his Polish subjects to gain their sympathy and loyalty.

Kościuszko – a soldier of freedom, one of the Tsar’s prisoners, and at the same time a humble man sensitive to all forms of inequality and oppression – was an ideal candidate to become the hero of his epoch. His republican outlook on life seamlessly blended with the American patriotism. For Poles, Kościuszko was the embodiment of the fight for freedom as well as the political and social emancipation of peasants – issues that became increasingly important throughout the XIXth century. For all political groups, he was also a powerful symbol for the modern nation shaped at that time. Even today, Kościuszko is recognized as one of the most meritorious figures in the history of Poland.

The fame of Kościuszko ‘will last until freedom reigns over the earth,’  William Henry Harrison said to Congress after Tadeusz Kościuszko’s death in 1817. The future President of the United States was right. – a hero of the American War of Independence and the Commander-in-Chief of the 1794 Polish Insurrection – has become one of the most recognizable Poles in the history of Europe and the United States. Years later, Polish historian Szymon Askenazy, explained the phenomenon of Kościuszko: ‘After all, he was not a military or political genius. (...) So many times he was wrong about things and people. And yet, it was him, a powerless poor old man, that Napoleon and Alexander, the greatest powers of the world, argued about. He is one of the immortal heroes of humanity. Why? Because his name is Poland’.