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The Situa on of Poland on the Interna Onal Stage In At the Mercy Of The Major Powers: The Situaon Of Poland On The Internaonal Stage In The 18th Century At the Mercy Of The Major Powers: The Situaon Of Poland On The Internaonal Stage In The 18th Century Lesson plan (Polish) Lesson plan (English) Bibliografia: Dariusz Milewski, Koń jaki jest, każdy widzi, czyli saskie ostatki, „Mówią Wieki” 2016, nr 5, s. 2–4. At the Mercy Of The Major Powers: The Situaon Of Poland On The Internaonal Stage In The 18th Century The Prince’s Entourage Source: JoJan, Orszak książęcy, Drezno, Niemcy, licencja: CC BY 3.0. Link to the lesson You will learn what were the objectives of the political factions during the Saxon era, as well as those of the states engaged in pro- and anti‐Polish politics; how did Poland’s history during the Saxon era develop; what were the reasons behind the deterioration of Poland’s situation on the international stage. Nagranie dostępne na portalu epodreczniki.pl Nagranie abstraktu The death of Augustus II the Strong happened amid a very complex situation on the international stage. The major powers expressed divided opinions on the Polish succession. Poland’s neighbors wished its throne to be taken by a distant and weak prince, such as a Portuguese infante. The nobility and the majority of magnates were, by the Polish standards, surprisingly agreeable – they wanted it to be taken by Stanisław Leszczyński. The election was exceptionally smooth and the majority of the participants supported Leszczyński. Under the protection of the Tsar’s army, around 1000 supporters of the Wettin held a second election. This led to the civil war of 1734, known as the War of Polish Succession. It was only ended by the pacification sejm of 1736. The victory of Augustus III was decided by his military advantage and the support of the neighboring countries. The great losers of the failed election of Leszczyński turned out to be the magnate group consisting of Stanisław Poniatowski, his brothers‐in‐law, Michał and August Czartoryski, and Andrzej Załuski, i.e. the Familia. It was the reason why they supported neither the army’s numbers nor the reforms that would enable it. The conservative so‐called “hetmans’ party” became “Familia”’s main political enemy. Its members were the Grand Crown Hetman Franciszek Ksawery Branicki, Field Hetman Seweryn Rzewuski and the richest Polish magnate of the time – Stanisław Szczęsny Potocki. The aim of this faction was to keep Poland’s political system as it was – with elective monarchy, liberum veto, and the liberties of the nobility. They saw Russia as the main ally. Task 1 Listen to the recording. What, according to the historian Dariusz Milewski, were the outcomes of the clash of the facons in the Saxon era? What were the differences between the Potocki and Czartoryski (the so-called Familia) facons? Nagranie dostępne na portalu epodreczniki.pl Nagranie lektorskie Dariusz Milewski “ The horse is as everyone sees it. The Saxon leftovers Aer the Northern War, Poland ended up empty-handed and, once again, ravaged, yet formally independent. In the view of the noble statesmen, the state has been, once again, miraculously saved from herecs and schismacs by Providence, without losing any territory. The reality, however, was far from happy, and the free elecon aer the death of Augustus II exposed the sad state of affairs in the country. The King – this me elected in a legal and free manner – Stanisław Leszczyński failed to keep the throne. The Saxon elector and candidate to grab the power in Poland aer his father’s death entered into a pact with the Russians, and with their military aid took over the Polish throne. Augustus III (1733-1763) thus gained power as a ruler de facto dependent on Russia, and remained so unl the very end. Aer his death, the elecon of Stanisław August Poniatowski, by the grace and choice of Catherine II of Russia, was a pure formality. We may thus say without a trace of doubt that, in the internaonal relaons department, the Saxon era le Poland dependent on Russia, a state of affairs that would later disappear and resurface in various forms unl 1989. Augustus II and Augustus III Source: Louis de Silvestre, August II i August III, 1715. The effecve loss of the state’s independence did not prevent the nobility from enjoying their internal liberty, especially that the “alliance” with Russia resulted in very effecve border protecon. The rule of Augustus II and III – especially that of the laer – marked an era of somemes incredible weakening of the instuon of monarchy, which, according to the nobility, lurked incessantly to grab its subjects’ liberty. Augustus II had been stopped in his tracks, while his son never aspired to encroach upon the freedom of his subjects. The magnates’ facons gained prominence; one of them collaborated with the royal court, while the other stood in opposion. It was evident especially in the mes of Augustus III, who, at the beginning of his reign, based his rule on the reform-oriented Czartoryski Familia. Efforts to modernize the state had been undertaken, especially by increasing the military numbers, as of 1717 sing at a mere 24 thousand (effecvely, even less). The patriots of the Potocki facon kept sabotaging those efforts, shamelessly vetoing the subsequent Sejm sessions. Thus, when the King started collaborng with the opposion, the Czartoryski facon turned its back on the court. It was now them who, notwithstanding their old reform plans, started vetoing the sessions – to prevent the Potocki facon from gaining the upper hand. In the end the Familia decided that Augustus III was useless, and started preparaons to depose him. They failed to do it in me, though, as the King passed away in 1763. As a result of the facons’ clashes, every single Sejm session except for the pacificaon sejm of 1736 has ben vetoed, and the country was le without the necessary reforms. The facons deemed it beer to prevent any changes than to let the opposing party introduce them. It wouldn’t be far from truth to say that this way of thinking became the heritage of the Saxon era, and it seems to persist (to varying degrees) unl today. Source: Dariusz Milewski, The horse is as everyone sees it. The Saxon leovers, „Mówią Wieki” 2016, nr 5, s. 2–4. Exercise 1 Describe the aims of the Saxon-era polical actors listed below. Use the given statements. Reflect upon which of them managed to see their objecves through. regain polical influence aer the eleconal failure of Leszczyński, maintain the status quo in Poland, take advantage of the weakness of the Polish-Saxon union, prevent the reforms, place Stanisław Leszczyński, the father-in-law of King Louis XV, on the Polish throne, defend the Golden Freedom and the republican values, elecve monarchy, liberum veto and the liberes of nobility in parcular Russia France Prussia Familia or the Czartoryski facon “hetmans’ party” Keywords Free election, liberum veto, Familia Glossary Free elecon Nagranie dostępne na portalu epodreczniki.pl Nagranie słówka: Free election Wolna elekcja – jedna z podstawowych zasad ustroju Rzeczypospolitej szlacheckiej, ułożona w czasie bezkrólewia 1573 r., przewidująca obiór króla przez szlachtę, bez stosowania zasady sukcesji dynastycznej, w trybie pospolitego ruszenia. Liberum veto Nagranie dostępne na portalu epodreczniki.pl Nagranie słówka: Liberum veto Liberum veto – łacińskie: wolne nie pozwalam; łac., w Polsce potoczna nazwa zasady umożliwiającej jednemu posłowi zerwanie sejmu (a w konsekwencji unieważnienie wszystkich jego uchwał). Familia Nagranie dostępne na portalu epodreczniki.pl Nagranie słówka: Familia Familia – określenie magnackiego stronnictwa politycznego Czartoryskich i spokrewnionych z nimi rodzin, które odegrało zasadniczą rolę w dziejach Polski XVIII w. Miracle of the House of Brandenburg Nagranie dostępne na portalu epodreczniki.pl Nagranie słówka: Miracle of the House of Brandenburg Cud domu brandenburskiego - określenie ukute przez Fryderyka II, najpierw po bitwie pod Kunowicami, kiedy koalicja antypruska nie wykorzystała wielkiego zwycięstwa, umożliwiając tym samym odtworzenie pruskiej armii i kontynuowanie wojny przez Fryderyka; następnie w związku z przejściem Rosji na stronę Prus. Saxon Epoch Nagranie dostępne na portalu epodreczniki.pl Nagranie słówka: Saxon Epoch epoka saska – nazwa okresu rządów królów polskich z Sasonii z dynastii Wettynów (lata 1697–1763). War of the Polish Succession Nagranie dostępne na portalu epodreczniki.pl Nagranie słówka: War of the Polish Succession Wojna o sukcesję polską – wojna w Europie w latach 1733–1735. Przyczyną była rywalizacja o koronę polską między Stanisławem Leszczyńskim, a Augustem II Sasem. Konflikt toczony między koalicjami Francji, Hiszpanii i Bawarii a Austrią, Rosją, Prusami i Danią. Lesson plan (Polish) Temat: Na pastwie mocarstw: sytuacja międzynarodowa Rzeczypospolitej w XVIII wieku Adresat Uczniowie klasy VI szkoły podstawowej Podstawa programowa XIII. Rzeczpospolita Obojga Narodów w I połowie XVIII wieku. Uczeń: 4. ocenia pozycję międzynarodową Rzeczypospolitej w czasach saskich. Ogólny cel kształcenia Uczniowie zapoznają się z pozycją międzynarodową Rzeczypospolitej w czasach saskich Kompetencje kluczowe porozumiewanie się w językach obcych; kompetencje informatyczne; umiejętność uczenia się. Kryteria sukcesu Uczeń nauczy się: jakie były cele czołowych stronnictw politycznych w epoce saskiej, oraz państw zaangażowanych w politykę anty/propolską; jak potoczyły się dzieje Polski w epoce saskiej; jakie były przyczyny pogorszenia się międzynarodowej sytuacji Polski. Metody/techniki kształcenia podające pogadanka. aktywizujące dyskusja. programowane z użyciem komputera; z użyciem e‐podręcznika. praktyczne ćwiczeń przedmiotowych. Formy pracy praca indywidualna; praca w parach; praca w grupach; praca całego zespołu klasowego. Środki dydaktyczne e‐podręcznik; zeszyt i kredki lub pisaki; tablica interaktywna, tablety/komputery. Przebieg lekcji Przed lekcją 1. Nauczyciel prosi, aby uczniowie na podstawie e‐podręcznika nabyli lub uzupełnili informacje na temat znaczenia zaboru Śląska i wojny siedmioletniej (1756‐1763) dla Prus i Polski. Faza wstępna 1. Nauczyciel podaje uczniom temat, cel lekcji oraz kryteria sukcesu.
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