War of the Polish Succession
History -- Military history -- War
The War of the Polish Succession (1733-1738) was a European war and a Polish civil war, with considerable interference from other countries, to determine the succession to Augustus II, King of Poland.
Former Polish king Stanislas I, installed thirty years before by Charles XII of Sweden and ousted during the Great Northern War, sought to return to power and had behind him France, Spain, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. In 1732 empress Anna of Russia, emperor Charles VI of Austria and king Friderick William of Prussia declared, that they will try to put their own candidate on polish-lithuanian throne. French wanted also to put their own candidate on polish throne to made Poland-Lithuania her client-state in order to balance the power of Russia and Austria. In 1725 king Louis XV of France married Maria Leszczyńska, dougther of king Stanislaus I (Leszczyński). In 1733 king Augustus II of Poland, Lithuania and Saxony died. Polish nobles, led by primate Teodor Potocki, gathered for election (in polish 'nobles democracy' the primate was the traditional interrex). They choose Leszczyński. Then Russian army under field marshal Peter Lascy entered polish territory. A group of nobles, mainly lithuanian magnates led by duke Michael Wiśniowiecki (former lithuanian grand chancellor nominated by Augustus II), left the place of election to join Russians. This group elected Friderick Augustus II Wettin, elector of Saxony and son of Augustus II, to be king of Poland as Augustus III. Despite the fact that this group was a minority, Russians recognised this election as the legal one.
The war was a typical 18th century war with a limited object, in which no one but the cabinets and the professional armies were concerned. Aside from the war in Poland itself, it was fought on two theatres, the Rhine and Italy. The war opened in 1733 with an invasion of Poland by Russia, which quickly took Warsaw. The Rhine campaigns were entirely unimportant, and are remembered only for the last appearance in the field of Prince Eugene and Marshal Berwick--the latter was killed at the siege of Philippsburg--and the baptism of fire of the young crown prince of Prussia, afterwards Frederick the Great. In Italy, however, there were three hard-fought though indecisive battles, Parma (June 29, 1734), Luzzara (September 19, 1734) and Bitonto (May 25, 1735), the first and last won by the Austrians, the second by the French and their allies. In Poland itself, Stanislaus was soon expelled by a Russian army and was afterwards besieged in Gdansk by the Russians and Saxons (Feb-June 1733).
In Poland a group of nobles who opt for Stanislaus I, fromed the confederation of Dzikow (1734) and under their commander, Adam Tarły, tried to fight against Russians, but their acting was ineffective. Outside the country the French occupied Lorraine, Austria fought France and Sardinia in northern Italy, while also, along with Saxony and a few other German states holding on grimly against the French in the Rhineland. Spanis marched from Tuscany to Naples and in May 1734 defeated Austria'sat the Battle of Bitonto. The Kingdom of Naples was opened to Spanish conquest.
A preliminary peace was concluded in October 1735 and ratified in the Treaty of Vienna (November 1738). Augustus was confirmed as king of Poland, Stanislas being compensated with the Duchy of Lorraine for the duration of his lifetime, while the former duke of Lorraine was made heir to the dukedom of Tuscany. The Infant Charles of Spain was confirmed as king of Naples and Sicily, with the Austrians being compensated by the acquisition of Charles's Duchy of Parma, and by the other powers' recognition of the Pragmatic Sanction that would allow Emperor Charles's daughter Maria Theresa to succeed him. France was the most successful of the extra-Polish combatants in the long run - Lorraine, lost to France after the War of the Grand Alliance, was now to returned to the French crown upon Stanislas' death, which occurred in 1766. In Poland, in 1736 Stanislaus signed the act of abdication, while Augustus III pronouced a general amnesty. Duke Wiśniowiecki was awarded: king made him the grand hetman (chief-in-commander) of Lithuania.
This article incorporates text from the public domain 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica.
