The Portrayal of Stanisław August Poniatowski in Diaries and Memoirs

Abstract

The purpose of the following article is to describe the portrayal of Stanisław August Poniatowski in diaries and memoirs written by British travellers who visited Poland-Lithuania during his reign (1764-1795). The travellers point out the king’s openness and affability as well as his vast knowledge concerning English history and culture. He is seen as an Anglophile and is usually portrayed in a favorable light as a benevolent monarch trying to enact auspicious reforms with an intention of strengthening the state. His failures are blamed on turbulent nobility and intrigues of the neighboring powers striving to preserve Poland-Lithuania in a state of stagnant subjugation. Even the king’s cooperation with Russia is defended and presented as a concession which was inevitable under the given circumstances. The one dissenting diarist is Nathaniel Wraxall, whose depiction is critical of what he saw as weakness as well as excessive prodigality and profligacy. It is also conspicuous for the travellers that it was Russia that controlled the machinery of the Commonwealth, not the king.