CHAPTER III

.

THE FIRST DAY.--Expulsion of the Russians from Warsaw.--Choice of Chlopicki as Commander in Chief.--Provisional Government under the Presidency of Prince Adam Czartoriski.--Deputation sent to the Grand Duke.--Propositions and answer.--Abolition of the Bureau of Police.--Establishment of the National Guard.--Proclamations addressed to the inhabitants of the provinces and the distant troops.--Provision for the Russian prisoners.--The Academical Legions formed.--Arrival of detachments from the provinces.--The Grand Duke consents to leave the kingdom, and addresses a proclamation to the Poles.

The first day of freedom, after so many years of oppression, was hailed with shouts of 'Our country! Poland forever!' At about six in the morning the drums beat for the assembly of the troops in all the parts of the city in our possession. Crowds flocked from all sides to the public places. It was a scene never equalled. The whole people assembled, without distinction of rank, age, or sex. Old men who were past the use of swords, brandished their sticks and crutches, and recalled the times of Kosciusko. Clergymen, civil officers, foreigners, Jews, even women and children armed with pistols, mingled in the ranks.

The multitude, thus assembled, marched to the northern and southern parts of the city, to drive the Russians out. The fourth regiment and a body of the inhabitants marched into the northern quarter of Warsaw, to attack two regiments of infantry who occupied the _Champ de Mars_ and the whole district thence to the barrier of Powazko. This division had with them two small pieces of cannon. As soon as they reached the point of attack they fired a few rounds, raised the 'hurrah,' and threw themselves upon the Russians, who made no resistance, but fled in disorder beyond the barrier above mentioned, where the pursuit ceased.

In the mean while, the battalion of sappers had marched through the suburb of Cracow and the street of Wirzbwa to the southern part of the city. They met the enemy's cavalry, at the Place of Saxony, a short distance from the Church of the Cross. The Russians discharged their carbines, and a brisk fire was kept up until the cry to cease firing and attack with the bayonet was heard on all sides. They gave way before the charge, and fled in the greatest confusion, as the infantry had done before them. They were pursued beyond the barriers of Mokotow. The whole city was cleared of the Russians before nine o'clock. The walls opposite the Russian troops were manned by soldiers and armed citizens.

While this expulsion was being effected, some of the patriots were employed in the city in choosing a military chief. They agreed to offer the command to Chlopicki.[14]

Towards eleven, General Chlopicki was led by the people, with acclamations, to the hotel of the Minister of Finance, where many senators and other persons were assembled to take measures respecting a provisional government, the security of public order, &c. Chlopicki was received with acclamations by the chiefs of the nation; and after all had declared their consent, he was proclaimed Commander in Chief. He was addressed on this occasion by Professor Lelewell, one of the patriots, who, after drawing the picture of our past sufferings, and comparing it with our hopes of the future, concluded with the following words, addressed directly to Chlopicki. 'Brother--take the sword of your ancestors and predecessors, Czarnecki, Dombrowski, and Kosciusko. Guide the nation that has placed its trust in you, in the way of honor. Save this unhappy country.' This ceremony concluded, Chlopicki was shown to the assembled people from the balcony. They received him with shouts of 'Our country and our liberator Chlopicki forever!' Many cried, 'Chlopicki, rely on us, and lead us to Lithuania!' The general thanked them for their confidence in him, promised never to abuse it, and swore that he would defend the liberty of Poland to the last moment.

The patriots now proceeded to choose members of the provisional government. Prince Adam Czartoriski,[15] Radzivil,[16] Niemcewicz, and Lelewell were elected, and one of the old ministers, Lubecki, was retained to assist them. This arrangement was made public about noon, in order to tranquilize the people.

The first step taken by the new government was to send deputies to the Grand Duke. They were instructed to demand whether he meant to depart peaceably, or to attack the city. Among the deputies were Lubecki and Lelewell. They found the Grand Duke encamped, with his army, in the fields of Mokotow.

The deputies represented to Constantine the consequences that would result from an attack on the city, as well in regard to himself as to the nation. They informed him that the army had already joined the people, and proposed to him that he should depart unmolested, on a prescribed route. They promised that he should find every possible accommodation provided on that route, for himself and his troops. The Grand Duke demanded some time for reflection, and finally gave the deputies the following answer in writing.

ART. I. The Grand Duke declares that it was never his intention to attack Warsaw. In case he should find himself under the necessity of so doing, he will give the authorities notice of his intention forty-eight hours before the attack.

ART. II. The Grand Duke will entreat the Emperor to grant an amnesty for the past.

ART. III. The Grand Duke declares that he has sent no orders to the Russian forces in Lithuania to pass the frontier of the kingdom.

ART. IV. Prisoners will be exchanged.

The deputies returned to Warsaw with this answer, at three o'clock. It was immediately published, but did not satisfy the people. They demanded to know the day and hour of the Grand Duke's departure. If he should refuse to obey, they declared that they would attack him. It was finally concluded to allow him two days for his necessary arrangements, and then to send a second deputation to insist on his instant departure.[17]

The provisional government immediately set about restoring order to every department of the administration. The Bureau of Police was abolished, and a council of citizens was substituted in its place, under the direction of the aged and worthy Wengrzecki. This man had been president of Warsaw in the times of the grand duchy. He was compelled to leave this office, by certain persecutions, which he brought upon himself by not being sufficiently in the spirit of the Russian government. At the same time the national guard was established, and placed under the command of Count Lubinski. The guard began their service on the very same day. They mounted guard at the bank and the public treasury, and their patrols maintained order in all parts of the city. Their duties were performed with the utmost punctuality. All the shops were opened, and the city wore as peaceful an aspect as if there had been no army before it.

At the same time the provisional government sent proclamations into all the provinces, to inform the nation of these events. They began with the following beautifully figurative expression: 'Poles! The eagle of Poland has broken his chains, and will soon have burst through the clouds into those purer regions in which nothing shall shut from him the light of the sun.' The military government issued proclamations to the troops at all the distant stations, ordering them to repair forthwith to Warsaw. The divisions of chasseurs received orders in case of an attack from the Grand Duke, to fall on his rear and cut off his retreat. The city itself was put in a better state of defence; the barriers were fortified, and guarded by strong detachments; all was prepared for an attack. The government made proper provision for the care of the Russian prisoners, of whatever rank, as well as of the ladies of the Russian civil and military officers who had left Warsaw. The royal palace was assigned for the residence of the officers and ladies; the privates were lodged in barracks. At a later period they were permitted to go about the streets and earn money by their labor, in addition to their usual allowance. The Russians were so touched by this generous treatment, that they swore, with tears, never to forget it.

These details of the first day of our revolution, for the correctness of which I pledge myself, may serve to answer the accusations of some journalists, who have stated that the commencement of the national struggle was marked with the greatest atrocities, and that more than forty field officers, many subalterns, and large parties of privates were butchered for declining to engage in the cause. These impeachments of the Polish nation are unjust and false. As has been said before, the foreigners in Warsaw could not sufficiently praise the admirable order with which our first movements were conducted. Our enemies accuse the people of having robbed the public treasuries.--I affirm that not a gilder was lost--neither public nor private property was pillaged.

As the enemy was still encamped before the city on the first and second of December, and had as yet given no decisive answer respecting the time of his departure, the people, as well as the army, were still under arms and upon the walls. At this time the twelve companies of students, called the Academical Legions, were organized. It was heart-stirring to see these noble youths assembled in arms to defend their country. Many of them had just been rescued from prison, and could not walk without difficulty. This did not damp their ardor; the hope of fighting successfully for the liberty of Poland renewed their strength. The Academical Legions requested to be sent to the posts nighest the enemy. These two days passed in entire quietness.

In the afternoon of the second of December, general Schenbek arrived from Plock with the first regiment of chasseurs. At the same time came colonel Sierawski from Serock, with his regiment. Both were received with great enthusiasm. New detachments from the provinces marched into Warsaw every day. A truly affecting sight it was to see more than a thousand peasants, and about fifty peasant girls from the country about Warsaw, marching into the city with clubs, scythes, and weapons of every description. They were escorted by the shouting populace to the Bank, and there welcomed by the national government. At the request of the people, another deputation was this day sent to the Grand Duke, to urge his departure, and to inform him that an attack would be the necessary consequence of his refusal. The Grand Duke saw the necessity of compliance, and decided to commence his march on the following day, by the prescribed route of Pulawa. He issued a proclamation to the Polish nation, wherein he promised never to fight against those, 'whom,' to use his own expression, 'he had always loved.' He adduced his marriage with a young Polish lady as a proof of his affection for the nation. At the same time he promised to entreat the emperor to grant an amnesty, and to take, in general, the mildest measures. He begged the Poles to deal gently with the Russian prisoners, their families, the ladies, and in short with all Russian subjects remaining in Warsaw.[18]

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 14: General Chlopicki, a man of rare merit, began his career in the struggle for liberty under Kosciusko. In 1807, he was colonel commandant of the first regiment of the legion of the Vistula, under Napoleon. He had the command of a brigade, and afterwards of a division, of the same legion in Spain. This general distinguished himself at the storming of Saragossa, where the Poles performed prodigies of valor, as well as at the battle of Saginta. Under the Russian government of Constantine, Chlopicki left the army, not being able to endure his commander's brutal deportment. The Grand Duke censured the general on parade, in an unbecoming manner, saying that his division was not in order. Chlopicki replied, 'I did not gain my rank on the parade ground, nor did I receive my decorations there.' He asked his discharge the next day. In later times the emperor Alexander and the Grand Duke himself endeavored to induce him to return to the service, but Chlopicki never consented. He preferred a retired life to the splendor of Russian slavery. This gained him the esteem of the whole nation.]

[Footnote 15: Prince Adam Czartoriski was born on the 14th of June, 1770. He is the oldest son of Prince Casimir Czartoriski, Palatine of Russia, and Princess Elizabeth Fleming, daughter of Count George Fleming, first treasurer of Lithuania and Palatine of Pomerania. The Czartoriski family are descended from the Gedamines, who reigned over Lithuania in the thirteenth century, a descendant of whom, Jagelon, reigned long and gloriously in Poland. At the last partition of Poland, Adam Czartoriski and his brother Constantine were sent to St Petersburgh as hostages. While residing in the Russian capital, Prince Adam was on terms of friendly intimacy with the Grand Duke Alexander. This friendship influenced, perhaps, his political career. He was sent as an ambassador to the court of Sardinia, and when Alexander ascended the throne, he was recalled, and entrusted with the portfolio of foreign affairs. He declined this charge for a long time, and at last accepted it at the earnest entreaty of Alexander, on condition that he should be allowed to retire as soon as the discharge of his official duties should militate against the interests of his country. At the same time, he was appointed Curator of the university of Wilna, and yet another important duty devolved on him, which was the establishment of schools in all the Russian provinces of Poland. Though the Russians cannot see a Pole in so honorable a station without jealousy, the conduct of Prince Adam was so noble as to win the hearts of all. He did not surround himself with parasites; his course was plain and upright, and he scorned the idea of receiving rewards from government. He would not even accept a salary.

In 1808, Czartoriski resigned his ministerial office, but retained his place over the university, hoping to do more good in it. He increased the number of elementary schools and those of all classes of instruction. He reformed the antiquated institutions of the university, and gave the whole course of instruction a more simple and convenient form, which was also better adapted to the wants of the middle classes of the people. By these means he hoped to develope and elevate the national character, in these classes.

The events of 1812 showed but too plainly that the misfortunes which then befell France was owing to the same cause to which the previous distress of Russia was attributable; viz. the non-existence of Poland. If Poland had remained independent in her original extent, the two gigantic powers could not have come in contact, and the equilibrium of Europe, now entirely lost, would have been preserved. It was, then, a true and necessary policy to bring forward the question of the independence of Poland again. This was the object Prince Adam Czartoriski kept in view during the war between France and Russia, and it was in the hope of effecting it that he accompanied Alexander to Paris in 1814. He was not anxious without reason. The Emperor Alexander satisfied him, in part, and proposed to the Congress of Vienna to erect the grand duchy of Poland into a Kingdom. This kingdom received a constitution and several other national institutions. An entire freedom of trade with the remaining Polish provinces under Russia, Austria, and Prussia, was assured to it. All these promises were published and confirmed by Alexander at Warsaw in 1816. Yet, in the very act of confirmation, several privileges which the Emperor had promised to Czartoriski were retracted; and this was owing to the influence of the other powers, and the principles of the Holy Alliance. Russian policy made these restrictions more and more sensibly felt, and unfortunate Poland beheld, one after another, the institutions so solemnly guarantied to her, vanishing away.

Indignant at these breaches of promise on the part of Russia, Prince Czartoriski resigned the Curatorship of the university of Wilna, in 1824, in which he had been the means of effecting much good,

## particularly in the cause of patriotism and liberty; and in order to

free himself from all connection with the intriguing cabinet of Russia, he went, with his whole family, on a journey to foreign countries.

This prince was proprietor of the beautiful town of Pulawa, which Nature and Art have united to make one of the finest in Europe. The reader will, perhaps, be pleased with a short description of this place, which no traveller in the north of Europe will fail to visit. The little town of Pulawa is situated about eighteen leagues south of Warsaw, on the main road to Lemberg in Gallicia, on the right bank of the Vistula. The windings of this noble stream are so happily turned as to present a prospect of both its sides, till it reaches the horizon. The breadth of the river near this town is nearly three English miles. Its shores are broken into little hills covered with wood, in the intervals of which fine villages meet the eye, and in the distance are seen the picturesque ruins of Casimir. The town of Pulawa itself is situated on the declivity of a high bank, which declines toward the river in the form of an amphitheatre. This declivity is laid out as a garden in the purest taste, terminating, toward the river, in extensive meadows, planted with groves of oaks and poplars, and enlivened by herds of Tyrolese cattle, cottages, shepherds' cabins, &c, in various styles of building. This garden surrounds Pulawa, and is itself surrounded by great parks, which extend several leagues beyond it in every direction. These are intersected by beautiful avenues of linden trees. Among the many works in marble, statues, obelisks, &c, the temple of Sibylla, with its magnificent statue of alabaster, is distinguished, as is also the statue of a nymph in one of the grottos, a masterpiece of sculpture. The palace, consisting of a main building with two wings, is a noble piece of architecture. Its apartments are rich and splendid. Prince Czartoriski has the largest library in Poland, and the greatest private library in Europe, which is open to the public.

Czartoriski happened to be in Pulawa when the revolution broke out. Summoned to the helm of the state by the nation, he hastened to devote his exertions to his country. Laudable as his previous career had been, it was excelled by his conduct during the struggle, in which he represented the _beau ideal_ of virtue and patriotism. Through all the stormy changes of popular opinion he continued firm and unwavering, having but one view, one aim, the good of his country. He carried to the chief magistrate's seat the same calmness, the same mildness which had characterised his private life. He was never actuated by passion. He considered all Poles as brethren. Though in the sixtieth year of his age, he did not shrink from the fatigues of war, but constantly accompanied Skrzynecki, to whom he was much attached, in his marches, and was at his side in many battles. His whole character was essentially noble.]

[Footnote 16: Prince Michael Radzivil was born in Lithuania, on his family estate called Nieswiez. He is nephew of Prince Anthony Radzivil, governor-general of the grand duchy of Posen, and brother-in-law of the king of Prussia. This prince was commander of a brigade in the time of Napoleon, and distinguished himself at the siege of Dantzic. He retired from service under the Russian government, and lived privately in Warsaw. He was a man of quiet character, and a sincere patriot, but not of eminent military talents.]

[Footnote 17: The Grand Duke's army at Mokatow, consisted of the following regiments.

|Infantry.|Cavalry.|Artillery. 1. Infantry grenadiers, two battalions | 2000 | | 2. Light Infantry | 2000 | | 3. Battalion for instruction | 1000 | | 4. Cuirasseurs of Podolia 4 squadrons | | 800 | 5. Hulan, Cesarowicz 4 ' | | 800 | 6. Hussars of Grodno 4 ' | | 800 | 7. Battery of Horse Artillery | | |12 pieces. 8. Battery of Foot Artillery | | |12 " +---------+--------+---------- Total, | 5000 | 2400 |24 " +---------+--------+----------

Of Polish soldiers, he had six companies of grenadiers of the foot guard, and one regiment of chasseurs of the guard. These regiments, however, returned to Warsaw and joined the nation on the second of December. The true cause of the Grand Duke's demand for time was, that he hoped to exert a secret influence on those of the Polish troops who had not yet joined the people. This fact was confirmed by two captured spies, one of whom he had despatched to the light-horse in Lowicz, and the other to the division of hussars of Siedlec. The letters they carried to the commanders of these forces urged them, with promises of great rewards, to join the Grand Duke.]

[Footnote 18: These proclamations, which were immediately published in the Warsaw papers, contain clear proof that the Grand Duke had no injuries on the part of the Polish nation to complain of, and that he himself felt that the Poles were constrained to revolt.]

##