King of Poland For The Second Time
The weakened Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth soon came to be regarded as almost a protectorate of Russia. In 1709 Augustus II returned to the Polish throne under Russian auspices. Once again he attempted to establish an absolute monarchy in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, but was faced with opposition from the nobility (szlachta, see Tarnogród Confederation). Peter the Great seized on this opportunity to pose as mediator, threatened the Commonwealth militarily, and in 1717 forced Augustus and the nobility to sign an accommodation favorable to Russian interests, at the Silent Sejm (Sejm Niemy).
For the remainder of his reign, in an uneasy relationship, Augustus was more or less dependent on Russia (and to a lesser extent, on Austria) to maintain his throne. He gave up his dynastic ambitions and concentrated instead on attempts to strengthen the Commonwealth. Faced with both internal and foreign opposition, however, he achieved little.
Augustus died at Warsaw in 1733. Although he had failed to make the Polish throne hereditary in his house, his eldest son, Frederick Augustus II of Saxony, did succeed him to the Polish throne as Augustus III of Poland—although he had to be installed there by a Russian army in the War of the Polish Succession.
Read more about this topic: Augustus II The Strong
Famous quotes containing the words king of, king, poland and/or time:
“The poorest man may in his cottage bid defiance to all the forces of the Crown. It may be frailits roof may shakethe wind may blow through itthe storm may enterthe rain may enterbut the King of England cannot enter!all his forces dare not cross the threshold of the ruined tenement!”
—William Pitt, The Elder, Lord Chatham (17081778)
“Of an old King in a story
From the grey sea-folk I have heard,
Whose heart was no more broken
Than the wings of a bird.”
—Gilbert Keith Chesterton (18741936)
“It is often said that Poland is a country where there is anti-semitism and no Jews, which is pathology in its purest state.”
—Bronislaw Geremek (b. 1932)
“As siblings we were inextricably bound, even though our connections were loose and frayed.... And each time we met, we discovered to our surprise and dismay how quickly the intensity of childhood feelings reappeared.... No matter how old we got or how often we tried to show another face, reality was filtered through yesterdays memories.”
—Jane Mersky Leder (20th century)