Namiestnicy Królestwa Polskiego wobec polskiego ruchu niepodległościowego w drugiej połowie 1861 i pierwszej połowie 1862 roku w świetle ich korespondencji z carem Aleksandrem II

Abstract

Namiestniks of the Kingdom of Poland and Their Attitude Towards the Independence Movement in the Second Half of 1861 and the First half of 1862 in their Correspondence with the Tsar Alexander II The 1861 events proved to be essential for the development of independence movement in the Kingdom of Poland. The growing revolutionary feelings were further roused by the incompetent policy of the Tsar and his namiestniks (viceroys in Poland), whose decisions resulted in the orderly rule of the kingdom becoming increasingly difficult. The namiestniks had to meet Tsar’s demands, while at the same time trying at ameliorate the worsening domestic situation. The Tsar had obvious difficulty with the selection of appropriate personae to execute these functions. Namiestniks were changed four times in the span of one year, and the post was held by Mikhail Dmitrievich Gorchakov, Nikolai Onufrievich Sukhozanet, Karl Karlovich Lambert and Alexander Nikolajewitsch von Lüders. Keeping order and strict military regulations was not accompanied by knowledgeable execution of civilian administration, which would respect the specific situation of the Kingdom of Poland.