Poniatski

Poniatski, a princely family of Poland. STANISLAS (1677-1762) joined Charles XII. of Sweden in supporting Stanislas Leszczynski, and was the chief instrument in saving the Swedish king at Pultowa. He held his administrative offices under Augustus II. and Augustus III.—His son STANISLAS AUGUSTUS (1732–98) was the last king of Poland (q.v.).—JOSEPH ANTONY, son of Andrew, brother of king Stanislas Augustus, was commander of the Polish legion in the army of Napoleon. He was born at Warsaw, 7th May 1762, and trained in the Austrian army. In 1789 the Polish Assembly appointed him commander-in-chief of the army of the south, with which he gained brilliant victories over the Russian invaders (1792); but the convention of Targowice (see POLAND) put an end to the contest in 1793. On the outbreak of the following year he joined the army as a volunteer, but Kociusko put him in command of the division charged to defend Warsaw on the north. On its fall he withdrew to Vienna. In 1806 the Prussians evacuated Warsaw before the invasion of the French; and when the duchy of Warsaw was constituted (1807) Poniatuski was appointed minister of war and commander-in-chief for the duchy. In 1809, in the course of the war between Austria and France, he invaded Galicia, after having previously retired before stronger forces. Three years later he joined, with a large body of Poles, the French army in its invasion of Russia, and rendered distinguished service at Smolensk and Borodino, but more especially in the great battle of Leipzig (1813), when he valiantly held his ground on the right wing of the French battle-array. Napoleon rewarded him by making him marshal of France. After the battle he was left to cover the retreat of the French army, and, whilst attempting to swim his horse over the river Elster to join the main body of his troops, he perished in its waters, 19th October 1813. His body was recovered, taken to Warsaw, and in 1816 removed to Cracow, and placed beside the ashes of Sobieski and Kociusko. See (German) Biography by Boguslawski (Cracow, 1831).