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Chapter 3: Kingdom of Poland (1809)
Attention!!
This prototype of alternative history has been modified severely to increase consistency, it is recommended to reread all parts.
After modifying my two previous parts here is the third part of my alternative history prototype. This part will be considered as the Second Point of Divergence. Read it, analyze it, enjoy it.
Kingdom of Poland (1809)
The Poles, a people torn apart by the interests of their neighbors, rose in rebellion in 1806 against Prussia, in support of Emperor Napoleon, hoping that he would resurrect the Polish nation. The uprising was successful and allowed them to obtain in 1807 through the Tilsit Treaties, a modest barely independent nation known as the Duchy of Warsaw, after such a long time, the Poles returned to have a nation that although small, made them flourish in the Poles a feeling of hope in the future.
Entrance of Jan Henryk Dąbrowski to Poznań painted by Jan Gładysz, the event shown in this painting is the beginning of the Greater Poland uprising (1806)
And they were not mistaken, after the publication of Stein's famous letter in 1808, Napoleon took advantage of the incident to strengthen his Polish allies, claiming his disturbance at the idea of a German rebellion. At the September Convention of the same year, Prussia is forced to cede Silesia to the Duchy of Warsaw. From here, the Poles begin to have a slightly wider freedom of maneuver and political relief from the uncertainty of whether Napoleon would continue to support the Poles. Unfortunately, they could not enjoy the moment since on April 14, 1809 (on the eve of the Fifth Coalition War) they were attacked by the Austrian army under the archduke Fernando Fernando of Austria-East.
The Polish defenders were undermined as a considerable part of their forces were transferred to Spain, which prevented an effective counteroffensive against the Austrians. Despite the above, Polish troops under Poniatowski arrested an Austrian force that exceeded them 2 to 1, however they could not prevent the capture of Warsaw by the enemy. After a series of battles, the Poles resumed the initiative and invaded the territory of Galicia that had once belonged to them. With the defeat of Austria in the Battle of Wagram and the signing of the Treaty of Schönbrunn, the Duchy of Warsaw obtained its reward for its performance in the war with the obtaining of the territory of Western Galicia, however Napoleon not only thanked them with more territory but on October 20, 1809 he announced his intention to raise the Duchy of Warsaw to the category of kingdom.
Battle of Raszyn (1809), in this battle, the Poles achieved a tactical victory against Austria in the War of Fifth Coalition
Although Austria wanted to protest, it was weakened by the recent war while Russia became more distant from France since the Congress of Erfurt (1808), but the most important issue was who would take the Polish throne. Prince Józef Poniatowski was the legitimate candidate and had a prominent role in the last war being considered a hero by his countrymen and even Napoleon gave him a ceremonial saber for his victories, but Napoleon although he held him in high esteem, did not trust him enough he. Joachim Murat, King of Naples, hastened to ask Napoleon to consider him for the throne, but Napoleon's goal was to create a strong state friendly with France that could help significantly in a possible Franco-Russian war, which Napoleon's eyes, Murat could not comply (it should be mentioned that the relations between Napoleon and Murat were sour at this time because Murat was chosen by Fouché and Talleyrand to replace Napoleon while he was in Spain, fortunately for Murat, he was married to the Emperor's sister who mediated between both of them ). Marshal Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte was another of the rumored since Napoleon considered him as a possible successor in case of not having children besides being a capable administrator and even Napoleon came to offer him indirectly the throne of Spain, however Bernadotte's conduct left much to be desired, in the Battle of Auerstädt Bernadotte did not come to the aid of Davout who was outnumbered (although he won it extraordinarily), he sent letters to Napoleon where he made clear his empty interest in the Spanish crown and his inept performance in the Battle of Wagram, as well as his controversial Order of the Day (in which he attributed the success of the aforementioned battle to the Saxons under his command contradicting Napoleon's official bulletin) caused Napoleon to lose his consideration for him.
On October 23, the Duchy of Warsaw is elevated to the Kingdom of Poland and on October 25 Napoleon announces his election of Marshal Louis-Nicolas Davout as King of Poland. Davout was appointed as Governor General in the Duchy of Warsaw by Napoleon after the Tilsit Treaties where he demonstrated efficient administration and won the support of the local population by promising their protection and he was a Polish independence enthusiast reminding Napoleon whenever it could be that ''an ally is better than a slave''. His performance in the recent campaign consecrated him even more to Napoleon's eyes. On October 30, Davout is crowned in Warsaw as King of Poland under the name of Ludwik II Mikolaj Davouta.
Louis-Nicolas Davout, Marshal of France (1804) and King of Poland (1809)
This prototype of alternative history has been modified severely to increase consistency, it is recommended to reread all parts.
After modifying my two previous parts here is the third part of my alternative history prototype. This part will be considered as the Second Point of Divergence. Read it, analyze it, enjoy it.
Kingdom of Poland (1809)
The Poles, a people torn apart by the interests of their neighbors, rose in rebellion in 1806 against Prussia, in support of Emperor Napoleon, hoping that he would resurrect the Polish nation. The uprising was successful and allowed them to obtain in 1807 through the Tilsit Treaties, a modest barely independent nation known as the Duchy of Warsaw, after such a long time, the Poles returned to have a nation that although small, made them flourish in the Poles a feeling of hope in the future.
Entrance of Jan Henryk Dąbrowski to Poznań painted by Jan Gładysz, the event shown in this painting is the beginning of the Greater Poland uprising (1806)
And they were not mistaken, after the publication of Stein's famous letter in 1808, Napoleon took advantage of the incident to strengthen his Polish allies, claiming his disturbance at the idea of a German rebellion. At the September Convention of the same year, Prussia is forced to cede Silesia to the Duchy of Warsaw. From here, the Poles begin to have a slightly wider freedom of maneuver and political relief from the uncertainty of whether Napoleon would continue to support the Poles. Unfortunately, they could not enjoy the moment since on April 14, 1809 (on the eve of the Fifth Coalition War) they were attacked by the Austrian army under the archduke Fernando Fernando of Austria-East.
The Polish defenders were undermined as a considerable part of their forces were transferred to Spain, which prevented an effective counteroffensive against the Austrians. Despite the above, Polish troops under Poniatowski arrested an Austrian force that exceeded them 2 to 1, however they could not prevent the capture of Warsaw by the enemy. After a series of battles, the Poles resumed the initiative and invaded the territory of Galicia that had once belonged to them. With the defeat of Austria in the Battle of Wagram and the signing of the Treaty of Schönbrunn, the Duchy of Warsaw obtained its reward for its performance in the war with the obtaining of the territory of Western Galicia, however Napoleon not only thanked them with more territory but on October 20, 1809 he announced his intention to raise the Duchy of Warsaw to the category of kingdom.
Battle of Raszyn (1809), in this battle, the Poles achieved a tactical victory against Austria in the War of Fifth Coalition
Although Austria wanted to protest, it was weakened by the recent war while Russia became more distant from France since the Congress of Erfurt (1808), but the most important issue was who would take the Polish throne. Prince Józef Poniatowski was the legitimate candidate and had a prominent role in the last war being considered a hero by his countrymen and even Napoleon gave him a ceremonial saber for his victories, but Napoleon although he held him in high esteem, did not trust him enough he. Joachim Murat, King of Naples, hastened to ask Napoleon to consider him for the throne, but Napoleon's goal was to create a strong state friendly with France that could help significantly in a possible Franco-Russian war, which Napoleon's eyes, Murat could not comply (it should be mentioned that the relations between Napoleon and Murat were sour at this time because Murat was chosen by Fouché and Talleyrand to replace Napoleon while he was in Spain, fortunately for Murat, he was married to the Emperor's sister who mediated between both of them ). Marshal Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte was another of the rumored since Napoleon considered him as a possible successor in case of not having children besides being a capable administrator and even Napoleon came to offer him indirectly the throne of Spain, however Bernadotte's conduct left much to be desired, in the Battle of Auerstädt Bernadotte did not come to the aid of Davout who was outnumbered (although he won it extraordinarily), he sent letters to Napoleon where he made clear his empty interest in the Spanish crown and his inept performance in the Battle of Wagram, as well as his controversial Order of the Day (in which he attributed the success of the aforementioned battle to the Saxons under his command contradicting Napoleon's official bulletin) caused Napoleon to lose his consideration for him.
On October 23, the Duchy of Warsaw is elevated to the Kingdom of Poland and on October 25 Napoleon announces his election of Marshal Louis-Nicolas Davout as King of Poland. Davout was appointed as Governor General in the Duchy of Warsaw by Napoleon after the Tilsit Treaties where he demonstrated efficient administration and won the support of the local population by promising their protection and he was a Polish independence enthusiast reminding Napoleon whenever it could be that ''an ally is better than a slave''. His performance in the recent campaign consecrated him even more to Napoleon's eyes. On October 30, Davout is crowned in Warsaw as King of Poland under the name of Ludwik II Mikolaj Davouta.
Louis-Nicolas Davout, Marshal of France (1804) and King of Poland (1809)
- David Oudinot
- Word Count: 890