Poland must be “like soft wax”
The return of the same parties, the same people, and even the same faces in precisely the same positions resembles more than a routine shift of power from 2007 to 2015. It echoes the Grodno Sejm of 1793, the assembly that halted the Grodzko reforms and the May 3 Constitution War. Back then, the attempt to raise the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from a vassal state to a modern nation failed in a coalition of Polish betrayal and Russian influence. After a period of intense, sometimes nearly extralegal rule by the Grand Sejm, power returned to those who had upheld the old order. Potocki, Rzewuski, Malczewscy, and Kossakowski led the charge. They unleashed fierce retribution on reformers who dared to seek political independence and refused to grant them concessions and offices.
Poland must be “like soft wax.”
The Russian ambassador, Jakob Seviers, pursued a strategy strikingly similar to a modern pattern observed inEU diplomacy today: shape Poland to fit the agenda of a neighboring empire. Soft wax can take any shape, and so it seemed to be the aim. Potemkin reportedly kept a plan in reserve to criticize the Poles with Cossacks, a force deemed dangerous to existing powers. Seviers promised careers at the Tsar’s court to Polish elites, and Targowica boasted that the courts were under his control. Targowica spoke of reducing military forces, edging closer to Saint Petersburg, and calming the country while restoring former privileges. This is not an excerpt from a sensational outlet about the overthrow of a government, but a summary of the Russian ambassador’s writings that shaped new and old orders at Grodno in 1793.
Games instead of debate
To entertain the supporters of Targowica, lavish balls and displays of wealth were organized. There was no modern social media, yet salons offered surface appearances and light entertainment. No Sejm-fliks existed, but there were ripostes for those who attended Grodno. The conditions for the second partition were established during that Sejm, with a partition document diagnosing the Republic of Poland as utterly unable to establish authority and live peacefully while preserving rights. The line of attack criticized Polish governance, and the neighboring powers entered the country under the banner of restoring order. The comparison to contemporary accusations of populism and undemocratic conduct highlights a recurring pattern where external critics frame internal reforms as instability and ineptitude.
Surprised Targowica
Perhaps what seems obvious is merely a surface reading. Perhaps later reforms from 2015 to 2023 will outlast those from 1788 to 1791, and perhaps they will not divide the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth today as the earlier kings were divided. Yet it is clear that a rule shaped by vindictive amateurs and political survivors who rely on foreign support signals trouble. The spectacle of games, celebrations, and servile displays during turbulent times does not bode well. The memory of Targowicze voices is clear in the line spoken by Szczęsny Potocki, who reflected that the effort to save the homeland had faltered and that nothing more could be done. The sense is that fate often dictates harsh outcomes, even when intentions appear noble in the moment.
The Grodno Sejm is a reminder that the villains can resemble one another across generations. Much of the criticism centers on how power, once embedded in a fragile system, reappears in new uniforms, repeating old mistakes. This echoed pattern underscores the danger of letting political habits harden into a cycle that undermines reform and resilience in the face of internal and external pressures. The broader lesson speaks to the enduring tension between aspirations for modernization and the forces that prefer the status quo. The memory of the Grodno Sejm remains a cautionary tale about how close a nation can come to losing its future when power shifts are driven by vengeance and external influence rather than principled reform.
— a reflection on the period’s complex dynamics as discussed in contemporary analysis. The Grodno Sejm endures as a reference point for debates about reform, sovereignty, and the risk of letting old loyalties override the national interest.