Ignacy Pradzynski
Encyclopedia
Ignacy Prądzyński was a Polish
military commander and a general
of the Polish Army. A veteran of the Napoleonic Wars
, he was one of the most successful Polish commanders of the November Uprising
against Russia.
Ignacy Prądzyński was born on July 20, 1792 in the village of Sanniki
in Greater Poland
. In November 1807 he joined the army of the Duchy of Warsaw
and quickly advanced through its ranks. During the Napoleonic Wars he took part in the campaigns of 1809 (Polish-Austrian War
) and the campaign against Russia between 1812 and 1814. For his bravery in the latter campaign he was awarded with the Golden Cross of the Virtuti Militari
and the French Legion of Honour for his role in the Battle of Leipzig
and the Battle of Waterloo
.
After the Russian takeover of Poland he remained in Warsaw, though he did not join the army. In 1815 he founded a secret anti-Russian Association of True Poles and later collaborated with the Patriotic Society
. Arrested by the Russian police in 1826, he spent 3 years in prisons. Upon his release, he started working as an engineer. Among the most notable of his projects was the Augustów Canal
, linking Vistula
with the Baltic Sea
through the basin of the Neman River
.
After the outbreak of the November Uprising he again joined the Polish Army. Initially an advisor to Gen. Michał Gedeon Radziwiłł, he also served as a General Quartermaster, Chief of Engineering Corps and de facto chief of staff of the army. After the Battle of Iganie
, in which he achieved a brilliant victory, he was nominated by the government for the post of the commander in chief of the uprising, Prądzyński was forced to resign by Jan Krukowiecki
and Henryk Dembiński
. Instead, on August 19, 1831 he was promoted to the rank of General of Division
.
In September he prepared the plans for the defense of Warsaw. However, the commanders of the Uprising lacked will to continue the fight and his plans were not accepted. Appointed to the Polish commission negotiating the capitulation, Prądzyński suffered from a nervous breakdown and surrendered to the Russians. Forcibly resettled to Viatka
, in 1833 he was allowed to return to Poland, where he continued his work as a theoretician of military strategy and tactics. Author of roughly 60 works on theory of warfare, he was one of the most notable Polish military writers of the 19th century.
Suffering from serious illnesses, in 1850 he moved to the island of Helgoland, where he drowned on August 4, 1850, probably committing suicide.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
military commander and a general
General
A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....
of the Polish Army. A veteran of the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, he was one of the most successful Polish commanders of the November Uprising
November Uprising
The November Uprising , Polish–Russian War 1830–31 also known as the Cadet Revolution, was an armed rebellion in the heartland of partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. The uprising began on 29 November 1830 in Warsaw when the young Polish officers from the local Army of the Congress...
against Russia.
Ignacy Prądzyński was born on July 20, 1792 in the village of Sanniki
Sanniki, Greater Poland Voivodeship
Sanniki is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Kostrzyn, within Poznań County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, in west-central Poland. It lies approximately east of Kostrzyn and east of the regional capital Poznań....
in Greater Poland
Greater Poland
Greater Poland or Great Poland, often known by its Polish name Wielkopolska is a historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief city is Poznań.The boundaries of Greater Poland have varied somewhat throughout history...
. In November 1807 he joined the army of the Duchy of Warsaw
Duchy of Warsaw
The Duchy of Warsaw was a Polish state established by Napoleon I in 1807 from the Polish lands ceded by the Kingdom of Prussia under the terms of the Treaties of Tilsit. The duchy was held in personal union by one of Napoleon's allies, King Frederick Augustus I of Saxony...
and quickly advanced through its ranks. During the Napoleonic Wars he took part in the campaigns of 1809 (Polish-Austrian War
Polish-Austrian War
Polish–Austrian War or Austro-Polish War was a part of the War of the Fifth Coalition in 1809...
) and the campaign against Russia between 1812 and 1814. For his bravery in the latter campaign he was awarded with the Golden Cross of the Virtuti Militari
Virtuti Militari
The Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war...
and the French Legion of Honour for his role in the Battle of Leipzig
Battle of Leipzig
The Battle of Leipzig or Battle of the Nations, on 16–19 October 1813, was fought by the coalition armies of Russia, Prussia, Austria and Sweden against the French army of Napoleon. Napoleon's army also contained Polish and Italian troops as well as Germans from the Confederation of the Rhine...
and the Battle of Waterloo
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
.
After the Russian takeover of Poland he remained in Warsaw, though he did not join the army. In 1815 he founded a secret anti-Russian Association of True Poles and later collaborated with the Patriotic Society
Patriotic Society
Patriotic Society can refer to two Polish organizations:* National Patriotic Society formed by Walerian Łukasiński* Patriotic Society or Patriotic Club formed by various activists during the November Uprising...
. Arrested by the Russian police in 1826, he spent 3 years in prisons. Upon his release, he started working as an engineer. Among the most notable of his projects was the Augustów Canal
Augustów Canal
The Augustów Canal is a cross-border canal built in the 19th century in the present-day Podlaskie Voivodeship of northeastern Poland and the Hrodna Voblast of north-western Belarus...
, linking Vistula
Vistula
The Vistula is the longest and the most important river in Poland, at 1,047 km in length. The watershed area of the Vistula is , of which lies within Poland ....
with the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
through the basin of the Neman River
Neman River
Neman or Niemen or Nemunas, is a major Eastern European river rising in Belarus and flowing through Lithuania before draining into the Curonian Lagoon and then into the Baltic Sea at Klaipėda. It is the northern border between Lithuania and Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast in its lower reaches...
.
After the outbreak of the November Uprising he again joined the Polish Army. Initially an advisor to Gen. Michał Gedeon Radziwiłł, he also served as a General Quartermaster, Chief of Engineering Corps and de facto chief of staff of the army. After the Battle of Iganie
Battle of Iganie
The Battle of Iganie was fought on April 10, 1831 between Russian and Polish forces. It was one of the last major battles of the November Uprising and the last major victory of the Poles.- Background :...
, in which he achieved a brilliant victory, he was nominated by the government for the post of the commander in chief of the uprising, Prądzyński was forced to resign by Jan Krukowiecki
Jan Krukowiecki
Count Jan Stefan Krukowiecki was a Polish general and chairman of the Polish National Government during the November Uprising and general during Napoleonic Wars fighting in the troops of Napoleon.-Early life and education:...
and Henryk Dembiński
Henryk Dembinski
Henryk Dembiński was a Polish engineer, traveler and general.Dembiński was born in Strzałków, Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship. In 1809 he entered the Polish army of the Duchy of Warsaw and took part in most of the Napoleonic campaigns in the East. Among others, he took part in the Battle of Leipzig in...
. Instead, on August 19, 1831 he was promoted to the rank of General of Division
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a Captain General....
.
In September he prepared the plans for the defense of Warsaw. However, the commanders of the Uprising lacked will to continue the fight and his plans were not accepted. Appointed to the Polish commission negotiating the capitulation, Prądzyński suffered from a nervous breakdown and surrendered to the Russians. Forcibly resettled to Viatka
Kirov, Kirov Oblast
Kirov , formerly known as Vyatka and Khlynov, is a city in northeastern European Russia, on the Vyatka River, and the administrative center of Kirov Oblast. Population: -History:...
, in 1833 he was allowed to return to Poland, where he continued his work as a theoretician of military strategy and tactics. Author of roughly 60 works on theory of warfare, he was one of the most notable Polish military writers of the 19th century.
Suffering from serious illnesses, in 1850 he moved to the island of Helgoland, where he drowned on August 4, 1850, probably committing suicide.
Honours and awards
- Gold Cross of the Virtuti MilitariVirtuti MilitariThe Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war...
- Knight of the Legion of Honour
- Order of St. AnnaOrder of St. AnnaThe Order of St. Anna ) is a Holstein and then Russian Imperial order of chivalry established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp on 14 February 1735, in honour of his wife Anna Petrovna, daughter of Peter the Great of Russia...
, 2nd class with diamonds