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After the death of the last Jagiellonian king, the united Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth became an elective monarchy with mostly foreigners elected as monarchs such as Henry III of France, who witnessed the introduction of the Golden Liberty system and Stephen Báthory, a capable military commander who strengthened the nation.
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, [b] formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania [c] and also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic, [d] [9] [10] was a federative real union [11] between the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, existing from 1569 to 1795.
Stanisław II August [a] (born Stanisław Antoni Poniatowski; [b] 17 January 1732 – 12 February 1798), known also by his regnal Latin name Stanislaus II Augustus, and as Stanisław August Poniatowski (Lithuanian: Stanislovas Augustas Poniatovskis), was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1764 to 1795, and the last monarch of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was established by the Union of Lublin in 1569. The elected King of Poland was automatically a Grand Duke of Lithuania (until then the Lithuanian dukedom was hereditary). The first common ruler of both countries was Sigismund II Augustus.
The History of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (1764–1795) is concerned with the final decades of existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.The period, during which the declining state pursued wide-ranging reforms and was subjected to three partitions by the neighboring powers, coincides with the election and reign of the federation's last king, Stanisław August Poniatowski.
Michael I (Polish: Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki, Lithuanian: Mykolas I Kaributas Višnioveckis; 31 May [1] 1640 – 10 November 1673) was the ruler of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth as King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 29 September 1669 until his death in 1673.
Stanisław August Poniatowski, the last king of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Portrait by Johann Baptist von Lampi the Elder. The first partition in 1772 did not directly threaten the stability of the Polish-Lithuanian state. Poland still retained extensive territory that included the Polish heartlands.
During this time the king of Sweden sent Peter Estenberg to King Stanislaw to act as an ambassador and correspondence secretary. The Polish king's first act was to cement an alliance with Charles XII whereby the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth engaged to assist Sweden against the Russian tsar. Stanisław did what he could to assist his patron.