Narrative sources on the diplomatic game of European countries around the events of the Polish uprising of 1863

Abstract

The purpose of the article – to disclose the meaning of the difference between the official, publicly declared position and the real (national) interests of Western European countries regarding their attitude to January 1863 Polish Uprising. Research methods: are analysis and synthesis, comparative, deduction, generalization. Main results: are despite the official statements by Western European governments to support the Poles' demands during the uprising of 1863 (in satisfaction of the Russian empire of their national rights), no real efforts were made. This state of affairs is clarified, with a meticulous analysis of true intentions of foreign policy of European countries. In the context of the implementation of policy in the nineteenth century, European governments could no longer ignore public opinion. After all, in the nineteenth century there was the epoch of affirmation in Europe of the ideals of the French Revolution and the formation of the institutions of civil society (free press, trade unions, public organizations, political parties, etc.). Involving information from narrative sources on events of 1863 clearly reveals the peculiarities of foreign policy and convinces that, in making final decisions, governments of the countries were guided by their own national interests (and not by the mind of public). Therefore, the Polish uprising became an opportunity to compete for the redistribution of influences among the leading countries of Europe and the interests of the Poles turned out to be only an instrument for achieving completely different goals. Concise conclusions: are the support of Western European governments in the Polish uprising were driven by public demands, but the real goal of each of the countries involved diplomatically to address this problem was to strengthen their own political stance in international affairs on the continent. Practical significance: this article will contribute to a better understanding of complex issues when assessing the position of Western European countries in the international politics of the mid-nineteenth century. Originality: compares information from publicly-published and diplomatically-concealed sources. Scientific novelty: the knowledge about the significant difference between the diplomatic statements and the real intentions of the foreign policy efforts of the Western European countries in the international relations of the middle of the nineteenth century were supplemented. Article type: analytic.