[hider=Kingdom of Poland]

Name: The Kingdom of Poland

Leader: King Konstatin Pavlovich

Konstatin Pavlovich, a former Grand Duke of Russia, is the older brother to Tsar Nicholas I and had served in the Napoleonic Wars, fighting in Italy in the name of Russia in the War of the Second Coalition. Alexander I became Tsar after his father’s death in 1801 to which Konstatin served as Grand Duke, but abstained from politics in favor of his military life. This did not make him a military genius however, as Konstatin had been at some fault for Russian defeat in multiple battles despite distinguishing himself with bravery in many others. 

After the the peace of Tilsit, he had been appointed as the Grand Viceroy of Poland by his brother, Tsar Alexander I. Yet upon the ascension of Nicholas I to the throne, the Decemberist uprising had occurred on December 26th, 1825 which tried to put Konstantin upon the Russian Throne, after having secretly renounced his claims to the throne. Yet, Konstantin would go to Tsar Nicholas I to prove himself loyal and refuse the throne openly, promising that he would never hold the Imperial Throne of Russia. Later, he would lead the Polish in the Russo-Turkish War of 1828-1829, fighting in the Balkan’s alongside his brother. 

After the war, Konstatin Pavlovich was officially named King of Poland, granting the Polish state further autonomy from the Russian sphere of influence.

History: 

The Congress Kingdom of Poland was created out of the Duchy of Warsaw, a French client state, at the Congress of Vienna in 1815 when the great powers reorganized Europe following the Napoleonic wars. The Kingdom was created from parts of the Polish territory that had been partitioned between Austria and Prussia which had been transformed into the Duchy of Warsaw by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1807. After Napoleon's 1812 defeat, the fate of the Duchy of Warsaw was dependent on Russia. Prussia insisted on the Duchy being completely eliminated; after Russian troops reached Paris in 1812, Tsar Alexander I intended to annex the Duchy and parts of Lithuanian lands which were historically in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. However, both Austria and the United Kingdom strongly disapproved of the idea, Austria issuing a memorandum on returning to the 1795 resolutions with support from the United Kingdom.

Yet, Konstantin Pavlovich would be dubbed as the de facto ruler of this semi-autonomous Polish state as the Grand Viceroy of Poland to which Konstantin had grown attached to over the years of rule. While not supporting Polish patriotic movements, Konstatin would support the creation of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Poland by Alexander I in 1815. Considered one of the most liberal constitutions of the time, it was never fully respected by the Russian Government. Tsar Alexander abandoned the freedom of the press and began censoring it, though Konstantin would stand against the Tsar in favor of respecting the constitution that Alexander had himself been a part of decreeing. This would make Konstantin popular with the Polish people as he would defend their freedoms, even if he had held no true attachment to the Kingdom of Poland. 

After Alexander I’s death in 1825, Konstantin would secretly renounce his claims to the Russian throne in secret which fermented the Decembrist Uprising of 1825. This had temporarily strained the relationship between Nicholas I and Konstantin until the rise of the Turko-Russian War of 1828-1829 which saw the Polish Army, led by Konstantin, aid the Imperial Russian forces in the Balkans with a force of 20,000 soldiers. This cemented Konstantin’s loyalty to the Russian state and as Nicholas had not been formally crowned as King of Poland, Konstantin would be awarded the title in 1830. 

King Konstantin would rule as a liberal king, respecting the constitution that had been put into place by Alexander I. However, it would become clear that the constitution was ambiguous, while liberal, would become manipulated, avoided, and violated by the government. It had revoked rights that had been given to the Polish Jews and peasants and the parliament, which was supposed to be called every two years, would have only been formed four times since 1815. The disregard of the constitution had led to discontent with the Polish peoples, leading to unrest and the formation of plots. The newly crowned king would call the parliament in 1831, but his lack of political experience led to no change as the liberal and conservative branches of the government would bicker.

This would be a recurring event every two years as Konstantin would try to enact reforms for Poland but the parliament simply would not act or, in some cases, ignore the king's wishes. In the year 1835, Konstantin would order a single reform that gave rights back to the Polish Jews, promising freedom of religion which staved off rebellion, but with little being done, unrest still carries into 1836, even while dissent within Russia itself grows into a crescendo. 

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