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382 General History of Europe Prussia, whereupon Maria Theresa reluctantly agreed to give up once more her struggle with her inveterate enemy. Shortly after- wards England and France came to terms, and a general settle- ment was made at Paris in 1763 (677). III. THREE PARTITIONS OF POLAND, 1772, 1793, AND 1795 661. Question of West Prussia. Frederick's success in seiz- ing and holding one of Austria's finest provinces did not satisfy him. The central portions of his kingdom Brandenburg, Silesia, and Pomerania were completely cut off from East Prussia by a considerable tract known as West Prussia, which belonged to the kingdom of Poland. The upper map on the opposite page will show how great must have been Frederick's temptation to fill this gap, especially as he well knew that Poland was in no condition to defend its possessions. 662. Weakness of Poland. With the exception of Russia, Poland was the largest kingdom in Europe. It covered an im- mense plain with no natural boundaries, and the population, which was very thinly scattered, belonged to several races. Be- sides the Poles themselves there were Germans in the cities of West Prussia, and Russians in Lithuania. The Jews were very numerous everywhere, forming half of the population in some of the towns. The Poles were usually Catholics, while the Germans were Protestants and the Russians adhered to the Greek Church. These differences in religion, added to those of race, created end- less problems and dissensions. They explain, moreover, many of the difficulties involved in the attempt to reestablish an inde- pendent, Polish republic after the great World War. The government of Poland was the worst imaginable. Instead of having developed a strong monarchy, as her neighbors Prussia, Russia, and Austria had done, she remained in a state of feudal anarchy, which the nobles had taken the greatest pains to perpetuate. They limited their kings in such a way that they had no power either to maintain order or to defend the country from attack.