Mariusz Kulik
Through his actions, Zygmunt Sierakowski placed the common good and the good of his country above his own. His joining the ranks of the January Uprising illustrates the tragedy experienced by many Poles serving in the Russian army at that time. Many squandered promising careers and stability along with it, opting instead for an uncertain future and quite frequently, poverty.
The 19th century in Polish history was a time of tragedy, marked by repeated attempts at regaining independence, which left an indelible mark on Polish society. Difficult life choices, balancing on the brink of honor and loyalty, variously understood, were the daily bread of many inhabitants of Polish lands, particularly those serving in the administration or in the partitioning armies. The social acceptance of such a life choice, or its lack thereof, depended on numerous factors, the consideration of which can be dizzying, leaving scant space for a definitive assessment. Invariably, the lives led by these individuals were complex, and the sudden twists and turns of events are ready-made material for a movie screenplay.
Following the well-trodden path of life
One of the people whose complicated fate accurately reflects the complex era in which they lived, was Zygmunt Sierakowski. At the outset, his life seemed to follow a routine pattern. He was born on May 19, 1827, in Lisewo, Volhynia (Lutsk County), into a Polish noble family under the Dołęga coat of arms. He was the son of Ignacy, who had died in the November Uprising, and Fortunata née Morawska. He was educated in local schools and graduated with honors from a secondary school in Zhytomyr, which entitled him to a government position of the 14th rank (the lowest in the current table of ranks). It should be remembered that in the mid-1830s, Tsar Nicholas I issued a decree that extended to Poles the law at that time enforced in Russia, which required men from any noble family to enter state service (civil or military). Desiring to further his education, Sierakowski entered the mathematics department at St. Petersburg University in 1845. As many people without significant financial resources, he was the beneficiary of a government scholarship, which enabled him to support himself whilst in St. Petersburg. Following two years of study, he transferred to the Faculty of Law (Legal and Administrative Studies), thereby losing his government scholarship. He was able to continue his studies thanks to a scholarship funded by a secret patriotic group associated with Polish youth in Vilnius.
From Arrest to the Army
In March 1848, Sierakowski took four-weeks leave from university, leaving St. Petersburg for the Kherson Governorate in order to attend to an inheritance matter. He eventually wound up in Pochayiv, close to the Austrian border. There, he was detained on charges of attempting to illegally cross the border with the intention to join the revolutionary movement (at that time, the Spring of Nations was already underway in Europe), a fact reported to the authorities by a local worker. Sierakowski denied all accusations levelled at him, and the authorities offered him the opportunity to complete his studies at the University of Kazan, take up administrative service, or join the army. Sierakowski opted for military service, hoping to join an artillery unit, as there were weapons there requiring greater knowledge and skill. However, he was ultimately drafted into the infantry and sent to the Orenburg Corps, where he served for eight years. He saw service in the Orenburg Line Battalion, initially at the Novopetrovsk Fort on the Caspian Sea (1849–1852), then in Uralsk (1852–1854) and later Orenburg (1854–1856). He performed his service with distinction, first as a private and subsequently as a non-commissioned officer. During this period, he encountered many individuals who had been convicted on criminal charges and sentenced to military service as ordinary soldiers. Among them were to be found not only Poles but also representatives of other nationalities living in the Russian Empire (e.g., the renowned Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko).
At the Elite Academy
In the Russian Army, a person of noble descent could be promoted to officer rank after two to four years of service. However, Sierakowski faced lengthy challenges regarding the confirmation of his nobility, which delayed the promotion he desired. He was ultimately promoted to the first officer rank of cadet (ensign) in 1856, after eight years of service. Sierakowski requested a transfer to one of the regiments stationed in St. Petersburg, citing his desire to study at the General Staff Academy there and prepare for the entrance exams. A challenge that he faced was the lack of the mandatory two-year officer service required in order to enter the military academy. He managed to circumvent this problem by completing many years of military service as a private and non-commissioned officer, and by also having his promotion in seniority to a higher officer rank count from August 14, 1852 rather than from February 16, 1856.
Sierakowski was transferred to the Dragoon Regiment, and for the duration of the entrance examinations, similarly to other candidates for the academy, he was assigned to the Guard Corps staff. After successfully passing the entrance examinations, in August 1857, he was accepted into Russia’s most prestigious military academy, the General Staff Academy and was also promoted up to the next military rank – lieutenant.
At the General Staff
Studies at the Academy lasted two years, but to become a General Staff officer, one had to complete an additional, several-month-long supplementary course. Only first-class graduates, among whom Sierakowski could be counted, were eligible for this course. Over the course of his studies, he distinguished himself as a diligent and hard-working student, earning a reputation as a competent, dedicated officer. During this time, he established contacts with individuals of liberal political persuasions (including young lecturers and professors at the Academy), journalists, officers, and the Polish community in St. Petersburg. He began to gather a group of colleagues around him, establishing, most likely in the autumn of 1857, a self-study circle, which ultimately evolved into an officers’ circle with a political profile. In historiography, it is called the Polish Officers’ Circle. Over the course of several years, this circle counted among its membership multitude of officers of various ranks and nationalities, estimated at up to 200, most of them being Poles. They were students of St. Petersburg military academies and officers of the local garrison. After graduating from the Academy, Jarosław Dąbrowski assumed leadership of the group, presiding over it until 1861.
The Beginnings of a Brilliant Career
Sierakowski graduated from the General Staff Academy in December 1859 and was rewarded with a promotion to the next military rank – staff captain. He was assigned to work in the statistics department of the Ministry of War, although still formally an officer in a dragoon regiment. He was officially commissioned as a General Staff officer in June 1861. At the same time, he was promoted to captain of the General Staff. This secured him entry into the elite of the Russian army of that period, enabling connections within the ministry. The General Staff officer corps was of a modest size, its members holding high-ranking command and staff positions in the army and the Ministry of War. They also pursued brilliant military careers, arousing the envy of most line officers who, having not graduated from a military academy, were not able to boast of a higher military education.
Sierakowski joined a team that was working to liberalize the disciplinary regulations in force in the Russian army, particularly the abolition of corporal punishment. As part of a several-month study tour, he was sent off to various European countries to observe the penal systems employed in various armies: French, English, Prussian, and Austrian. Through this period, he was also a participant in the Statistical Congress in London in 1861. Based on the materials collected, he was able to compare the disciplinary regulations of various Western European armies with those enforced in the Russian army.
His observations and conclusions with regard to this comparison were published in a magazine article of the “Morskiy Sbornik,” generating considerable interest among readers. It is worth drawing attention to the fact that it earned Sierakowski the Order of St. Anne, 3rd degree.
Sierakowski’s interest in this area may have stemmed from his personal experiences during his many years of service in the Orenburg Corps, which at that time was one of the main places offering conscripts the opportunity to serve in the “soldiers’ camp.” Occupying a prominent position in the General Staff and maintaining contact with representatives of the highest imperial authorities, he was able to have an influence in improving the living conditions of soldiers, from whom he had himself in part, descended from.
Sierakowski gained the trust of the new Russian Minister of War, General Dmitry Milyutin, who at the time belonged to the ranks of St. Petersburg liberals and had been, over several years, implementing a number of army reforms. Sierakowski’s project to reform the detention groups aroused his interest, which at the time served as one of the main disciplinary measures in the Russian army.
How to ease military discipline?
In the summer of 1862, Sierakowski was sent on another foreign trip, with the aim of gathering detailed information about the military penitentiary system employed by Western European armies. He also continued his work focused on easing the disciplinary regulations in force in the Russian army. This included a trip to Algiers in November 1862, where he familiarized himself with the organization and operations of the French colony and the military penal system active there. During the course of this trip, he established contact with Polish conspirators, passing through Kiev and Vilnius, among other places. On his way to Warsaw, he met up with members of the Central National Committee, to whom he promised that he would take command of the uprising in Lithuania. In their talks, he insisted on the postponement of the uprising, but this wish was ultimately not carried out. In his opinion, it was better to wait for a moment, even 20 years into the future, when a conflict of interests between major European states would arise, thereby affording the uprising a chance of success. During this trip, he was also married to Apolonia Dalewska, the sister of his friends from the underground movement in 1846, in Kiejdany.
Sierakowski reported back to the Ministry of War on December 24, 1862, and on January 5, 1863. He continued his work on the reform of Russian prisoner groups and the relaxation of military discipline. He was also in the course of planning a trip to a number of prisoner groups located in the western territories of the Russian Empire, but this was met with the disapproval of his superiors, who refused to let it proceed. During this period, he was also supposed to present a memorandum to the Minister of War, Dmitry Milyutin, concerning the Polish issue and its resolution.
Without breaking his oath, he maintained his honor.
Since representatives of the insurgent authorities were urging Sierakowski to join the already-incumbent uprising, he appealed to his Russian superiors in the ministry for a four-week leave of absence due to family matters (his desire to take his wife for treatment “in the spa resorts” of Germany). Following his departure from St. Petersburg, he informed the Minister of War, General Milyutin, by letter, about his intention of joining the uprising.
This decision was not easy one. Sierakowski had weighed it up, taking into account various factors, both political and personal. He realized that by joining the uprising, he was rebelling against the occupying power. The power he had served diligently as a soldier and officer for the past few years, and whose army was one of its pillars. Reluctant to break his oath and in order to maintain his honor, Sierakowski went on leave and from there informed his superiors about his joining the uprising. He arrived in Vilnius and accepted the appointment as commander-in-chief of the armed forces in the Kaunas Voivodeship, adopting the nickname Dołęga, which originated from his family’s coat of arms.
Hanged at the monastery wall
He left for Kaunas on April 3rd/15th, 1863, and took command of the insurgent forces, which numbered approximately 500 poorly armed men. In spite of this handicap, he fought several victorious battles against Russian forces – at Ginetinie and Korsakiszki. He then reinforced his forces and headed north. The Russian forces, commanded by General Ivan Ganetsky, followed him, defeating his unit at Medejki. Over the course of several days of fighting, Sierakowski was wounded and had to be hidden in a nearby manor house. He was eventually captured by the Russians and taken to a hospital in Vilnius, where he underwent two surgical procedures. Due to his poor health, he did not testify before the investigative commission. The Governor-General of Vilnius, Mikhail Muravyov, proclaimed a death sentence against Sierakowski, a sentence that could only be overturned by the Tsar. Sierakowski’s mother and mother-in-law made attempts to commute his sentence, but to no avail. Similar efforts were also made by public figures, such as the English ambassador to St. Petersburg, Francis Napier. Worse still, his death sentence had been commuted from an honorary shooting to a shameful military hanging. Sierakowski was executed on June 15/27, 1863, at Łukiski Square (at the wall of the Dominican monastery – editor’s note) in Vilnius.
His death received widespread coverage in the European press. His body was buried at an undisclosed location within the Vilnius Citadel. Only many years later, in July 2017, during exhumation work, was Zygmunt Sierakowski’s resting place ultimately discovered, his remains identified through a wedding ring upon which his engraved name had been preserved.
The welfare of the Homeland Over His Own
Through his actions, Zygmunt Sierakowski elevated the welfare of the community and his homeland above his own welfare. His joining of the January Uprising highlights the tragedy experienced by many Poles serving in the Russian army at the time. A sizeable number of them squandered promising careers and stability (e.g., Józef Hauke and Ludwik Zwierzdowski), choosing an uncertain future and often poverty. The conversations he held at the time (with family and confidants), the disputes, and the calculations he made, accurately reflect the realities of the time – realities with which Sierakowski was not unfamiliar. By joining the uprising, he squandered his entire military career. Rising through the ranks, starting as a private in the Orenburg Corps, he further developed his qualifications, attaining the status of a General Staff officer, which placed him high in the service hierarchy. Thanks to the experience and knowledge he gained, he addressed the issue of liberalizing the criminal regulations then in force in the Russian army. His work in this area, carried out in departments of the Ministry of War, did not go unnoticed by his superiors and who acknowledged his efforts with medals and promotions to successive military ranks. He was also able to gain their trust, including the Minister of War, which was reflected by the nature of the tasks entrusted to him over time. All of this guaranteed the development of a brilliant military career and the achievement of high ranks and positions. It also ensured the support of his family and a continually prosperous life.
In joining the uprising, Sierakowski made a conscious decision to reject all of these trappings of success. By making such a decision, he remained loyal to his own nation – the Poles – and to his own beliefs. Drawing on his own experience, he strived to fulfill the expectations placed upon him, which was no easy task, given his previous position in the Russian army. He also came to be regarded as an example of the dramatic choices Poles were compelled to make during the difficult times of national uprisings, where one often strived to reconcile realism with conviction.
The title and subtitles are provided by the editors.
Mariusz Kulik is a professor of Polish Academy of Sciences
Polish version of the text – here: https://swiatsybiru.pl/pl/dramaty-zygmunta-sierakowskiego/