Page:A General Sketch of Political History from the Earlist Times.djvu/350

 338 THE BOURBON AGE sovereignty vested in the Mogul, the powerless ruler who resided at Delhi. A new nation was created in America, but an old nation was on the verge of disappearing from Europe. We have seen Poland several times brought into the complications 8. Poland. Q f -y estern Europe ; not intervening as an active power on its own initiative, but somehow providing cause of dis- pute for others. Poland's own interests lay eastward, where she held territories once claimed as Russian, or coveted by the Turk j and on the Baltic, where the Polish provinces intervened between Brandenburg and Prussia proper. This division of the Prussian king's territories was a grievous source of weakness to him, and he greatly coveted this province of West Prussia as it was called just as he had coveted Silesia. But Frederick was not prepared to expose himself to a general attack by any personal act of aggression. Poland itself was a kingdom in which the king had very little power, and each of the nobles was in effect under no control. Under its constitution Poland could hardly take united action unless the nobles were unanimous, and practically they were never unanimous. It was in no one's interest except that of the Poles that Poland should be strong, and the Poles themselves, or the nobles, preferred personal independence to national strength. Most of the powers took a certain interest in the succession to the Polish Crown. It was evident that there would soon be First an election when Augustus of Saxony should die. Partition. Prussia and Russia were both anxious to stop the continuity of the Saxon line, which was favoured by both France and Austria. Prussia was anxious to detach Austria from the French Alliance, so was Catharine of Russia. The emperor Francis died, and his son Joseph was elected emperor while Maria Theresa still remained queen of the combined Austrian kingdoms. Joseph was a great admirer of his mother's old enemy Frederick. So it became comparatively easy for Frederick to propound a scheme under which he was to get West Prussia, thus making his Baltic territories continuous ; Austria was to have Poland's southern border province, and