THE GROWTH OF THE MODERN NATION 13the Emperor himself. Half of Dabrowski's Polish Legion (around four thousand
men), raised in 1797 for the Army of Italy, was sent in 1802.—3 to Santo Domingo
(Haiti), to crush the rebellion of Negro slaves. Almost all perished, were taken
captive, or joined the rebels, to be decimated by swamp-fever, which thereby
achieved for Haiti what Poland could not enjoy for more than a century. Their
hymn, sung with abandon to a spritely mazurek, is marvellously expressive of
their desperate plight:
Jeszcze Polska nie zginela Poland has not perished yet
Poki My zyjemy. So long as we still live.
Co nam obca przemoc wziela That which alien force has seized
Szabla odbijemy. We at swordpoint shall retrieve.
Marsz, marsz, Dgbrowski! March, march, Dabrowski!
Z ziemi wloskiej do Polski! From Italy to Poland!
Za Twoim przewodem Let us now rejoin the nation
Zlaczym sie z narodem. Under thy command. *The Army of the Duchy of Warsaw was no more fortunate. Splendidly devoted
in distant parts, notably in the charge of Samosierra in the Peninsula in 1808, it
was decimated in Russia in 1812. and annihilated at the Battle of the Nations
near Leipzig in 1813. Despite these sacrifices, or perhaps because of them, Polish
independence was not restored. At the Congress of Vienna, the principle of
Legitimacy was supreme. Attempts to press Polish claims were dismissed. The
territorial acquisitions of 'the Satanic Trinity' were confirmed and sanctified.
The Congress Kingdom, created by way of compromise, had nothing but a
paper guarantee to protect it from Russia manipulations. The three partitioning
powers - Russia, Prussia, and Austria - now victorious, were to dominate the
continent of Europe for the duration. (See Chapter iz.)
In these revolutionary years, Polish Nationalism had the misfortune to run
counter to the general direction of political development in Eastern Europe.
Inspired by the example of France, where the ancien regime was in full retreat,
it was surrounded by expansive dynastic empires, where the ancien regime was
triumphant. Political scientists might describe it as 'asynchronic development'.
In human terms, it frequently led to tragedy.
In the circumstances, it was inevitable that Polish aspirations should have
been widely misunderstood. Once the partitioning powers were firmly in
control, the Poles could never obtain elementary justice, as they saw it, by
peaceful methods. They could only hope to change their predicament by
recruiting assistance from outside, or by causing a major disruption. Treason
The hymn, with these words, has formed the national anthem since Pilsudski's Coup in- In the original version, composed in 1797 by Jozef Wybicki to a popular folk-tune, the
first line read: Jeszcze Polska nie umarto (Poland has not yet died); but the implication that
the Polish state.might have died from natural causes as distinct from assault and battery,
later proved unacceptable. Once umarla had been replaced by zginela, other minor changes
were necessary to maintain the rhyme and rhythm.^11