„Souveränitätskrise“ und dauerhafte Kontrolle des „Vorfeldes“? | Die russische Diplomatie und hochadlige Handlungsspielräume in Polen-Litauen am Beispiel Józef Potockis

“Sovereignty Crisis” and Permanent Control of the “Zone of Influence”?Russian Diplomacy and the Scope for Action of the High Nobility in Poland-Lithuania the example of Józef PotockiAfter the death of Peter I, Russian foreign policy was determined by the Russian Vice-Chancellor Andrey Osterman until his fall. Osterman attempted to secure Russia’s position within the European pentarchy achieved in the Peace of Nystad (1721) by alliances against the French policy of a barrière de l’est. Part of this policy was the attempt to control Poland-Lithuania politically or to control it from the outside, which was to succeed with the military assertion of August III as Polish king together with Austria against the candidate favored by France.At the level of the high nobility, however, Russia did not succeed in completely controlling events in Poland-Lithuania: Rich magnates in Poland-Lithuania were widely able to act politically independently. This article examines the actual scope of Russian control as well as the perception of political action by magnates, using Józef Potocki as an example. Potocki came from a wealthy Polish noble family and strove to attain the office of grand hetman of the Polish crown. Potocki was known as a personality hostile to Russian policy. Thus, the fact that he obtained the office of grand hetman already shows a limit of Russian influence. As grand hetman, Potocki tried, among other things, to initiate a reform of the Polish army and its financing, which was observed suspiciously by Russian diplomats and which was also torpedoed from the Russian side. For his part, Potocki tried everything to disrupt Russian alliance policy, especially toward the Ottoman Empire and the Crimean Tatars. In doing so, he acted very independently and also without consultationwith the Polish king. The example of Józef Potocki thus gives an idea of the scope of action that could open up for Polish magnates in this period