View source for Stanislaus II August, King of Poland (1732-1798)

[[File:ME4_610.jpg|300px|thumb|right|''Stanislaus II August, King of Poland<br />
Source: [http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page Wikipedia Commons]'']]
Stanislaus II August was the last king of [[Poland|Poland]] from 1764 to 1795. He was born Stanisław Antoni Poniatowski on 17 January 1732 in Wołczyn, Belarus and was the son of Stanisław Poniatowski (1676-1762), Castellan of Kraków, and Konstancja Czartoryska (1700-1759). He spent a number of years in St. Petersburg and was, for several years, the lover of [[Catherine II, Empress of Russia (1729-1796)|Catherine]], the future Empress of Russia.

Stanislaus was elected king of Poland in 1764 through the influence of Catherine the Great, succeeding [[Augustus III, King of Poland (1696-1763)|Augustus III]]. He was king during the three partitions of Poland, and after the third partition in 1795, was forced to abdicate. He died 12 February 1798 in St. Petersburg.

On 20 December 1764 Stanislaus August confirmed all former privileges to the Mennonites of [[Elbing (Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship, Poland)|Elbing]], [[Marienburg (Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland)|Marienburg]], [[Bärwalde (Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland)|Bärwalde]], and [[Tiegenhof (Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland)|Tiegenhof]].
= Bibliography =
Hege, Christian and Christian Neff. ''Mennonitisches Lexikon'', 4 vols. Frankfurt &amp; Weierhof: Hege; Karlsruhe: Schneider, 1913-1967: v. IV.

Mannhardt, W. <em>Die Wehrfreiheit der Altpreussischen Mennoniten</em>. Marienburg, 1863: 91.
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[[Category:Persons]]
[[Category:Rulers and Politicians]]