Had Peter thought less of the importance of the Baltic, and concentrated his energies on obtaining a sure foothold in the Crimea, Constantinople would now be a Russian southern capital.
The Seven Years’ War had been brought to a finish when Catherine II. ascended the Russian throne. The next great European complication was brought about by the affairs of Poland.
On the death of Augustus III., Stanislaus Poniatowski was elected King of Poland, and at the request of Prussia and Russia the dissenters, adherents of the Greek Church and the Protestants, received all civil rights.
In opposition to this a Confederation of Bar was formed in 1768, with the object of dethroning the King. Catherine now began to interfere with Poland on behalf of the Greek Christians, and supported the King with her Russian army. This interference made her practically mistress of Poland. Turkey, an ally of the Confederacy, being alarmed at the growing Russian influence and being urged on by France, declared war upon Russia in order to resist the progress of Catherine in Poland; but this proved disastrous, as she was miserably defeated, both on land and sea, and brought to the verge of ruin. This Russian success alarmed Western Europe, and especially the two neighbouring Christian Powers, Prussia and Austria, each of whom had a special interest in the existence of Poland and Turkey. Catherine would not make peace without acquiring territory as a compensation for her exertions and outlay, while Prussia and Austria would not allow her to do this unless they acquired a certain amount of territory themselves. Hence the First Partition of Poland took place, by which the three Powers secured equal aggrandizement, Russia receiving the eastern part of Lithuania as her share.
In 1774 the Treaty of Kutschouk Kainardji was concluded with Turkey, by which the independence of the Mongol Tartars in the Crimea was acknowledged by the Sultan; Russia obtained the right of protection over all the Christian subjects of the Porte within a certain limit, and also the right of free navigation in all Turkish waters for trading vessels. This treaty firmly planted Russia on the northern coasts of the Black Sea.
In 1783 the Crimea was incorporated with Russia, and in 1787 Catherine visited the southern part of Russia as far as Kherson, on the Black Sea. Joseph II. of Austria, on hearing of her approach to his dominions, hastened to meet her, and together they journeyed through the Crimea, the Czarina unfolding to the Emperor both her own plans and those of Potemkin, her favourite, viz., to expel all the Turks from Europe, re-establish the old Empire of Greece, and place her younger grandson Constantine on the throne of Constantinople. Joseph fell in with her view, and it was hinted that something like a Western Empire should be also constituted and placed under the Austrian sway. In this way a division of the Ottoman Empire was contemplated between the two countries. This soon aroused the suspicions of Turkey, and war was again declared. But now it was two against one, and the fate of Turkey again seemed sealed.
