The Eagle and Three Crowns

In the middle of the sixteenth century Poland was a wealthy country governed by the Jagiellon Kings, whose riches had been built upon a monopoly of the Baltic Sea trade around Gdansk. By the end of the eighteenth century, Russia, Prussia and Austria had divided the country between them and Poland was wiped off the map for 123 years. How could such a prosperous and powerful country disappear so easily? The answer appears to lie within the Polish system of government itself. The weakened Royal Republic with its emphasis on freedom and liberty, which was established when the Jagiellon dynasty ended, ironically led to its own downfall.