October 24, 1795

Third Partition of Poland

Prussia joins the final partition settlement of Poland-Lithuania

The treaty disposed of an entire commonwealth without admitting a single representative of that state to the table.

24 October 1795: Prussia accedes

On 24 October 1795 Prussia joined the partition arrangement previously negotiated by Russia and Austria, completing the three powers' political agreement over the remaining Polish-Lithuanian lands.

The treaty's preamble referred back to the Austro-Russian convention of January 1795 and stated that the parties were fixing more precisely the boundaries created by the complete partition of Poland.

Only plenipotentiaries of Russia, Prussia and the Habsburg emperor were parties; no representative of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth participated.

Terms, and the clocks attached to them

The agreement guaranteed Russia's acquisitions, adjusted territory between Austria and Prussia, and assigned Kraków and the surrounding lands to Austria.

Prussian forces were given six weeks from signature to evacuate Kraków and the other Austrian-assigned lands, and the border demarcation was to be completed within three months.

A traditional date for a drawn-out settlement

October 24 is the conventional date of the Third Partition, but the settlement was a process: Russia and Austria concluded an earlier compact in January 1795, Prussia joined in October, and a further tripartite convention followed on 26 January 1797.

The partitioning powers already occupied much of the territory before the treaty, so the date marks diplomatic completion rather than a single-day military takeover.

Stanisław August Poniatowski remained nominally king until he signed his abdication at Grodno on 25 November, the anniversary of his coronation.

Sources

Researched 23 Aug 2026 7 sources 2 audit passes Traditional date

How this was checked

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Traditional date. This date is the conventional one, not one fixed by a contemporary record.

What the sources leave uncertain

October 24 is the conventional date of the Third Partition, but the settlement was a process: Russia and Austria concluded an earlier compact in January 1795, Prussia joined on October 24, and a further tripartite convention followed on January 26, 1797.
The partition powers already occupied much of the territory before the treaty, so the date marks diplomatic completion rather than a single-day military takeover.