Military service of prince Witold Czartoryski in the Kingdom of Sardinia and Piedmont (1847-1850)

Abstract

The subject of this article is a continuation of the earlier paper that appeared in the “Annals of Arts” and presents Witold Adam Czartoryski (1822-1865) as a soldier in the Spanish army. The aim of this article is to familiarise readers with the genesis and course of prince’s another military service, this time in the Kingdom of Sardinia and Piedmont, the details of which are unknown to historiography. Why did Witold decide to join the ranks of the Piedmont army? Did he believe in the success of the actions and the strategy adopted by Hotel Lambert? What factors facilitated and which hindered the implementation of his mission? This paper tries to answer these and other questions. It also includes descriptions of interesting situations and adventures that happened to the prince. The paper also attempts at presenting the prince’s personality, his longing for home, obedience to parents and patriotism. The basic source information was obtained from archives of the Princes Czartoryski Library in Kraków, mainly based on Witold’s letters to the members of his immediate family and collaborators.