The poem was written during the 1830–1831 Polish uprising. The immediate reason for writing it was that some members of the French parliament had called for French armed intervention on the side of Polish insurgents against the Russian army. In the poem, Pushkin explains that from the Russian point of view the uprising is just a part of the ages old quarrel between relatives (Slavs). He tells the French to leave Slavs alone because the eventual outcome of all quarrels between Slavs must be decided between Slavs themselves. He says that the French parliamentarians don't understand Slavs or Slavic languages, they seek a fight simply because they hate Russia for defeating Napoleon. He dares them to attack Russia in reality, not just in words, saying that in case of a military attack the whole Russian country will rise against the invaders.