Skip to global NPS navigation
Skip to this park navigation
Skip to the main content
Skip to this park information section
Skip to the footer section






National Park Service Search Search
This Site
All NPS
 Open
Menu
Close
Menu
Explore This Park
Explore the National Park Service


Exiting nps.gov
  Cancel


Thaddeus Kosciuszko
National Memorial
Pennsylvania


Info
Alerts
Maps
Calendar
Fees


Alerts In Effect Dismiss
 more information on current conditions...
 Dismiss View all alerts


Contact Us
  The Life and Times of Thaddeus Kosciuszko
 Thaddeus Kosciuszko's life encompassed some of the most exciting years of the 18th century. Kosciuszko witnessed and participated in tremendous political changes that spanned two continents. Below, you will find a chronology of Kosciuszko's life events, alongside a listing of notable world events. To learn more about the Polish patriot, visit the website of the Polish American Cultural Center. For more information on Kosciuszko's relationship with Thomas Jefferson, visit the Monticello website.
1746
Andrzej Tadeusz Bonaventura Kościuszko (Thaddeus Kosciuszko) born in eastern Poland to lesser nobles Ludwik and Thekla Kosciuszko
Thomas Jefferson is 3 years old
George Washington is 14 years old1750
Beginning of the Industrial Revolution1754
George Washington participates in the first battle of the French and Indian War1759
Agrippa Hull, Kosciuszko’s future servant and companion, born in Connecticut1764
Great Britain’s Parliament passes the Sugar Act1765
Kosciuszko, age 19, enrolls in the Royal Military Academy in Warsaw
Parliament levies the Stamp Act on the American colonies1766
Agrippa Hull sent to live with the Binney family near Stockbridge, Massachusetts1769
Kosciuszko leaves Poland to study art and engineering in Paris
Thomas Jefferson, now a young lawyer, begins his service in the Virginia House of Burgesses1770
Boston Massacre prompts outrage in the colonies1773
Boston Tea Party takes place when those protesting England's tea tax board a cargo ship in Boston Harbor, dumping the tea overboard1774
Kosciuszko returns to Poland as Russia, Prussia, and Austria begin to encroach on his homeland1775
The “shot heard around the world” at Lexington and Concord marks the beginning of the American Revolutionary War1776
Declaration of Independence (drafted primarily by Thomas Jefferson) ratified by the Second Continental Congress on July 4
Thaddeus Kosciuszko arrives in Philadelphia in August, eager for work as a military engineer in the Continental Army1777
Assisted by Kosciuszko’s fortifications, the American forces are victorious at Saratoga, New York
Agrippa Hull, now 18 years old, joins the American army1778
Kosciuszko designs and builds fortifications at West Point, including a massive chain stretching across the Hudson River to keep British ships from entering1780
Kosciuszko travels south, with Agrippa Hull as his assistant, to serve as chief engineer of American General Nathanael Greene’s forces1781
Kosciuszko suffers a bayonet wound to his buttocks while escaping from a trench1782
The last battles of the American Revolution take place; peace negotiations between the American and British begin in Paris
Thaddeus Kosciuszko returns to Philadelphia
Agrippa Hull parts ways with Kosciuszko1784
Congress is unable to pay Kosciuszko for his services, and instead promises $12,280 with interest and 500 acres of land
Kosciuszko does not receive the promised compensation and leaves New York City on a ship destined for France
Thomas Jefferson leaves for France after being chosen as the U.S. Minister to France1789
Thaddeus Kosciuszko becomes major general in the Polish army
The French Revolution begins1791
Poland adopts a progressive, reformative new constitution. It is the world’s second written constitution, after that of the United States.
The slaves of Saint Domingue (modern-day Haiti) stage a revolt that begins the Haitian Revolution1792
Poland rescinds the new constitution after facing hostility from Czarina Catherine the Great
General Kosciuszko slips out of Poland after skirmishing with Catherine’s forces1794
Kosciuszko returns to Poland and agrees to lead a revolution
Polish leaders and visionaries declare their independence from Russia
Fighting continues until autumn when the Polish rebels are defeated and Kosciuszko is seriously wounded and captured1796
Catherine the Great dies
Her son, Czar Paul, frees Kosciuszko and the other Polish prisoners of war from prisons in Russia
Thomas Jefferson is elected Vice President of the United States1797
Kosciuszko returns to Philadelphia but travels north until the yellow fever outbreak subsides. He visits friends in New England, including Agrippa Hull and Horatio Gates.
Kosciuszko receives the $18,912 owed to him by the U.S. Government1798
Upon his return to Philadelphia, Kosciuszko stays in Mrs. Relf’s boardinghouse on 3rd and Pine (now the site of the Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial) where he entertains guests, including Thomas Jefferson and Chief Little Turtle of the Miami Nation
American politics are rocked by the “XYZ Affair”
Kosciuszko prepares a will with Jefferson’s legal assistance
Late in the night on May 4, Kosciuszko secretly slips out of the U.S. He departs for France in hopes of making Napoleon an ally in the cause for Polish freedom1799
Napoleon takes control of France, causing Kosciuszko (who is now living in Paris) to grow alarmed and disillusioned1801
Thomas Jefferson becomes president of the United States of America
Kosciuszko, now 55 years old, moves into the Zeltner household in Paris. Kosciuszko met Swiss diplomat Peter Joseph Zeltner during military negotiations.1803
Napoleon sells the Louisiana Territory to the United States1812
The War of 1812 begins1814 - 1815
Two treaties are signed in Paris, ending the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleon is defeated at the Battle of Waterloo
Kosciuszko attends the Congress of Vienna at the invitation of Russian Czar Alexander. This assembly reorganizes Europe after the Napoleonic Wars. Kosciuszko is disappointed with the new borders it establishes for Poland.1817
At 10PM on October 15, Kosciuszko dies in Soleure, Switzerland at the age of 71.  He is remembered at the time of his death for his dedication to freedom for all people as well as his skill as a military engineer.1818
Czar Alexander I permits Kosciuszko's remains to be moved from Switzerland to Poland.   On June 23, Kosciuszko's body is placed in a sarcophagus in Wawel Cathedral in Krakow, Poland.
 Last updated: January 25, 2018
 Park footer Contact Info Mailing Address: c/o Independence National Historical Park
143 S. 3rd Street
Philadelphia,
PA
19106
 Phone: 215 965-2305
Due to the site's limited hours, visitors are advised to phone the Independence Visitor Center at the above number.  Rangers at the visitor center (open 7 days a week) can answer questions and provide information about the Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial Contact Us
 Tools FAQ
Site Index
Español
 Stay Connected


This Site
All NPS 
  National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior
 Accessibility
Privacy Policy
FOIA
Notices
Contact The National Park Service NPS FAQ
No Fear Act
Disclaimer
Vulnerability Disclosure Policy
USA.gov Facebook
Youtube
Twitter
Instagram
Flickr