Tarnogród Confederation The Tarnogród Confederation was a confederation of szlachta in Polish - Lithuanian Commonwealth , in the years 1715 – 1716 . It was formed on 26 November 1715 in Tarnogród by nobility angered by illegal taxation , levied for Saxon forces operating in Grand Duchy of Lithuania on behalf of Augustus II the Strong , who wanted to introduce absolute monarchy in the Commonwealth . Its marshal was Stanisław Ledóchowski . The confederates and the royal forces did not fight any decisive battles , but they fought numerous smaller skirmishes ; several towns and castles were taken . The ensuing negotiations eventually brought Peter I of Russia and Russian Empire forces into the Commonwealth " for peacekeeping and mediation " . This event marked the beginning of lasting Russian Empire influence on Commonwealth internal affairs , starting with the Silent Sejm of 1717 . Background . Augustus II the Strong of the Saxony ' s House of Wettin was elected to the throne of Poland in 1697 . The Wettins , used to absolute rule , attempted to govern through intimidation and the use of force , which led to the a series of conflicts between Wettin supporters and opponents ( including another pretender to the Polish throne , King Stanisław Leszczyński ) . Those conflicts often took the form of the confederations – legal rebellions against the king permitted under the Golden Freedoms . Augustus II wanted to strengthen the royal power in the Commonwealth ; to reinforce his position , he brought in troops from Saxony ( by the summer of 1714 more than 25 , 000 Saxon troops were inside Commonwealth ' s borders ) , which produced dissent in the Commonwealth . Meanwhile , in the aftermath of the Great Northern War , which marked the rise of the Russian Empire ( 1721 ) , the growing conflict between Augustus II and the Polish nobility ( szlachta ) was used by the powerful Russian Tsar Peter the Great , victor of the Great Northern War . At that time , Russia was not yet strong enough to conquer and absorb the Commonwealth outright , nor could it easily and openly assume control of it , despite the Commonwealth ' s dysfunctional politics ; the " Polish anarchy " was not be easily reigned . Hence Peter ' s goal was to weaken both sides , and prevent Augustus from strengthening his position , which he feared would lead to a resurgent Commonwealth that could threaten Russia ' s recent gains and growing influence in the Commonwealth internal politics . He further hoped and succeeding in forcing through conditions ( such as reduction of the Commonwealth army ' s size ) that would increase Commonwealth inferiority compared to Russia . Peter used Augustus II recent policies , aiming at the reduction of power of the hetman s ( Polish - Lithuanian military commanders in chief ) , coinciding with the bad harvest and some Polish - French negotiations , to stir opposition to Augustus . Hostilities . The nobles , spurred by Russian promises of support , formed the Tarnogród Confederation on 26 November 1715 . The Confederation ' s marshal was Stanisław Ledóchowski . The Tarnogród Confederation was only the last and most notable of several confederations formed against Augustus at that time . The Confederates were supported by most of the Commonwealth ' s own army . Great Crown and Great Lithuanian Hetmans , Adam Mikołaj Sieniawski and Ludwik Konstanty Pociej , respectively , did not join the Confederation , but neither did they help the king . The Russians entered the country , but did not participate in any major engagements , and in fact they bid their time , as Peter posed as the conciliator between the Commonwealth king and the szlachta . Crucially , the Russians did not support the Confederates as promised , and instead insisted on bringing both sides to the negotiating table . The civil war lasted for a year ; and the outcome hung in the balance . Saxon forces under command of Jacob Heinrich von Flemming enjoyed military superiority , and advanced south - eastwards , taking Zamość ( this victory was however accomplished less through military tactics than through diplomacy and a treachery ) . In January , negotiations in Rawa Ruska led to a temporary ceasefire , but it did not hold , particularly as the Russians encouraged the Confederates to be more aggressive . The confederates pushed back against Augustus forces , entering Wielkopolska , and taking Poznań . They gained support from a local Wielkopolska confederation , and from Lithuania . Neither side was however posed to take victory , and the Russian pressure mounted ; eventually the Russians declared that they will consider any side that does not enter negotiations an enemy and open hostilities with them . Unable to defeat the Confederates , many of whom still saw Peter as protector of their rights ( and some of whom hoped for Augustus to be deposed ) , Augustus agreed to open the negotiations with Russians acting as arbitrators . Earlier , he hoped for the arbitration from the Pope , the Holy Roman Emperor or the Ottoman Empire , but the Pope was not trusted by the Confederates , and the Holy Roman Emperor and the Ottomans were concerned with hostilities between themselves . The Russians were represented by a delegation headed by prince Gregory Dolgoruky . Negotiations took place in June in Lublin , but were broken once again when the Confederates took Poznań , and the Saxons captured and executed one of the Confederation leaders , Mikołaj Łaściszewski . In August , Augustus requested Russian assistance , and new round of negotiations begun . The defeat of the confederate forces in the battle of Kowalewo increased their will to negotiate . A peace treaty between Confederates and the Augustus was signed on 3 or 4 November 1716 , as relations between the Confederates and the Russians deteriorated , as Russians made it increasingly apparent that their goals were not totally benign to the Commonwealth . Finally , a Sejm session was called for 1 February 1717 . Aftermath and significance . The Silent Sejm that was held in the aftermath of the hostilities gained notoriety in Polish history and politics . While some beneficial reforms were passed ( such as the establishment of standing taxes for the military ) , the Sejm is regarded negatively by modern historians . Reduction of the army ' s size and establishment of Russia ' s position as the settlement guarantor reinforced Commonwealth military inferiority compared to its neighbors , and unofficially , put it in the position of a Russian protectorate . The Russian tsar as the guarantor had now a convenient excuse to intervene in Polish politics in the future at will . With a reduced army , removal of Saxon troops and the right to form confederations , the nobility and the king had less power to fight one another – or , not incidentally , to resist the outside forces . Russian Army troops would stay in the Commonwealth for two years , supporting opposition to Augustus ; and Russia soon reached an agreement with other powers about stopping further attempts to reform and strengthen the Commonwealth . Thus the Silent Sejm is regarded as one of the first precedences that the Russian Empire dictated Polish internal policy , and also as a precursor to the partitions of Poland , which erased the Commonwealth from world maps by 1795 . Historian Norman Davies wrote that this Sejm " effectively terminated the independence of Poland and Lithuania " . The system created by the Silent Sejm dominated the Polish political scene until the late 18th century , when a new wave of reforms led to the Constitution of the 3 May , soon followed by partitions of Poland and loss of Polish sovereignty for 123 years .