This time, it was nothing like 1830, when the revolution had been a traditional European affair, launched by young aristocratic officers and students, only for the great nobles to seize power in the end.
Although both of the previous Polish uprisings had been brutally suppressed, the Polish nobility and exiles overseas had suffered heavy losses. Nearly a third of the upper elite had been wiped out.
But that had also led Poland's elite to abandon their illusions about the Russians. They had realized how weak the great nobles and wealthy merchants were: they wanted only compromise and could not lead Poland to true victory.
In fact, even Poland's great nobles and wealthy merchants were beginning to wake up. In Russian eyes, they were scarcely any different from the Polish commoners, or even the serfs.
But their reputations had been ruined, and they could hardly wield the influence they once had.
Of course, the Polish nobility's reputation had been in tatters for more than a day or two. Their past misdeeds had led Polish serfs to regard the Russian Tsar as a liberator. That showed just how skilled the nobles were at treating people like they were less than human.
This time, far more people took part. The uprising drew in a broader range of classes and grew to a much larger scale. And men like Landry Promis would never let power slip from their grasp. He had made his plans even before the revolt began.
Of course, he also had Venyabetlovsky's "laxity" to thank for giving him ample time to plan. In fact, Landry Promis knew the Tsar's government's actions better than almost anyone.
And because this uprising was larger, its bloodshed was on a scale the previous two could not match.
After all, ordinary people did not act with