Casimir Pulaski
Polish nobleman, soldier, and military commander known as 'The Father of American cavalry'.
Casimir Pulaski, born Kazimierz Michał Władysław Wiktor Pułaski in Warsaw in 1745, was a Polish nobleman and military commander. Often called the "Father of the American cavalry" or the "Soldier of Liberty," he followed his father into politics and military life early on. He became a key leader in the Bar Confederation, a Polish–Lithuanian uprising against foreign control. After that rebellion failed, he was forced into exile.
Acting on a recommendation from Benjamin Franklin, Pulaski crossed the Atlantic to join the American Revolutionary War. He made his mark quickly, most famously by saving George Washington’s life. He was made a general in the Continental Army and, alongside his friend Michael Kovats—a Hungarian-born colonel—raised Pulaski’s Legion and overhauled the American cavalry. During the siege of Savannah, he led a cavalry charge and was fatally wounded by grapeshot, dying shortly afterward.
Pulaski is remembered as a hero of independence in both Poland and the United States. Many places, events, and works of art honor him. He is one of only eight people ever granted honorary United States citizenship.
Pulaski was the second eldest son of Marianna Zielińska and Józef Pułaski, a notable Warsaw lawyer and official. His family, which bore the Ślepowron coat of arms, was Catholic. He attended an elite college run by the Theatine religious order in Warsaw but did not finish his education. There is circumstantial evidence that he was a Freemason: a Masonic ceremony marked the laying of his monument’s cornerstone in Savannah in 1824, and a Chicago lodge bears his name, but no surviving documents confirm his membership.
Pulaski began his military career in 1762 as a page to Carl Christian Joseph of Saxony, Duke of Courland. After six months at the ducal court in Mitau, where Russian forces interned the court, he returned to Warsaw. His father gave him the village of Zezulińce, and Pulaski took the title Starost of Zezulińce.
He participated in the 1764 election of King Stanisław II Augustus. In December 1767, he and his father joined the Bar Confederation, which opposed the king as a Russian puppet. Pulaski recruited a unit and signed the confederation’s act on February 29, 1768. He was made a colonel on March 6 and commanded a cavalry unit. He agitated for the cause, winning some forces over, and fought his first battle on April 20 near Pohorełe, a victory. Another victory followed on April 23 near Starokostiantyniv, but an engagement at Kaczanówka on April 28 ended in defeat. In early May, he garrisoned Chmielnik but retreated after allied reinforcements were beaten.
He then defended a monastery in Berdyczów for over two weeks until June 16, when he surrendered and was taken captive. Released on June 28 in exchange for a pledge to stop fighting and urge the Confederates to end hostilities, Pulaski considered the promise non-binding and publicly renounced it upon reaching the Confederate camp. This damaged his reputation, and his own father debated whether to court-martial him. After heated arguments, Pulaski was reinstated to active duty in early September. In 1769, his unit was besieged again at the fortress of Okopy Świętej Trójcy, but he managed to break the Russian siege.
- born
- March 4 or 6, 1745
- died
- October 11, 1779
- field
- Military commander
- nationality
- Polish
- known_for
- Saving George Washington's life, reforming American cavalry, leading Pulaski's Legion
Quick Facts
- Native Name
- Kazimierz Pułaski
- Birth Date
- March 4 or 1745-03-06name=a
- Birth Place
- Warsaw, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
- Death Date
- 1779-10-11
- Death Place
- Thunderbolt, Georgia, U.S.
- Burial Place
- Monterey Square, Savannah, Georgia
- Allegiance
- Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth · name=Poland–Lithuania · United States · 1777-Ross United States
- Branch
- Poland-Lithuanian Army · Continental Army
- Service Years
- 1762–1779
- Rank
- Brigadier general
- Unit
- Pulaski's Legion
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Pulaski was born on March 6, 1745, in the manor house of the Pułaski family in Warsaw, Poland. Casimir was the second eldest son of Marianna Zielińska and Józef Pułaski, who was an advocatus at the Crown Tribunal, the Starost of Warka, and one of the town's most notable inhabitants. He was a brother of Francis Xavier Pulaski and Antoni Pułaski. His family bore the Ślepowron coat of arms. The Pułaski family was Catholic. Early in his youth, Casimir Pulaski attended an elite college run by Theatines, a male religious order of the Catholic Church in Warsaw, but did not finish his education. There is some circumstantial evidence that Pulaski was a Freemason. When Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette laid the cornerstone of the monument erected in Pulaski's honour in Monterey Square in Savannah in 1824, a full Masonic ceremony took place with Richard T. Turner, High Priest of the Georgia chapter, conducting the service. Other sources claim Pulaski was a member of the Masonic Army Lodge in Maryland. A Masonic Lodge in Chicago is named Casimir Pulaski Lodge, No.1167, and a brochure issued by the lodge claims he obtained the degree of Master Mason on June 19, 1779, and was buried with full Masonic honours. To date, no surviving documents of Pulaski's actual membership have been found.
Reader's Guide
In 1762, Pulaski started his military career as a page of Carl Christian Joseph of Saxony, Duke of Courland and the Polish king's vassal. He spent six months at the ducal court in Mitau, during which the court was interned in the palaces by the Russian forces occupying the area. He then returned to Warsaw, and his father gave him the village of Zezulińce in Podole; from that time, Pulaski used the title of Starost of Zezulińce. He took part in the 1764 election of the new Polish monarch, Stanisław II Augustus, with his family. In December 1767, Pulaski and his father became involved with the Bar Confederation, which saw King Stanisław as a Russian puppet and sought to curtail Russian hegemony over the Commonwealth. The confederation was actively opposed by the Russian forces stationed in Poland. Pulaski recruited a unit and, on February 29, 1768, signed the act of the confederation, thus declaring himself an official supporter of the movement. On March 6, he received a pułkownik (colonel) rank and commanded a chorągiew of cavalry. In March and April, Pulaski agitated among the Polish military, successfully convincing some forces to join the Confederates. He fought his first battle on April 20 near Pohorełe. It was a victory, as was another on April 23 near Starokostiantyniv. An engagement at Kaczanówka on April 28 resulted in a defeat. In early May, he garrisoned Chmielnik (Khmilnyk) but was forced to retreat when allied reinforcements were defeated. He retreated to a monastery in Berdyczów, which he defended during a siege by royalist forces for over two weeks until June 16. Eventually, he was forced to surrender and was taken captive by the Russians. On June 28, he was released in exchange for a pledge that he would not again take up arms with the Confederates, and that he would lobby the Confederates to end hostilities. However, Pulaski considered the assurance to be non-binding and made a public declaration to that effect upon reaching a camp of the Confederates at the end of July. Agreeing to the pledge in the first place weakened his authority and popularity among the Confederates, and his own father considered whether or not he should be Court-martialed. Some heated debates followed, and Pulaski was reinstated to active-duty only in early September. In 1769, Pulaski's unit was again besieged by numerically superior forces, this time in the old fortres
Did You Know?
- Pulaski was born on March 6, 1745, in Warsaw, Poland.
- He saved the life of George Washington during the American Revolutionary War.
- He is one of only eight people to be awarded honorary United States citizenship.
- The defense of Jasna Góra monastery lasted from September 10, 1770, to January 14, 1771.
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