The last King of Poland (1764–95). He was a lover of Catherine II of Russia and her candidate for the Polish throne, which, as the country was under Russian control at that time, he gained. In the first partition of Poland in 1772, Russia, Austria, and Prussia all took slices of Polish territory. From 1773–1792 there was a period of national revival encouraged by Stanislaus. However, in 1793 he was forced to agree to the second partition of Poland, which left him with a truncated kingdom and made him almost a vassal of Russia. A rising led by General Kosciuszko was crushed, and the third partition completed the destruction of Poland. In November 1795 Stanislaus was forced to abdicate.