Abstract
“Tyrant proposes to the fairest of Polish maiden” – the marriage of Joanna Grudzińska and the Grand Duke Konstantin as depicted in memoirs
Konstantin Pavlovich Romanow, a brother of mighty Russian tsars Alexander I and Nicholas I, the commander-in-chief and de facto the viceroy of the Congress Poland. The Duke became famous mostly as an oppressor of the Poles, a raving madman and belvedere animal. However, source research shows a lot of changes in his behavior. Among the citizens of Warsaw, the capital of Poland, there could be found some who spoke dearly about the Duke’s humor, caregiving and even a kind of fondness of the Polish people. Joanna Grudzińska, who agreed to marry the tyrant, is considered to be the main reason of these transformations. It is worth to devote a moment to take a look at this marriage and what the citizens of Warsaw thought of it.