Franciszek Ksawery Branicki
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Hetman Franciszek Ksawery Branicki |
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Great Crown Hetman Field Crown Hetman |
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| Coat of arms | Korczak |
| Spouse(s) | Aleksandra von Engelhardt |
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| Noble family | Branicki |
| Father | Piotr Branicki |
| Mother | Melania Teresa Szembek |
| Born | 1730 Barwałd Górny, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth (now Poland) |
| Died | April 1819 (aged 88–89) Biała Cerkiew, Russian Empire (now Ukraine) |
Franciszek Ksawery Branicki (1730, Barwałd Górny – 1819) was a Polish nobleman, magnate, count, diplomat, politician, military commander and one of the leaders of the Targowica Confederation. He was appointed the Great Crown Podstoli in 1764, Ambassador in Berlin in 1765, Master of the Hunt of the Crown in 1766–1773, Artillery General of Lithuania in 1768–1773, Ambassador in Moscow in 1771, Field Crown Hetman in 1773 and Great Crown Hetman of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth between 1774 and 1794.
He opposed the reforms of the Great Sejm (1788–1792), and supported the Hetman Party and the Targowica Confederation. For his pro-Russian policies and controversial anti-nationalistic politics against the Commonwealth he was sentenced to hang; however, he escaped the death penalty and received in absentia from the Supreme Criminal Court during the Kościuszko Uprising (1794).
Branicki was awarded the Order of the White Eagle in December 1764. He married Aleksandra von Engelhardt, a niece of Prince Potemkin, in 1781.
Franciszek Ksawery was the son of Piotr Branicki, Chorąży of Halicz, and Melania Teresa Szembek, the chatelaine of Oświęcim. He started his career as a soldier in the Seven Years' War, firstly in the Russian Imperial army and later in the French. He distinguished himself at the battle of Sarbinowo (Zorndorf) in 1758 while commanding a squadron of Russian cavalry. For his services in the French army Louis XV awarded him the title of count, however, in Poland, prior to the partitions, the title was not officially recognized by the parliament. In 1765 he became a Knight of the Order of Saint Stanislaus.
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