Berecz Mátyás - Bujdosné Pap Györgyi - Petercsák Tivadar (szerk.): Végvár és mentalitás a kora újkori Európában - Studia Agriensia 31. (Eger, 2015)

CIESIELSKI, TOMASZ: Fortresses on the south-eastern borders of Poland in the 18th century

passages for supplies, as well as trips in case of a siege". All the bastions were fitted with gun batteries housing all the artillery available at the fortress. Initially there were 10 cannons, later 16, and from mid-18th century, there were 2 mortars and 22—25 iron cannons. The calibre of the largest ones was 6 pounds. Shortages of gunpowder were notorious, as well as a relatively small number of cannonballs11 12. The infrastructure of the fortress was rather modest - within the embankments, there were casemates, an arsenal, the commander’s headquarters, two guardhouses, a chapel, stables and a coach house. There were no warehouses, and above all - no barracks. As a result, most soldiers were stationed in the town. The fortress could not accommodate them all even for a short period of time, or in the event of a combat or an epidemiological alert. Also the garrison was not too large: all in all 127-139 infantry and artillery men. In the opinion of the consecutive commanders, the soldiers were too few in such a large fortress, especially as the fortifications themselves were in a rather poor technical condition. The last large-scale renovation work was performed there in the years 1714-1721. Even in 1733, Biala Cerkiew was considered to be prepared for war, but its commander decided to give it up to the Russians without a fight in January 1734. The Poles recovered it in 1736, but the following decades did not see any maintenance work on the fortifications. Such a state of affairs resulted from the lack of public funds for renovation work. Only the neighbouring estate grounds were obliged to supply workers and 500 oak logs a year, which was just enough for current repairs to the damaged palisades. In 30 years, the bastions and embankments fell into such disrepair that in 1756 some cows grazing by the fortress were able to climb them and damage the artillery equipment. Decayed was all the woodwork, and the chains and locks

11 Laskowski, O. (ed.): Encyklopedia Wojskowa. vol. I. Warszawa, 1930. pp. 298-300.; F. Sulimierski, B., Chlebowski and Walewski, W. (ed.): Slownik Geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych ziem slowiarîskich. vol. 1. Warszawa, 1880. t.l, s. 177.; Aftanazy, R.: Dzieje rezydencji na dawnych kresach Rzeczypospolitej. vol. 5: Województwo wolynskie, Wroclaw and another. 1994. pp. 40^12.; Wagner, M.: Walki polsko-kozackie na prawo- brzei,nej Ukrainie w latach 1702-1704. „Studia i Materialy do Historii Wojskowosci”. vol. 40. Bialystok, 2003. p. 140.

12 Ciesielski, T.: Armia koronna. pp. 557-558.; idem: Artyleria wojsk Rzeczypospolitej w latach 1717-1763: sprzçt artyleryjski i jego rozmieszczenie. In: Giçtkowski, M. andSmolinski, A. (ed.): Studia artyleryjski. Vol. 2. Torun, 2011. pp. 100-101.

312