On This Day
1795 – Partitions of Poland: The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia, a northern fief of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, ceases to exist and becomes part of Imperial Russia.[7]
The Partitions of Poland[a] were three partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place toward the end of the 18th century and ended the existence of the state, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland and Lithuania for 123 years. The partitions were conducted by the Habsburg Monarchy, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Russian Empire, which divided up the Commonwealth lands among themselves progressively in the process of territorial seizures and annexations.[1][2][3][4]
The First Partition was decided on August 5, 1772 after the Bar Confederation lost the war with Russia. The second partition occurred in the aftermath of the Polish–Russian War of 1792 and the Targowica Confederation of 1792 when Russian and Prussian troops entered the Commonwealth and the Second Partition was signed on January 23, 1793 (Austria did not participate in the Second Partition). The Third Partition took place on October 24, 1795, in reaction to the unsuccessful Polish Kościuszko Uprising the previous year. With this partition, the Commonwealth ceased to exist.[1]
In English, the term “Partitions of Poland” is sometimes used geographically as toponymy, to mean the three parts that the partitioning powers divided the Commonwealth into, namely: the Austrian Partition, the Prussian Partition and the Russian Partition. In Polish, there are two separate words for the two meanings. The consecutive acts of dividing and annexation of Poland are referred to as rozbiór (plural: rozbiory), while the term zabór (pl. zabory) means each part of the Commonwealth annexed in 1772–95 becoming part of Imperial Russia, Prussia, or Austria. Following the Congress of Vienna in 1815, the borders of the three partitioned sectors were redrawn; the Austrians established Galicia in the Austrian partition, whereas the Russians gained Warsaw from Prussia and formed an autonomous polity of Congress Poland in the Russian partition.
In Polish historiography, the term “Fourth Partition of Poland” has also been used, in reference to any subsequent annexation of Polish lands by foreign invaders. Depending on source and historical period, this could mean the events of 1815, or 1832 and 1846, or 1939. The term “Fourth Partition” in a temporal sense can also mean the diaspora communities that played an important political role in re-establishing the Polish sovereign state after 1918.
Born On This Day
1895 – Ángela Ruiz Robles, Spanish teacher, writer and inventor, pioneer of the electronic book (d. 1975)
Ángela Ruiz Robles (March 28, 1895 Villamanín, León – October 27, 1975, Ferrol, A Coruña) was a Spanish teacher, writer, pioneer and inventor of the mechanical precursor to the electronic book. In 1949, Ruiz was awarded Spanish patent 190,698 for the “Mechanical Encyclopedia” (Spanish: la Enciclopedia Mecánica).[1]
Ruiz Robles wanted to lighten the weight of the books carried by her students, so she devised a device consisting of a series of text and illustrations on reels, all under a sheet of magnifying glass with a light for reading in the dark, and was to incorporate spoken descriptions of each topic. Her device was never put into production but a prototype is in display at the National Museum of Science and Technology in A Coruña.[2]
FYI
NASA: Astronomy Picture of the Day
By Rocky Parker, Beyond Bylines: What to Include in Your Writing Portfolio (and What to Toss)
Colossal: Peeled Cardboard Adds Corrugated Dimension to Javier Pérez’s Clever Illustrations
By Morgan Housel, Collaborative Fund: How People Think
Granger Smith Podcast Episode 129: Some people just can’t be helped. Do we stop trying? No, but ultimately, we rest on the peace that they cannot be fixed by us. Join me and my friend Bernie as we chat about this topic and more on this week’s podcast!
NSFW
Louisville Police Officer John Mattingly, who participated in and was shot during the infamous Breonna Taylor raid, breaks down what really happened on the night in question, why they were there, and what he thinks of no-knock warrants.
NSFW
Jim Miller is an American mixed martial artist, who currently competes in the UFC lightweight division. He currently holds the record of most bouts in UFC history, most wins in UFC history, and most wins in the UFC lightweight division.
Prior to his career in mixed martial arts, Jim and his brother Dan worked in construction with their father. Since the spring of 2013 Miller has been suffering from Lyme disease, which doctors were slow to diagnose. However, since his diagnosis, Miller has been able to alleviate the symptoms of the disease by changing his nutrition plan.
Ideas
By Ennowulff: Easy Cut 30 Degree Raised Bed
By jmdushi: A Vintage Bear
By Lina Maria: Glow in the Dark – Flying Dragon
By therockbobster: Custom Skylight Frame Installation for a Van Conversion
Recipes
By Hannah Loewentheil, BuzzFeed: People Are Sharing The One Small Ingredient That Makes The Biggest Difference In Their Go-To Dishes (And I’m So Excited To Try These In My Own Kitchen) “No one can ever identify the taste, but they always love it.”
By Betty Crocker Kitchens: Banana Split Cake
Just the Recipe: Paste the URL to any recipe, click submit, and it’ll return literally JUST the recipe- no ads, no life story of the writer, no nothing EXCEPT the recipe.
DamnDelicious
RecipeTinEats
- Coffee Cake with Cinnamon Streusel June 12, 2026Firstly, thank you for the Jaffle love. 🥰 Hit the Jaffle button above to see what he got up to today! Secondly – cake. Specifically, Coffee Cake! A classic crumb cake with a jammy cinnamon ribbon, loaded with lots and lots of nubbly, extra crunchy cinnamon streusel. Outrageously good. Coffee Cake with Cinnamon Streusel This... […]Nagi
- Introducing Jaffle! June 10, 2026Meet Jaffle! Future Chief Taste Tester. Son of a Dozer friend. A little bundle of golden, fluffy joy! 48 hours of instant happiness I didn’t expect to get a new puppy so soon after saying goodbye to Dozer. To be honest, I wasn’t sure when I’d be ready. And I had it in my head... […]Nagi
wikimedia
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 15 June 15, 2026Picture of the day Mountain gorilla (Gorilla beringei beringei), Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 14 June 14, 2026Picture of the day Wulfenite crystals with calcite, found in the Erupción Mine, Sierra de Los Lamentos, Ahumada Municipality, Chihuahua, Mexico.
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Welcome to the Stump the Bookseller blog!
Stump the Bookseller is a service offered by Loganberry Books to reconnect people to the books they love but can’t quite remember. In brief (for more detailed information see our About page), people can post their memories here, and the hivemind goes to work. After all, the collective mind of bibliophiles, readers, parents and librarians around the world is much better than just a few of us thinking. Together with these wonderful Stumper Magicians, we have a nearly 50% success rate in finding these long lost but treasured books. The more concrete the book description, the better the success rate, of course. It is a labor of love to keep it going, and there is a modest fee. Please see the How To page to find price information and details on how to submit your Book Stumper and payment.
Thanks to everyone involved to keep this forum going: our blogging team, the well-read Stumper Magicians, the many referrals, and of course to everyone who fondly remembers the wonder of books from their childhood and wants to share or revisit that wonder. Isn’t it amazing, the magic of a book?