Stanislas Saint Clair
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Stanislas Graham Bower Saint Clair (24 January 1835 in Wieprze – 24 January 1887 in Ligneuville), ''
nom de guerre A ''nom de guerre'' (, 'war name') is a pseudonym chosen by someone to use when they are involved in a particular activity, especially fighting in a war. In Ancien régime, ''ancien régime'' Kingdom of France, France it would be adopted by each n ...
'' Hidayet Pasha was a British officer, Polish-Lithuanian rebel, and later an Ottoman military officer of mixed
Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...
and
Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...
-Lithuanian background. He is most notable for an 1878
Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
insurgence he organized in the
Rhodope mountains The Rhodopes (; , ; , ''Rodopi''; ) are a mountain range in Southeastern Europe, and the largest by area in Bulgaria, with over 83% of its area in the southern part of the country and the remainder in Greece. Golyam Perelik is its highest peak ...
in
Principality of Bulgaria The Principality of Bulgaria () was a vassal state under the suzerainty of the Ottoman Empire. It was established by the Treaty of Berlin in 1878. After the Russo-Turkish War ended with a Russian victory, the Treaty of San Stefano was signed ...
. The insurgence planned to attack Bulgarian civilians and forces of the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
in order to claim back to the
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...
the territories ceded to Principality of Bulgaria under the
Treaty of San Stefano The 1878 Preliminary Treaty of San Stefano (; Peace of San-Stefano, ; Peace treaty of San-Stefano, or ) was a treaty between the Russian and Ottoman empires at the conclusion of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878. It was signed at San Ste ...
. The insurgence was defeated by the
Imperial Russian Army The Imperial Russian Army () was the army of the Russian Empire, active from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was organized into a standing army and a state militia. The standing army consisted of Regular army, regular troops and ...
and Captain Petko Voyvoda's detachment.


Early life and education

Stanislas Saint Clair was born in 1835 in his maternal grandfather's mansion of
Vepriai Vepriai () is the largest town in Ukmergė district, Lithuania, situated south-west of Ukmergė with population of about 549 (2011). The capital of Vepriai elderate. History Vepriai was founded on a hill near Vepriai Lake and south of Šventoj ...
,
Vilna Governorate The Vilna Governorate was a province ('' guberniya'') of the Northwestern Krai of the Russian Empire. In 1897, the governorate covered an area of and had a population of 1,591,207 inhabitants. The governorate was defined by the Minsk Governo ...
of the
Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...
(now Ukmergė district of
Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...
), which partially survives to this day. His father, Alexander Saint Clair (1800–1880) was a former military officer from the British colonial army in
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
and a Scottish nobleman. His mother, Pelagia Kossakowska (1798–1881), was a Polish-Lithuanian noblewoman. His maternal grandfather was count Jozef Dominik Kossakowski, one of the commanders in the
November Uprising The November Uprising (1830–31) (), also known as the Polish–Russian War 1830–31 or the Cadet Revolution, was an armed rebellion in Russian Partition, the heartland of Partitions of Poland, partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. ...
against Russian rule. His maternal grandmother was Ludwika Zofia Kossakowska-Potocka. As of 1855, Saint Clair's family had sold their mansion in Vepriai to Podbereski family. Brought up with strong Polish identity of his family, he perceived struggle against tsarist Russia as his patriotic duty and this led him to his
Balkan The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...
activities.


Career

Being a son of a military officer, Saint Clair joined the
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
and took part in the
Crimean War The Crimean War was fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the Ottoman Empire, the Second French Empire, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the Kingdom of Sardinia (1720–1861), Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont fro ...
. He was promoted to the rank of
captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
in 1859. After the war, in 1862 he started work as a clerk in the British counselate in
Burgas Burgas (, ), sometimes transliterated as Bourgas, is the second largest city on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast in the region of Northern Thrace and the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, fourth-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia, Plovdiv, an ...
, then part of the Ottoman Empire. Two years later, he became a British
consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...
in
Varna Varna may refer to: Places Europe *Varna, Bulgaria, a city ** Varna Province ** Varna Municipality ** Gulf of Varna ** Lake Varna **Varna Necropolis * Vahrn, or Varna, a municipality in Italy * Varna (Šabac), a village in Serbia Asia * Var ...
. At that time, however, he frequently visited his home country, where in 1863 he joined the anti-Russian
January Uprising The January Uprising was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at putting an end to Russian occupation of part of Poland and regaining independence. It began on 22 January 1863 and continued until the last i ...
that failed. In Bulgaria, he purchased an estate (a ''
chiflik Chiflik, or chiftlik (Ottoman Turkish: ; ; , ''chiflik''; , ''čiflig''; , ''tsiflíki''; /''čitluk''), is a Turkish term for a system of land management in the Ottoman Empire. Before the chiflik system the Empire used a non-hereditary form o ...
'') in Akdere, intending to settle in the Ottoman Empire. Around this time he started calling himself Hidayet Pasha ("the Guided General") thus claiming a military rank (''pasha'' is the Ottoman equivalent of a general) that was never assigned to him. Around this time Saint Clair co-authored a book with Charles Brophy titled "A Residence in Bulgaria. Notes on the resources and the administration of Turkey", published in 1869 in London. The book contains a negative portrayal of Bulgarians. Upon the start of the Russo-Turkish War (1877-78) he formally left British military service and volunteered as an officer in the
Ottoman Army The Military of the Ottoman Empire () was the armed forces of the Ottoman Empire. It was founded in 1299 and dissolved in 1922. Army The Military of the Ottoman Empire can be divided in five main periods. The foundation era covers the years ...
under Suleiman Pasha's command, later promoted to the rank of
Birindji ferik ''Birinci ferik'' or ''ferik-i evvel'' (corresponding to the earlier Ottoman rank of ''Serdar'') was a military rank of the Ottoman Army. The title means "''First Ferik''" and was senior to a ''Ferik'' and junior only to the ''Müşir'' (equiv ...
(General). His adjutant was the Englishman John Paget and his deputy - a Pole Konrad Bey. After the retreat of the Ottoman army from
Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...
and their defeat at
Plovdiv Plovdiv (, ) is the List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, second-largest city in Bulgaria, 144 km (93 miles) southeast of the capital Sofia. It had a population of 490,983 and 675,000 in the greater metropolitan area. Plovdiv is a cultural hub ...
, Ottoman troops scattered towards the Rhodope mountains and
Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
. Saint Clair retreated with Suleyman pasha and found himself in the vicinity of
Kardzhali Kardzhali ( , ''Kărdžali''; ), sometimes spelt Kardžali or Kurdzhali, is List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, a town in the Eastern Rhodopes in Bulgaria, centre of Kardzhali Municipality and Kardzhali Province. The noted Kardzhali Reservoir is ...
. After the Ottoman Empire's capitulation in the war, he conspired with several Ottoman army deserters to start a Muslim insurgence in the Rhodope mountains. Their propaganda efforts aimed to scare Turkish villagers with the rising "rule of the infidels" and make them believe there would soon be retributions for the
massacres of Christians A massacre is an event of killing people who are not engaged in hostilities or are defenseless. It is generally used to describe a targeted killing of civilians en masse by an armed group or person. The word is a loan of a French term for "b ...
during the
April Uprising The April Uprising () was an insurrection organised by the Bulgarians in the Ottoman Empire from April to May 1876. The rebellion was suppressed by irregular Ottoman bashi-bazouk units that engaged in indiscriminate slaughter of both rebels ...
in Bulgaria. The anti-Bulgarian and anti-Russian nature of Saint Clair's activities soon found the implicit support of the Ottoman and the
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
empires, both of them hoping to revise the Treaty of San Stefano on terms favourable to Turkey. The insurgence led by Saint Clair started in mid-1878 and affected an area in the Middle Rhodopes. The insurgents were first met at the village of Plevun where they were held back by Captain Petko Voyvoda's 9-men detachment. Russian reinforcements soon arrived and the insurgents dispersed, quickly abandoning their cause.


Later life and death

In 1877 tried in vain to organise a Polish Legion in the Ottoman Army. After the Treaty of Berlin, the autonomous province of
Eastern Rumelia Eastern Rumelia (; ; ) was an autonomous province (''oblast'' in Bulgarian, ''vilayet'' in Turkish) of the Ottoman Empire with a total area of , which was created in 1878 by virtue of the Treaty of Berlin (1878), Treaty of Berlin and ''de facto'' ...
was created and Saint Clair applied for the post of Governor General. After he learned he was not considered for the post, he retired from political affairs and left for
Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
without achieving the purpose of his ill-fated "insurgency". He died in his own home in Ligneuville (now
Malmedy Malmedy (; , historically also ; ) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. On January 1, 2018, Malmedy had a total population of 12,654. The total area is 99.96 km2 which gives a population dens ...
) Belgium, on 24 January 1887. Married twice, left three daughters.


References

* Vasil Dechev, "The past of Chepelare", Sofia, vol. 1 - 1928, vol. 2 - 1936. * Radev, Simeon. "The National question", "The Builders of Contemporary Bulgaria", vol 1. 1910–1911. * Saint-Clair Stanisław (1835–1887) iographical entry Internetowy Polski Słownik Biograficzny


External links


A brief bio of Saint Claire at FindAGrave


* ttp://ipsb.nina.gov.pl/a/biografia/stanislaw-saint-clair Saint-Clair Stanisław (1835–1887) {{DEFAULTSORT:Clair, Stanislas Saint 1835 births 1887 deaths British Army personnel of the Crimean War Ottoman military personnel of the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) Polish people of Scottish descent People from Vepriai Royal Scots Fusiliers officers Lancashire Fusiliers officers