The wedding of Jan Henryk Dąbrowski and Barbara Chłapowska
By Feliks Sypniewski
In October 1806, after Napoléon defeated the Prussian army and advanced east, he sent General Jan Henryk Dąbrowski to Greater Poland to spark an uprising. By early November, fighting had broken out and the region was freed from Prussian control. During this time, the widowed Dąbrowski met a young woman who would change his life: Barbara Chłapowska, the daughter of the local cupbearer, Ksawery Chłapowski. She was born in 1782, lived near Śmigiel, and was known as a tall, elegant brunette with many admirers. The most likely moment of their meeting came when Barbara and her father approached Dąbrowski to request the release of her brother Stanisław, then held by the French.
Dąbrowski was immediately taken with Barbara, reportedly telling her, “I wrote your brother’s name in my notebook, and yours in my heart.” He soon arrived at the Chłapowski home with Stanisław freed, and, in his humorous way, told the father: “Mr. Cupbearer, I return your son and ask for a daughter.” A proposal followed.
Their wedding took place a year later, on 5 November 1807, in Poznań Cathedral. The reception in the Town Hall quickly turned into a patriotic celebration. Barbara received a diamond pin from the Ruling Commission of the Duchy of Warsaw and a gold amethyst box from the ladies of Greater Poland. The event was later captured in a painting by Franciszek Sypniewski. Although Dąbrowski was a 52-year-old widower with a rounded figure, he was still admired for his defense of Greater Poland, his role in the Kościuszko Uprising, and the fame of the Polish Legions.
They were more than twenty years apart in age, yet their marriage was consistently happy and stable. The couple lived for a time in Poznań before settling in Winna Góra, an estate granted to Dąbrowski by Napoléon. From 1807 to 1818—despite ongoing wars, illness, and the collapse of the Napoleonic era—these years were filled with domestic peace, his devoted wife, and their two children.
Barbara Dąbrowska was far from a passive landowner’s wife. Strong-willed and active, she rode horses, shot skillfully, and even followed her husband—disguised as a man—during the 1812 Russian campaign, bringing him home when he fell ill. She later accompanied him again during the 1813 Saxon campaign. After his death in 1818, she traveled widely among Polish émigré communities. She died suddenly in Paris in 1848 and was buried in Winna Góra. The couple had two children, Bogusława and Bronisław.
