As the nation prepares for the 250th anniversary of independence, Americans look with renewed interest to the lives of men and women from the Revolutionary Era. Among those was Count Casimir Pulaski, a man who came across the seas to aid the new United States in its hour of need. Since the creation of the state, Pulaski County has been the focus of politics and business for the state of Arkansas as the home of the state capital. Few people may know who the county was named for. Count Casimir Pulaski, a Polish general, arrived in the United States during the American Revolution, trained American troops, and gave his life for the freedom of the new land. Pulaski became a hero for the generation of men who fought for American independence.

Casimir Pulaski was born in March 1746 in Warsaw, the capital of what was then the Confederation of Poland and Lithuania. His family was part of the Polish nobility, and his family made sure he received the best education. In 1762, at the age of 16, he entered the military, serving as an aide to the Duke of Courtland, a prestigious posting.

Poland had once been the most powerful nation in East Europe; but now its power was on the decline, and it was under increasing threat from Russia. In 1764, King Stanislaw II came to power in Poland, and Russia increasingly worked its tendrils into the country, eventually forcing Poland to allow Russian troops to be stationed there. Believing that Russia must be stopped and that the new king was betraying the country,........

© El Dorado News Times