The idea of painting the panorama of the historic battle came from Jan Styka (1858-1925), a well-known artist from Lwów [now Lviv in Ukraine], who invited Wojciech Kossak (1856-1942), an eminent painter of battle scenes, to collaborate on his project. They were assisted by Ludwig Boller, Tadeusz Popiel, Zygunt Rozwadowski, Teodor Axentowicz, Włodzimierz Tetmajer, Wincenty Wodzinowski and Michał Sozański. The artists were mainly concerned with commemorating the national traditions on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Kościuszko Insurrection – the victorious battle of Racławice on 4 April 1794, fought by the insurgents (including the famous scythe-wielding troops) led by General Tadeusz Kościuszko (1746-1817) against the invading Russian troops commanded by General Alexander Tormasov.