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• Historic reference
  • Primitive communal system and the early Middle Ages
  • The Belarusian Lands in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
  • The Belarusian Lands in Rzeczpospolita
  • The Belarusian Lands in the Russian Empire
  • The Belarus in the USSR
  • The Republic of Belarus (1991 – present days)

The Belarusian Lands in the Russian Empire

The 19th century saw the formation of the Belarusian nation. The szlachta (Belarusian nobility) grew enthusiastic about folklore, local traditions, and the Belarusian language, which, coupled with economic transformations, provided a fertile breeding ground for forming the national identity. The beginning of the 20th century saw the emergence of the first national revolutionary and democratic party – the Belarusian Socialist Hramada (in Belarusian: assembly), which articulated the necessity of transforming Russia into a federative democratic republic and endowing each people forming part of it, the Belarusians included, with
the right to self-determination.

For the Russian Empire the 20th century began with an array of political troubles which led to the collapse of the monarchy, triggered the October Revolution and the Civil War which followed it. Attempts were made during that period to establish a Belarusian state. There were two points of view as to how to achieve that, with each having their own supporters among members of the national patriotic movement. Some proposed establishing a sovereign state, independent from other national republics. Others believed Belarus should become a part of a federation of national republics, with each republic enjoying equal rights. During the times of the revolution, foreign intervention and the civil war, attempts were made to materialise both options.

The year of 1918 saw the establishment of the Belarusian People’s Republic on the territory of Belarus occupied by the Germans. The newly-formed republic declared separation from the Soviet Russia. 1 January 1919 saw the proclamation of the Soviet Socialist Republic of Belarus. But it didn’t live long. Later in the year the country was divided – a part of it was included into the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and the other part into the newly established Lithuanian-Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic. July 1920 saw the second proclamation of the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR). In 1921 the Soviet Russia and Germany signed the Treaty of Riga, under which Western Belarus was incorporated into Poland. Political steps taken in between 1918 and 1921 were often spurred by military motives rather than interests of the Belarusian people.