Belarusian nationalism
Belarusian nationalists both collaborated with and fought against Nazi Germany during World War II, and protested for the independence of Belarus during the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Various historical attempts have been made to unite Belarus under a singular religion, including the Ruthenian Uniate Church before 1917 and Protestantism in the 1920s, though these efforts all fell flat.
This pseudohistorical theory, commonly referred to as Litvinism, emerged from efforts by the Russian Empire in order to propagate the idea of a Lithuania which was more favourable to Tsarist interests in the aftermath of the partitions of Poland.
These ideas re-emerged as part of efforts by Józef Piłsudski to rationalise the annexation of Vilnius by the Second Polish Republic before being co-opted by Belarusian nationalists following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
However, following World War II, Skaryna's image saw a renaissance in Belarus, particularly in the face of unsuccessful efforts to transfer Polotsk to the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic in 1944.
At this time, however, Belarusian nationalism did not emerge; instead, two competing schools of thought variously sought to place Belarus alongside Russia or Poland.
In contrast, the West-Rusists, led by Mikhail Koyalovich (Kalinowski's primary political rival within Belarus), believed the Belarusians were a subset of the Russian nation, and advocated for the conversion of Catholics to Eastern Orthodoxy.
[15] Kalinowski's Letters from Beneath the Gallows became a rallying cry for Belarusian nationalists, with its condemnation of the "Muscovites" and call to fight alongside Polish rebels.
Only then will he manage to live in counsel and in plenty and only when he has prayed properly to God, will he deserve Heaven, for once he has enriched his intellect with learning, he will develop his affection and sincerely love all his kinsfolk.
Józef Kajetan Janowski [pl], on the other hand, a member of the Uprising's Polish National Government, called Kalinowski, "a true apostle of the Belarusian people."
Regardless of differing views on his legacy, Kalinowski began to emerge as a Belarusian national hero during the 1930s, as Soviet educational institutions emphasized his role in history.
[15] Following the defeat of the January Uprising, Belarusian nationalism faded from consciousness, amidst competition between Lithuanian, Polish, Ukrainian, and Russian nationalists.
Belarusian nationalism found particular growth in northern and central Belarus, where religious plurality was more common than the Catholic West and Orthodox East.
The right, informally referred to as radaŭcami[c] and consisting of delegates from the Belarusian Christian Democracy and Western Belorussia, sought immediate independence.
On the other hand, the left, called the ablasnikami[d] and made up of delegates from the Belarusian Socialist Assembly and Eastern Belorussia, sought temporary confederation with Russia as a more realistic alternative within the context of World War I and widespread poverty in Belarus.
[24] Now, split between two nations, Belarusian nationalists followed two different strains of evolution, a process which continued until the country was reunited under Soviet rule in 1939.
As a result of Protestant missionary activity mixed with nationalism, the New Testament was translated into the Belarusian language by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
[25] Protestant Belarusian nationalists did not subscribe exclusively to any singular branch of Protestantism; some, like Branislaw Tarashkyevich, became followers of Methodism, while others became associated with Baptism.
These same Protestant nationalists were tied to the Communist Party of Western Belorussia, with Belarusian Methodist leader Haliash Laukovich-Leuchyk saying, "I envision Evangelic socialism, or Communism, headed by Christ."
The pro-western strain of Belarusian intellectuals initially dominated the leadership of the Byelorussian SSR, and received a boost from the emigration of twelve members of the intelligentsia from Polish Belarus.
However, with the promotion of more Belarusian peasants to the SSR's leading positions, the pro-western faction was marginalized before being eventually destroyed altogether during the Great Purge of the mid-1930s.
Only after the assassination of Wilhelm Kube in 1943, two years after Belarus was initially occupied by Nazi Germany, were attempts made to grant the Belarusians any visible autonomy.
[29] Collaborationist forces of Belarusian nationalists were also utilised by the Germans as part of an effort to foment insurgency in Soviet Belarus, with little success.
[33] Eight years after Masherov's sudden death in 1980, the Belarusian nationalist movement began to re-emerge, this time under the leadership of young historian Zianon Pazniak.
[36] Following Belarusian independence, the pro-western nationalist clique, led by Pazniak and Stanislav Shushkevich, a Catholic ex-Communist functionary, once again took control of the country.
Over the course of time, Lukashenko gradually pivoted away from Russia, including the 2009 Milk War, a diplomatic conflict regarding Russian attempts to privatise Belarus's dairy industry.
[39] In September 2019, Lukashenko claimed that Polish city Białystok are Belarusian lands and justified the Soviet invasion of Poland as "defense" of Western Belorussia from Nazis.
[41] Members of the opposition conversely accused Lukashenko of selling the country out to foreign actors, with Ales Bialiatski referring to the former's government as a "regime of occupation" prior to his 2021 arrest.
[46][47] Furthermore, there were cases in 2022 when people in Belarus were arrested or even sentenced to multiple years in prison for the usage of Pahonia symbol when they publicly painted it or left a sticker featuring it.
Among the most notable of these is the Kastuś Kalinoŭski Regiment, formed following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, which additionally fights for the independence of Belarus from Russia.
