Philomaths

The society was created on 1 October 1817 in Vilnius, Vilna Governorate, Russian Empire, which had acquired those territories in the Partitions of Poland in 1794.

The members of the latter discussed literary works, and the organization aims were self-educational and didactic; however, around 1819-1820, the members became split on whether the organizations should concentrate on self-education (Jeżowski) or take a more active role in restoring Poland's independence (Mickiewicz), eventually the second faction gained dominance and new social and political goals emerged.

According to Theodore R. Weeks, both organizations advocated a love for Polish culture and patriotism, but shied away from developing any concrete political program and their members generally declared loyalty to the Russian ruler.

After a trial that lasted several months, in 1824, 108 people were convicted of membership in this or related organizations; 20 members of the Philomaths or related organizations were sentenced to imprisonment or katorga and exiled to Siberia; over a dozen faculty members were dismissed (including historian Joachim Lelewel).

[1] Adam Mickiewicz, one of the Three Polish Bards, convicted of being a Philomath member and exiled into Russia, later described his experiences in that period in the third part of a major work, Dziady (Forefathers' Eve).