Проекты решения белорусского вопроса в годы Первой мировой войны (1914–1918): региональные аспекты

Abstract

At the beginning of the World War I, the center of Belarusian national movement was located in Vilna, where the editors of «Nasha Niva» journal and the « Belarusian society» formed two main views on the national development of the Belarusian people in the 20th century. The first project assumed national autonomy within the Federal Russian Republic. The representatives of the latter advocated the cultural and economic development of the Belarusian people while maintaining close ties with Russia. After the occupation of Vilna by the German troops and the fall of the tsarist government in 1917 independent Belarusian organizations emerged in all provincial cities and towns. Belarusian organizations, with centers in Minsk, advocated the national-territorial autonomy of Belarus as part of democratic Russia, and then the idea of creating an independent state, the Belarusian People’s Republic, prevailed. Belarusian organizations of Mogilev province were influenced by the ideology of Westrusism, but gradually evolved to the left and became closer to the Belarusian Socialist Community (BSG). The most conservative organization, the Belarusian People’s Union, operated in Vitebsk province.