Litwin
Platinum Member
From Ancestry.com, I am 4% Israel and 6% Minsk.
My father’s father escaped Minsk in the late 1800s by jumping onto a cargo ship.
He hated the Cossacks with a passion.
as i thought they were Litvins/Belarusians . Witold was the name of Litvin/Belarusian Grand prince . both slightly victimsb of end of 19c. - 1917 Polonization
Litvin - Wikipedia
Polonization - Wikipedia
Thank you so much for these links. Fascinating. I want to know more. I did not know anything about what happened. Polish really was the language of choice in mother's household, but they did not teach it to us younguns. Unfortunately, my grandfather had a stroke when I was very, very young, and his speech was so garbled that I could never understand, but he had the brightest smile whenever one of us grandkids came in and we could do no wrong.
What stories he could have told! But I did sneak him his Lucky Strikes, and Nana would have a fit. He could do anything with plants, make anything grow. He worked on the big Russian estates on the North Shore. For years there was a tree in backyard that grew two kinds of pears because he had grafted a limb on it. He even had cats who would never have to do with anyone else but him. At least I got to dance to his 78 Tchaikovsky records when I was around five.
in 1917 Muscovy was such backward empire that Polish (written form) was more popular than Muscovite (old-Bulgarian) language , GDL szlachta have used Polish in Catholic Churches and in clerical work from XVII century. statut (Constitution ) VKL not allowed to sell land to foreigners (including Crown Poles) so anything Polish in Miensk could be only product of Polonization . + you are too soft on Jews , so typical for Litvins ))) . the Polish ideology (much like Muscovite , Borad is a typical Maskal) is hard - core antisemitic
"
Following the demise of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in the end of the 18th century, the Polonization trends initially continued in Lithuania, Belarus and Polish-dominated parts of Ukraine as the initially liberal policies of the Empire gave the Polish elite significant concessions in the local affairs. Dovnar-Zapolsky notes[35] that the Polonization actually intensified under the liberal rule[citation needed] of Alexander I, particularly due to the efforts of Polish intellectuals who led the Vilnius University which was organized in 1802–1803 from the Academy in Vilna (Schola Princeps Vilnensis), vastly expanded and given the highest Imperial status under the new name Vilna Imperial University (Imperatoria Universitas Vilnensis).[36] By the Emperor's order, the Vilna education district overseen by Adam Czartoryski, a personal friend of Alexander, was greatly expanded to include the vast territories in the West of the Russian Empire stretching to Kiev in south-east and much of the Polish territory and the development of the University, which had no rival in the whole district, received the highest priority of the Imperial authorities which granted it significant freedom and autonomy.[36] With the effort of Polish intellectuals who served the rectors of the University, Hieronim Strojnowski, Jan Śniadecki, Szymon Malewski, as well as Czartoryski who oversaw them, the University became the center of Polish patriotism and culture; and as the only University of the district the center attracted the young nobility of all ethnicities from this extensive region.[36][37]
With time, the traditional Latin was fully eliminated from the University and by 1816 it was fully replaced by Polish and Russian. This change both affected and reflected a profound change in the Belarusian and Lithuanian secondary schools systems where Latin was also traditionally used as the University was the main source of the teachers for these schools. Additionally, the University was responsible for the textbooks selection and only Polish textbooks were approved for printing and usage.[37]
Dovnar-Zapolsky notes that "the 1800s–1810s had seen the unprecedented prosperity of the Polish culture and language in the former Great Duchy of Lithuania lands" and "this era has seen the effective completion of the Polonization of the smallest nobility, with further reduction of the areal of use of the contemporary Belarusian language.[38] also noting that the Polonization trend had been complemented with the (covert) anti-Russian and anti-Eastern Orthodox trends.[39] The results of these trends are best reflected in the ethnic censuses in previously non-Polish territories.
Following the Polish November uprising aimed at breaking away from Russia, the Imperial policies finally changed abruptly. The University was forcibly closed in 1832 and the following years where characterized by the policies aimed at the assimilationist solution of the "Polish question", a trend that was further strengthened following another unsuccessful uprising (1863).[citation needed]
In the 19th century, the mostly unchallenged Polonization trend of the previous centuries had been met staunchly by then "anti-Polish" Russification policy, with temporary successes on both sides, like Polonization rises in mid-1850s and in 1880s and Russification strengthenings in 1830s and in 1860s.[40] Any Polonization of the east and west territories (Russian and German partitions) occurred in the situation were Poles had steadily diminishing influence on the government. Partition of Poland posed a genuine threat to the continuation of Polish language-culture in those regions.[26] As Polonization was centered around Polish culture, policies aimed at weakening and destroying it had a significant impact on weakening Polonization of those regions. This was particularly visible in Russian-occupied Poland, where the Polish culture fared worst, as Russian administration gradually became strongly anti-Polish.[26] After a brief and relatively liberal early period in the early 19th century, where Poland was allowed to retain some autonomy as the Congress Poland puppet state,[41] the situation for Polish culture steadily worsened."
I can't thank you enough for opening up my ancestry! I just ran the name "Witold" on Google, and found Witold PILECKI, a Polish cavalry officer who deliberately walked into a German roundup in Warsaw and was sent to Auschwitz, from which he sent out reports to the allies as to what was going on there to Poles, Jews, and others, and organized the resistance to the Nazi's. When it finally got too hot for him there, he managed to escape and take part in the Warsaw Uprising, only to be rewarded some years later by a communist bullet to the back of his head. Gamps was well out, but I'm proud to see that my relatives rose up against the nazis with such courage.
you are very welcome
this is times for your grandfathers :
Belarusian People's Republic - Wikipedia
"Witold"
Category:Church of Vitaut the Great, Hrodna - Wikimedia Commons
I did not mention that my grandmother, Anna Helena Kozar came from Vilnius. She was a widow, due to her husband's (John Lolka's) death in Connecticut during a labor strike, when they had a baby son together, when she married my grandfather.
Thank you so much.
I wouldn’t be shocked.Way back through the mist of time, we're possibly, probably related. If not genetically, let us assume that we are. Greetings, Cousin!
One of these days, I would like to have a DNA test done. I get the impression that we are all related. I often wondered, at the turn of this century, what my ancestors were doing in the year 1,000 C.E. They probably were sleeping with their sheep, at least in the British Isles.They probably all stank to high heaven! I think I've got a lot of Vikings on my Father's side.
I was watching QI (a british show that talks about "stuff") and they said we can all trace our roots to......charlemagne?
Crowned Christmas Day 800 C.E. as the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, which, as historians like to say, was neither holy, nor Roman, nor an empire.
so true----but IT DID EXIST and lots of people idealize it as something
like THE CATHOLIC CALIPHATE. My impression is that Pope
Francis harbors such a delusion
Testament of dictator Joseph Dzhugashvili (nicknames : koba, butcher, stalin) why Dzhugasvili hated the Jews so much? is this Testament real, or a fake? why Muscovite promote it so much nowadays?
" Testament of Stalin (draft fragments)
... After my death, a lot of garbage will be applied to my grave, but the time will come and will sweep it away. I have never been a true revolutionary, my whole life is an ongoing struggle against Zionism, whose goal is to establish a new world order under the rule of the Jewish bourgeoisie ... To achieve this, they need to destroy the USSR, Russia, destroy the Faith, turn the Russian sovereign people into rootless cosmopolitans.
To confront their plans can only Empire. There will be no it - Russia will perish, the World will perish ... Enough utopias. It is impossible to invent anything better than monarchy, and therefore it is not necessary. I always admired the genius and greatness of the Russian tsars. From autocracy, we nowhere to go. But the dictator must change the autocrat. When the time comes.
The only place on earth where we can be together is Russia. Reforms are inevitable, but in due time. And these should be organic, evolutionary, tradition-based reforms, with the gradual restoration of Orthodox self-consciousness. They are based on realism and common sense. Very soon, wars over territories will be replaced by “cold” wars — for resources and energy. You need to be prepared for this. Mastering new types of energy should be a priority for our scientists. Their success is a guarantee of our independence in the future. An army can be strong only when it enjoys the exclusive care and love of the people and the Government. This is the greatest moral strength of the Army, a guarantee of its invincibility. Army must love and cherish!
I'm lonely. Russia is a colossal country, and there is not a single decent person around ... The old generation is totally infected with Zionism, all our hope is for the youth. It is time to declare a new crusade against the Internationale, and only the new Russian Order will be able to lead it, the creation of which needs to be started immediately. Remember: the world does not need a strong Russia, no one will help us, you can only rely on your own strength.
I did what I could. I hope you do more and better. Be worthy of the memory of our great ancestors.
January-February 1953
Testament of dictator Joseph Dzhugashvili (nicknames : koba, butcher, stalin) why Dzhugasvili hated