Belarus and Russia are two similar countries in the European region, and they are similar because they both have the name "Russia" in their names, and both countries are Republics of the Soviet Union and both participated in World War II. They are different because Russia and Belarus are two independent sovereign states, the capital of Russia, Moscow, and the capital of Belarus is Minsk.
So, what is the difference between Russia and Belarus? Just because Belarus is "whiter" than Russians?
Above_ Slavic Legion
Of course not, the difference between Belarus and Russia is that although both countries were former republics of the Soviet Union, Belarus and Russia are in fact two relatively independent ethnic groups, but they have a common ancestor - the early Slavs.
However, although the two countries had common ancestors, the early Slavs, the two countries established two different states on the Eastern European continent as early as the 10th century AD , the Principality of Kievan Rus and the Principality of Polotsk , which can be regarded as the earliest precursors to the history of Russia and Belarus, and laid the earliest historical foundation for the "separation" of Belarus and Russia.
Before the 7th century AD, driven by peoples such as the Persians, the early Slavs migrated to the south and east of Europe. In this way, the entire early Slavs were divided into East Slavs, South Slavs, West Slavs and other sub-ethnic groups.
Above_ East Slavic infighting
In 882 AD, in the late Tang Dynasty of China, when the once glorious Tang Empire was crumbling under the division of warlords and the absurd rule of the Tang Dynasty, the East Slavs established the first state. It was the first state in the entire history of East Slavic history, the Principality of Kievan Rus' . This country can be seen as a precursor to today's Russian history.
From the 9th century to the 12th century AD, a section of the West Slavs established another West Slavic-dominated state on the eastern European plains near Poland. Its name is the Principality of Polotsk. This Principality of Polotsk can be seen as the earliest historical predecessor of Belarus.
The two principalities had been relatively independent since their establishment, and by the time the Mongol Empire was expanding, the history of Belarus and Russia had undergone some different changes.
Above_ BoerJin Temujin (31 May 1162 – 25 August 1227), also known as Genghis Khan
With the rise of Genghis Khan and his descendants in Eurasia, the Mongol army not only destroyed the Jin Dynasty and song dynasty with powerful cavalry, but also launched a crazy attack on the European continent. Under the fierce blows of the Mongol army, the Principality of Kievan Rus was gradually occupied by the Mongol army. After that, until the establishment of the Russian Empire, the Russians could not escape the influence of the Mongols, and the Russians inherited the genes of the Mongols' territorial expansion.
Mongols and Russians were once "small fusions", and the history of belarusians has nothing to do with the Mongols. None of the peoples living in the Principality of Polotsk were harassed by the Mongols, and they continued their history in a relatively independent environment. These Ramidzic, Viadycs and other ethnic groups under the rule of the Principality of Polotsk gradually merged to form the early predecessors of today's Belarusian nation.
Above_ Mongol army with shields
The East Slavs were occupied by the Mongols, and the Duchy of Polotsk faced a similar fate – occupied by the Lithuanians. Don't look at Lithuania in today's Europe, but at that time, Lithuania was a large country in Eastern Europe. Lithuania took the Duchy of Polotsk, the Mongols occupied the original Kievan Rus' Principality, and the predecessors of the Belarusians and Russians developed under the occupation of different countries, and their historical trajectory gradually became clear.
The Mongols ruled over the East Slavs for 240 years, and the genes and national character of the Mongols had a profound impact on the Entire East Slavs, and especially on the Russians today. For example, the Mongols liked to expand their territory, and the Russians naturally integrated the genes of the Mongols to expand their territory and became the "fighting people" of Europe.
Above_ Kingdom of Poland in the 13th and 14th centuries - map
In the Duchy of Polotsk under Lithuanian occupation, part of the Lithuanian nation was integrated into belarusians. From the 13th century onwards, Lithuania occupied the Duchy of Polotsk, which was occupied by the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and then the Lithuanian-Polish Kingdom. After 1793, the Russian Empire annexed Belarus.
From Lithuania's occupation of the Duchy of Polotsk to the Russian Empire's occupation of Belarus, there was an interval of about 500 years. More than 500 years later, although the Russian Empire occupied Belarus, Belarus became part of Russian territory. But the Russian tsar at this time could not have imagined that the Russians had occupied the land of Belarus and would sooner or later return the land to their masters, the Belarusians.
The October Revolution (Armed Uprising of the Russian Soviets of 7 November 1917)
In 1917, the October Revolution was successful, and Tsarist Russia was swept into the garbage heap of history. In accordance with the principle of the establishment of their own states by nations, Russia and Belarus have successively established Soviet republics representing the will of the people, and the history of Russia and Belarus has entered a new era. In 1922, Belarus, together with Russia, as well as republics such as Kazakhstan, established the Soviet Union. The history of Belarus is integrated into the history of the Soviet Union.
In the Soviet-German battlefield during World War II, Belarus became one of the important battlefields of the Red Army and the German army, and played an important role in the Soviet counteroffensive. On June 22, 1944, the Soviet Army invested 166 divisions, 1.4 million troops, and launched the Battle of Belarus with the cooperation of 31,000 guns, 5,200 tank self-propelled guns and 5,000 aircraft, and after fierce fighting, the Soviet army annihilated 540,000 German troops. Belarus is a country that records the history and glory of the Soviet Red Army's elimination of fascism, and also witnesses the "great in-depth tactics" of the Soviet Red Army.
By 1991, the Soviet Union had collapsed. The division of Belarus and Russia into two independent states may be a historical necessity, since the two countries themselves have "not been able to get along" in history.
Above_ After the collapse of the Soviet Union
Although the distant ancestors of Belarus and Russia were both early Slavs, from the early separation of families, they were divided into West Slavs and East Slavs.
The establishment of the Kievan Rus' Principality by East Slavs in Russia was occupied by the Mongols for 240 years, so that today's Russia has Mongolian blood. The West Slavs established the Principality of Polotsk, which was then occupied by Lithuania and Poland for a long time, and was integrated into the blood of Poles and Lithuanians, which led to the formation of two different peoples in Belarus and Russia, and two different peoples in two different countries.
Today, Belarus refers to itself in white, which is different from Russia, because Belarus considers itself a pure-blooded people, while Russia is influenced by the Mongols, and it is incomparable with the "pure blood" of Belarus. White symbolizes nobility and purity.
Author: Zhenguan Correction/Editor: Lilith
References: A Brief History of Belarus, Covarenia Social Sciences Literature Publishing House
The text was created by the History University Hall team, and the picture originated from the Internet and the copyright belongs to the original author