Sovietization of Western Byelorussia (1939–1941)

Sovietization of Western Byelorussia (1939–1941) was the initial period of establishing Soviet rule in Western Belorussia. It lasted from late September 1939 to 22 June 1941. In the economy, Sovietization was expressed in the nationalization of the few industrial enterprises in Western Byelorussia. The authorities did not carry out complete collectivization, but gave the peasants (mostly Belarusians) land taken from the Polish "osadniks". The wealthy strata of the population of Western Byelorussia were ruined in the first months of Soviet power due to the confiscation of surplus cash and bank deposits, as well as high inflation and the emergence of the "black market". Over 22 months, a network of Soviet cultural institutions was created in Western Byelorussia. Also, in 1940-1941, a Soviet atheistic educational system was created in the region, including universities. Local cultural figures (including many Jews who were discriminated against in Poland) were included by the Soviet authorities in the new institutions, receiving certain privileges, the obligation to participate in propaganda events and create in the style of socialist realism. At the same time, local cultural figures found themselves financially dependent on the Soviet authorities.

The Sovietization of Western Byelorussia met with much less resistance from the local (mostly Polish) population than similar events carried out during the same period in Western Ukraine. By arresting and mass deporting the disloyal population, the resistance in Western Byelorussia was almost completely suppressed by 1941. Sovietization was interrupted at the end of June 1941, when almost all of Western Byelorussia was occupied by German troops in two weeks. Sovietization was resumed in 1944 and did not cover the entire territory of the region, since on July 27, 1944, the “Agreement between the Polish Committee of National Liberation and the Government of the Soviet Union on the Polish-Soviet border” was signed in Moscow, according to which the Belastok Region of Western Byelorussia was transferred to Poland.

Background

Western Byelorussia had been a part of Russia since the end of the 18th century. This was different from Western Ukraine, part of which (Galicia and Transcarpathia) was not part of the Russian Empire (except for a short period during World War I, when Russian troops ruled Galicia). Therefore, Western Byelorussia was more Russified.

The second peculiarity of Western Byelorussia was that the region suffered greatly during World War I. During the Great Retreat of 1915, the territory of Western Byelorussia was occupied by German troops. The occupation lasted for three years, until the end of 1918. In addition, the Eastern Front line passed through the territory of Western Byelorussia in 1915-1918. A significant part of the civilian population (1,130-1,320 thousand people) was evacuated deep into Russia.Даркович А. Л. Городское самоуправление на западнобелорусских землях межвоенной Польши (1919—1939 годы). Дисс… канд. ист. наук. — М.: Б.и., 2016. — С. 81.

The few Western Belarusian cities were deserted during World War I. Thus, in 1919 the population of Brest was 4 times smaller than in 1913. In 1913-1919 the population of Grodno decreased by 54%, Novogrudok by 46%, Slonim by 66%, Pinsk by 45%.

The Belarusian cities that found themselves on the front line in 1915-1917 suffered the most. An example is Smarhon, whose population before the war was 12 thousand people.Даркович А. Л. Городское самоуправление на западнобелорусских землях межвоенной Польши (1919—1939 гг.). Дисс… канд. ист. наук. — М.: Б.и., 2016. — С. 274. In the autumn of 1915, fighting between Russian and German troops lasted two months in Smorgon, and in 1919 there were only 160 people in this city.

The demographic damage to Western Byelorussia was so severe that the pre-war urban population of the region did not recover even by 1939. For example, before the war, 57.3 thousand people lived in Brest, and in 1939 - 53.3 thousand people, in Baranovichi, 30 thousand and 27 thousand, respectively. The only city in Western Byelorussia that managed to significantly exceed its pre-war population by 1939 was Lida (in 1913, 13.1 thousand residents, in 1939 - 26.3 thousand residents).Даркович А. Л. Городское самоуправление на западнобелорусских землях межвоенной Польши (1919—1939 гг.). Дисс… канд. ист. наук. — М.: Б.и., 2016. — С. 81 — 82.

The German occupation had some positive aspects for Western Byelorussia in terms of creating infrastructure. The Germans built power plants in almost all cities (after liberation, many of them became municipal property).Даркович А. Л. Городское самоуправление на западнобелорусских землях межвоенной Польши (1919—1939 гг.). Дисс… канд. ист. наук. — М.: Б.и., 2016. — С. 259. Also, under the Germans, new narrow-gauge railways and roads made of laid logs appeared.

The population of Western Byelorussia as of January 1, 1941 was 4,815,500 people.Карпенкина Я. В. Советизация еврейского населения Западной Белоруссии (1939—1941 гг.). Дисс… канд. ист. наук НИУ ВШЭ. — М.:Б.и., 2018. — С. 61.

The rural population absolutely predominated in Western Byelorussia. According to the 1931 census, there were 39 cities in the region.Даркович А. Л. Городское самоуправление на западнобелорусских землях межвоенной Польши (1919—1939 гг.). Дисс… канд. ист. наук. — М.: Б.и., 2016. — С. 84. However, most of these cities had small populations. In 1931, 18 Western Belarusian cities had a population of up to 5,000 people, 12 cities had a population of 5,000 to 10,000 people, and 6 cities had a population of 10,000 to 25,000 residents. In 1931, only 3 cities were large (more than 25,000 residents, which distinguished them from the districts): Brest (47,500 residents), Grodno (48,500 residents), and Pinsk (32,000 residents).Даркович А. Л. Городское самоуправление на западнобелорусских землях межвоенной Польши (1919—1939 гг.). Дисс… канд. ист. наук. — М.: Б.и., 2016. — С. 84 — 85. Białystok occupied a separate position, with a population of 107,650 people (as of September 1939).Карпенкина Я. В. Еврейское население и экономические преобразования в Западной Белоруссии, 1939—1940 // Вестник Нижегородского университета им. Н. И. Лобачевского. — 2016. — № 4. — С. 179. Thus, most cities were more like small towns, heavily agriculturalized. The development of even large cities was also mainly rural - only in the center were there brick houses, paved streets, and concrete sidewalks. For example, in Grodno, brick construction accounted for 39%, in Brest – 27%.Даркович А. Л. Городское самоуправление на западнобелорусских землях межвоенной Польши (1919—1939 гг.). Дисс… канд. ист. наук. — М.: Б.и., 2016. — С. 266—267.

By 1939, the majority of the rural population of Western Byelorussia consisted of ethnic Belarusians and Poles. Moreover, there was a clear division of rural areas: Poles predominated in the western part of the region, while Belarusians predominated in the eastern part (adjacent to the old Soviet-Polish border).

A report on the political and economic state of the voivodeships of Western Byelorussia (compiled in October 1939) reported that Poles numerically predominated in the Białystok (72% of the population), Vilnius (59.9% of the population), and Novogrudok (52.6% of the population) voivodeships.Петровская О. Формирование границ Западной Белоруссии в 1939—1940 гг. // Журнал российских и восточноевропейских исторических исследований. — 2012. — Т. 1. — № 1 (4). — С. 29. According to the same data, Belarusians dominated in the Polesie voivodeship — 46.6%. Moreover, if in the Polesie Voivodeship the Poles were mainly settlers, landowners and officials, then in the Białystok Voivodeship the Poles were predominantly native rural residents.Петровская О. Формирование границ Западной Белоруссии в 1939—1940 гг. // Журнал российских и восточноевропейских исторических исследований. — 2012. — Т. 1. — № 1 (4). — С. 29 — 30.

In the cities, Poles and Jews predominated. For example, in 1931 (the census did not distinguish by nationality, but only by native language) 148 thousand residents (39.1% of the population) of Western Belarusian cities named Polish as their native language, 142 thousand (37.5%) - Yiddish, 25.4 thousand (6.7%) - Hebrew.Даркович А. Л. Городское самоуправление на западнобелорусских землях межвоенной Польши (1919—1939 гг.). Дисс… канд. ист. наук. — М.: Б.и., 2016. — С. 86 — 87. In Białystok, the largest city in the region, by September 1939 Poles made up 51% of the population, and Jews - 42%. Thus, more than 80% of the urban population of Western Byelorussia in 1931 were Poles and Jews.

In Western Byelorussia by 1939 there was a fairly clear ethnic division of labour. The intelligentsia was mainly made up of Russians, Poles, and Jews (for example, in the Polesie Voivodeship as of February 15, 1932, 75.5% of the intelligentsia were Poles, 9.8% were Jews, and 9.5% were Russians), Jews predominated in trade and crafts, Poles in the administration (for example, of the 5,120 government officials in the Polesie Voivodeship in 1932, 88% were Poles and 5.8% were RussiansВабищевич А. Н. Этнокультурное положение и этнополитические отношения на западнобелорусских землях накануне сентября 1939 года // Западная Белоруссия и Западная Украина в 1939—1941 гг.: люди, события, документы. — СПб.: Алетейя, 2011. — C. 17.), and Belarusians dominated in agriculture and unskilled labor.Даркович А. Л. Городское самоуправление на западнобелорусских землях межвоенной Польши (1919—1939 гг.). Дисс… канд. ист. наук. — М.: Б.и., 2016. — С. 90.

The level of economic development in Western Byelorussia by 1939 was low. The population's income was the lowest in Poland, but much higher than in the USSR.Карпенкина Я. В. Советизация еврейского населения Западной Белоруссии (1939—1941 гг.). Дисс… канд. ист. наук НИУ ВШЭ. — М.:Б.и., 2018. — С. 132. Western Byelorussia was an agrarian region (with infertile lands) and small-scale manufacturing industry.

In cultural terms, in the pre-war period in Western Byelorussia, the authorities carried out Polonization of the local Belarusian population. Polonization intensified especially from the mid-1930s. On September 13, 1934, Polish foreign minister Józef Beck announced at a meeting of the League of Nations in Geneva that his country was ceasing cooperation in protecting the rights of national minorities.Вабищевич А. Н. Этнокультурное положение и этнополитические отношения на западнобелорусских землях накануне сентября 1939 года // Западная Белоруссия и Западная Украина в 1939—1941 гг.: люди, события, документы. — СПб.: Алетейя, 2011. — C. 9 — 10. In the second half of the 1930s, projects for the colonization of Western Byelorussia by Poles and the Polonization of the local Belarusian population began to appear in Polish circles.Вабищевич А. Н. Этнокультурное положение и этнополитические отношения на западнобелорусских землях накануне сентября 1939 года // Западная Белоруссия и Западная Украина в 1939—1941 гг.: люди, события, документы. — СПб.: Алетейя, 2011. — C. 10 — 11. Measures were taken to assimilate Belarusians. In 1936-1938, the Polish authorities banned Belarusian public organizations - the Belarusian School Society and the Belarusian Institute of Economy and Culture.Вабищевич А. Н. Этнокультурное положение и этнополитические отношения на западнобелорусских землях накануне сентября 1939 года // Западная Белоруссия и Западная Украина в 1939—1941 гг.: люди, события, документы. — СПб.: Алетейя, 2011. — C. 11. In their place, Polish Orthodox organizations were created, such as the Pilsudski Society of Orthodox Poles in Białystok.Шевченко К. «Картина варварства и глупости» белорусское и украинское меньшинство II Речи Посполитой в конце 1930-х гг. // Антигитлеровская коалиция — 1939: Формула провала. Сборник статей. — М.: Кучково поле, 2019. — С. 59.

The occupation of Western Byelorussia by the Red Army (September 1939)