Tadeush Kosciusko is the national hero of Poland and Belarus

Kobrin → Outstanding persons

The name of Tadeush Kosciusko (1746 - 1817) is well known outside the Central Europe. The Belarusian by origin who fought for independence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, was at war for the USA, did not accept the personal invitation of Napoleon Bonaparte, cooperation with which Alexander I on the Vienna congress – the short biography of the uncommon personality looked for, the son of our Slavic region.

Also the fact that this talented person was awarded honourable nationality of two countries at once is remarkable: USA and France.

Hero's origin: Belarusian (litvinsky) roots of the advocate of Slavic statehood
Analyzing Andrey Tadeush Bonavetura Kosciusko's biography (namely so his full name sounded), not absolutely Polish surname, and secondly, as in the majority of foreign encyclopedic editions it is formulated a short comment on him is evident, first: "the national hero of Poland and the USA", "the Polish general", "the Polish patriot and the soldier", etc. Then that there is no accurate definition "Pole" anywhere. This statement has to be initial for us.

The fact that Belarus – the country where Kosciusko was born – does not do any attempts to share heritage and glory of the soldier with Poland and the USA is interesting. It is undoubted that museums of local lore do not cease to claim that he is the Belarusian hero, but it has for itself no nation-wide position of historical science (which, despite absurd of the name, forms consciousness of the younger generation of Belarusians).

To define as far as Tadeush Kosciusko is connected with Belarus, it is necessary to address data on his ethnic origin and the region from where it occurs.

It is considered that the family estate of Kosciusko are Sekhnovichi – the village located in the Brest region Belarus. The Jesuit author K. Nyasetsky (1682-1744) using by drawing up "Armorial" some lost for us to documents, claims that in 1458 small shlyakhtich Fedor received from the grand duke Lithuanian Kazimir IV Yagelonchik a manor of Sekhnovichi with two villages adjoining to it. Fedor Kost (Kosciusko's) son served as a secretary in office of the grand Lithuanian duke Alexander I and during the first rule of Sigismund I Stary (approximately from 1492 to 1509). The last in 1509 confirmed property rights of Kosciusko of Fedorovich to Sekhnovichi and granted permission to use the shlyakhetsky coat of arms. Since then representatives of this sort were called as Kosciusko-Sekhnovitskimi. They possessed the lands which were near Brest and Kobrin. In a word, they belonged to aboriginals of this region.

Originally, on Kosciusko's religion were orthodox. In the family estates they built Orthodox churches. When in Beresteyshchina Orthodox Christians accepted the union, most likely, too became Kostyushki uniats. And subsequently became Catholics. Though, apparently, in their family estates there were no churches, and only uniatsky temples.

To us Tadeush's self-identification is interesting. Trying to obtain the general's rank in army of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, he characterized himself as "natural Litvin". At that time, the term "litvin" was one of ethnonyms of Belarusians. Though from a context of documents it seems quite indisputable the fact that Kosciusko thus pays attention not to an ethnic origin, and to political, civil identification. He specified by the above-mentioned characteristic that his ancestors lived in the territory of Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and during the different periods of history held various state positions.

Progressive "leftism"
Despite a saturation of the biography of the hero of our article, it should be noted one fact which could be used for creation of more truthful image. It is known that any historic figure acquires a certain aura over time — all this compound the general historical myth. And so, seldom who pays attention to quite "left" and progressive views of Kosciusko.

At the time of the stay in the USA Kosciusko went in for abolitionism – the social and political movement which struggled with slavery. According to this doctrine not only the United States of America, but also the "civilized" European countries were considered by colonialists. That is the Moscow empire against which Kosciusko fought for independence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth – too got under the term "colonialist".
The hobby for Tadeush for this movement is not casual — in 1768 his father was killed by the peasants. This fact forced future military leader to address questions of release of the peasantry (at what there is a speech about all peasants of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, irrespective of the people here — Belarusians, Ukrainians, Poles) more in details.

Such progressive views did not remain only personal belief of the general. In May, 1794, Kosciusko is published by the famous Polonetsky versatile person whom he promises personal release and reduction of duties for peasants. The versatile person created on May 7 court for the solution of disputes between them and landowners, provided and guaranteed them possession of the earth and, for the period of revolt, reduced their duties in favor of the landowner, providing a final decision of this question to future government. The shlyakhta which reluctantly released peasants and did not want increase in their privileges acted as the main opponent of reformatory intentions Kosciusko. And peasants did not support revolt in that measure as he expected it.
After unsuccessful revolt against imperial Russia, defeat in fight under Mateyovitsami and capture, by order of Ekaterina ІІ, Tadeush Kosciusko was imprisoned in the Peter and Paul Fortress. Quite unexpected is a fact that in 1796 he agreed to take the faithful oath to the emperor Paul I. In exchange it was released together with 12 thousand captured Poles. Perhaps this point of the arrangement (release of captured Polish soldiers and officers) played a resolute role for its signing.

Kosciusko vs Napoleon Bonaparte – true to the word or the eternal revolutionary?
Tadeush Kosciusko's attitude towards Napoleon Bonaparte is curious. In the summer of 1799 future subjugator of Europe arrived to a meeting to the general who lived in the suburb of Paris. The purpose of such visit was more than is rational – to get support of the hero in creation of the Polish Kingdom in the territory of the Russian Empire. Bonaparte's proposal was rejected in spite of the fact that Kosciusko took active part in fight against the imperial mode twice. Some historians consider it as exclusive isolation to the principles – the word pledged to the Russian emperor is sacred for the soldier. But if to look at this fact on the other hand, then it seems that it is not so unambiguous. After a meeting with Bonaparte Tadeush christened him "the grave-digger of revolution". Perhaps commitment to ideas of revolution and "fair war", a real assessment of an opportunity to get support of peasants also played a role in decision-making. As if it was not, Tadeush could not be overpersuaded.

Meeting with Alexander I during the Vienna congress also did not force Kosciusko to return on "a big chessboard".

Together epilogs: phenomenon of the hero of the Slavic people

To Belarusians, it is not necessary to renounce Tadeush Kosciusko. In spite of the fact that the personality this of the hero historians practically was always an oreintirovana to Poland which it is rested, consider the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, not so all-Slavic state how many the state only Poles. The Slavic state – the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth – declared a two-uniform design of the political nation. For Belarusians and Poles, Tadeush Kosciusko, is a symbol of national fight for independence, for freedom and pride of the Fatherland.

The phenomenon of Kosciusko as national hero of Poland and Belarus consists in two following theses:
1. for Poland – he is an advocate of independence of the state, an embodiment of revolutionary power;
2. for Belarus – it is not just the son of the Belarusian earth, but also the defender of the rights of simple peasants who made most of the population of the Belarusian (litvinsky) lands that time.

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