MINSK, 17 October (BelTA) – The fifth volume of the unique scientific work on the history of the Belarusian statehood will be released in early 2020, Head of the Institute of History at the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus (NASB) Vyacheslav Danilovich told journalists during the 4th international congress of historians of Belarus “Historical Science of Belarus: Personalities, Concepts, Achievements (timed to the 90th anniversary of the NASB Institute of History”, BelTA has learned.
“Our greatest achievement ahead of the 90th anniversary of the institute is compiling a book series on the Belarusian statehood. Four books out of five have already been published. They encompass the period from the ancient times and the first settlements in the Belarusian territory to the reconstruction after the Great Patriotic War and World War II. We have almost completed the work on the fifth book and will soon send it to the publishing house. We hope that the book will see the light of day early next year,” Vyacheslav Danilovich said.
The first book analyzes the first settlements on the Belarusian lands, tribal principalities, the first historical forms of Belarusian statehood (the Principality of Polotsk and the Principality of Turov, Kievan Rus, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth). Using extensive historical data and various sources, the authors analyzed the status of the Belarusian lands in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the fight of the Belarusian political elite for state sovereignty in the 16th-18th centuries. The second volume describes the period when the Belarusian lands were part of the Russian Empire (late 18th century – early 20th century). The third book is dedicated to the history of the Belarusian statehood in 1917-1939, the fourth one to the period of World War II and the Great Patriotic War and the post-war reconstruction. The fifth volume will tell about the events from 1954 up till the present.
The 4th international congress of historians of Belarus is held in Minsk on 17-18 October. The congress is set to discuss studies on Belarusian archeology, the history of Belarusian statehood, and world history. The agenda also includes such topics as the Belarusian lands in the Middle Ages, New and Modern Times, Belarus in wars and military conflicts. Attending the conference are representatives of academic and university science of Belarus and foreign countries, and public figures. The organizers of the congress are the NASB Department of Humanities and Arts and the NASB Institute of History.
