National Hero of Belarus Rocked the Kremlin
70- 6.02.2021, 15:23
- 61,134
The Belarusians see Russian inclinations into their past more and more clearly and beat the aggressors in the hands.
A very indicative incident took place in Belarusian-Russian relations, which showed the Kremlin's deep desire to completely interfere in the internal affairs of sovereign Belarus. February 4 marks the 275th anniversary of Tadevush Kastsiushka's birth, who was born in the family estate of Merachoushchyna in the Brest region, writes the author of the Sito Sokrata Telegram channel.
As a representative of the ancient Volyn-Berastse family, Kastsiushka lived an extremely eventful life. He is known as a successful military engineer, educated in France, and a military leader of the Commonwealth and the United States. Kastsiushka was a supporter of the American Revolution and the national liberation struggle of the former British colonies in the New World for independence. He made an excellent track record in the construction of fortifications for the needs of the northern and southern armies and received deep recognition from the founding fathers of the United States, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson.
Upon his return to Poland in 1794, Kastsiushka became the leader of the national liberation uprising in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth against the Russian-Prussian occupation of the country. Although the Kastsiushka uprising failed, it was the first step towards the Belarusian, Polish, and Lithuanian peoples' future independence. As a result, the personality of Kastsiushka, symbolizing chivalry and struggle, allowed him to acquire the status of a national hero of four countries at once: Belarus, Lithuania, Poland, and the USA.
More than two centuries later, the knighthood of Kastsiushka remains an irritant for Russia, a country with whose imperial ambitions the revolutionary of the 18th century fought so ardently. Even Tsar Pavel I, recognizing the exploits of the general, freed him from Russian captivity. But modern Russian propagandists find it hard to come to terms with the fact that such a person as Kastsiushka retains his historical significance for the solidarity of the three European nations living on Russia's western borders.
When the National Historical Museum of the Republic of Belarus posted on its Instagram a post dedicated to the anniversary of Kastsiushka's birth, it emphasized that he is a hero of four countries and two continents. In response, on behalf of the account of the Russian embassy in Minsk - embassyruminsk - offensive questions and mentoring statements immediately appeared. In particular, the "diplomats" of the Russian Federation stated: "To call Kastsiushka a Belarusian national hero = to admit your historical ignorance."
This is a diplomatic scandal and a great humiliation for the Belarusians.
This episode is very important because historical memory issues are one of the key areas of the hybrid war that Russia is waging at the global level. First, there is a seizure of the victim country's information space and its chaotization; then, the Russians take up the occupation of history and appropriate national heroes, and those who do not fit into the imposed historical paradigm are denigrated or forgotten.
During the rejection of Transnistria from Moldova, Russia began to promote the myth of Suvorov as the hero-liberator of Moldova. Before the occupation of Crimea and the outbreak of war in Donbas, for decades, it slandered Hetman Mazepa, who opposed Peter I's policy to eliminate the Hetmanate and tried to occupy Gogol, Dal, Kuindzhi, Bulgakov, and even Taras Shevchenko. De-heroisation of someone else's history, its humiliation, and oblivion are well-known recipes for the enslavement of neighboring countries, cultivated for centuries by the Kremlin. It is good that the Belarusians see more and more clearly the Russian inclinations into their past, and they beat the aggressors in the hands.