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Post by pieter on Feb 17, 2013 12:27:37 GMT -7
KresyLwów, just before the war, when it was stil PolishKresy Wschodnie or Kresy (Polish pronunciation: [ˈkrɛsɨ], " Eastern Borderlands", or " Borderlands") is a former territory of the eastern provinces of Poland. These territories today lie in western Ukraine, western Belarus, as well as eastern Lithuania, with such major cities, as Lwów, Wilno, and Grodno. This territory was included within the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Second Polish Republic, until World War II. In the interbellum Poland, the term Kresy roughly equated with the lands beyond the Curzon Line, suggested in December 1919 by the British Foreign Office as the eastern border for Poland. In September 1939, after the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, these territories were incorporated into the Soviet republics of Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania. These Soviet gains were ratified by the Western Allies at the Tehran conference, the Yalta conference and the Potsdam conference. When the Soviet Union broke up, they remained part of those respective republics as they gained independence. Even though Kresy, or the Eastern Borderlands, are no longer Polish territories, the area is still inhabited by a significant Polish minority, and the memory of a Polish Kresy is still cultivated. The attachment of the " myth of Kresy", the vision of the region as peaceful idyllic rural land, has been criticized in Polish discourse. Economically the region was the poorest in interwar Poland, and had the lowest literacy level of the nation, which was the result of more than one hundred years of Austro-Hungarian and Russian rule, as education was not compulsory in the Russian Empire. Polish Wilno before the Second World WarGrodno before the war Grodno before the war
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Post by Jaga on Feb 17, 2013 12:43:46 GMT -7
Pieter,
yes, this is a beautiful Lwow. The loss of Lwow was probably the biggest loss in heritage for Polish culture
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Post by pieter on Feb 17, 2013 12:57:11 GMT -7
Jaga, Lwów became known to me due to the books of Milo Anstadt, a Dutch journalist, who was born in Lwów, and spend the first 10 years of his life in Lwów. He was a Dutch Polish jew, who was raised Polish by his assimilated Polish jewish mother, and stayed connected to Poland for the rest of his life. He wrote several books about Poland. Spoke, read, and wrote in Polish, and stayed connected to Poland until his death. He translated Polish text, letters and other things for Poles and Polish causes, traveled to Poland and had Polish friends. In the eightees, when in the Dutch press (newspapers) things were written/said like in the USA today, like " Polish concentration-camps", or the generalisation of " Polish anti-semites" (the mother milk theory), my infuriated (irritated) mother contacted Milo Anstadt and he stood behind her. Anstadt wrote a book about " Poland" (general history. A very good book), " the relationship between Roman-Catholic Poles and Jewish Poles in Poland" (a very good book too), and a book about his childhood in Lwów, Kind in Polen ( Dziecko ze Lwowa). A Dutch friend and journalist wrote this about Anstadt after his death: Tuesday July 19th, 2011Milo Anstadt 1920 - 2011Milo Anstadt when he was younger. A journalist/director/writer.His house smelled like the house of my grandparents. He smelled like my grandfather. We spoke Polish, until I broke my tongue. Once he had returned to Lwów, his hometown. Milo Anstadt said: " Even our house was still there. The whole city. But we were all gone." He wanted to know nothing from his Jewish origins, about which he recounts in his books ' Child in Poland' (' Dziecko ze Lwowa'). Milo was a Pole. A real one: courteous, hardened, multilingual, sophisticated and a man which knew the world. Fragile, but vital. A Pole from Lwów. Not from Lemberg ( the Yiddish, German and Dutch name for Lwów) , certainly not from Lviv ( the Ukrainian name for Lwów): from Lwów. Where has the Europe of that time gone? I would have liked it so much to return with him to to Lwów. But a human life goes too fast, even if you've become 91 years old, like he did. And we, we forget so quickly. ( photo: NRC) Michael Driebergenpl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milo_AnstadtP.S.- Television producer, writer and radio journalist Michael Driebergen (31) works for (Dutch) Radio 1 and (Dutch) national newspapers and magazines. A few months a year he lives in Lemberg / Lviv / Lwów / Lvov (western Ukraine), as a freelance journalist for Poland and Ukraine. He made a radio documentary about the history of Lviv (VPRO OVT)- Comment Pieter: Milo Anstadt was so happy and proud when he received a Polish passport from the first non-Communist ambassador in the Netherlands in the early ninetees. He had lost his Polish nationality when his parents left Poland in 1930. He was 10 back then. He always kept contact with Poland, Polish culture and this the Polish language, which he didn't forget. Anstadt translated Polish text, documents and other things, had Polish friends in Poland and received Polish friends in his house in Amsterdam. Poland stayed important until the end. I called him two times shortly before he died. I asked him about the Polish-jewish relationship and some questions about Polish history, because he had written a few historical books in Dutch about Poland. The country, it's history, it's people and about Polish-jewish relationship. He hated the victim attitude of many fellow jews, and was not very popular for that amongst fellow jews. He couldn't care less. He spoke Polish, Yiddish, Dutch, German and English. He was the director of a very important series about the Occupation of the Netherlands by the Germans; " De Bezetting", " The Occupation". en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milo_AnstadtCheers, Pieter
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Post by pieter on Feb 17, 2013 13:24:25 GMT -7
Pieter about AnstadtA critical man like Milo Anstadt told me in a phone conversation before he died (I think it was in 2008 or 2009): " Don't think that the Polish jews before the war were only victims of anti-semitism and Polish Polonism policies like 'Poles first', or 'buy Polish products'". Anstadt: " Polish jews weren't victims, we were well organised, we knew how to defend ourselves, and we had our political parties, Unions, religious communities, our rights, our selfdetermination [selfrule and certain autonomy] and Polish jews were no angels either. Mind you that there were 3 million Polish jews back then, and the Polish jews had their mass organisations." The Dutch writer and journalist Milo Anstadt about the first episode of his life in LwówI was born in Lwów (Lemberg in Yiddish and German, Liviv in Ukrainian), a city with an outspoken Polish history, which isn't Polish anymore. I grew up there in a Jewish family, an assimileerd family from the mothers family side, which spoke Polish and considered itself to be Polish. My fathers side of the family was orthodox jewish, spoke Yiddish and was not fond of Poles or had not much in common with Poles. Lwów was a multi-cultural city back then with three main ethnic groups that made up it's population. One-third of the population was Polish, one-third was Ukrainian and one-third was jewish. We lived in an appartmentblock with exactly that percentages of inhabitant, 1/3 jewish, 1/3 Polish and 1/3 Ukrainian. We had a Ukrainian nanny who took care of me and my sister and the houshold. As a child I developped a double loyalty which created such deep roots that I after staying for for sixty years in the Netherlands did'nt disconnect myself from Poland and the Polish culture and the Jews and the EastJewish culture. It is therefor only natural that I stil speak both Polish and Yiddish. Anstadt was an assimilated Polish jew and later an assimilated Dutch jew. He hated the Orthodox jewish school he was attending as a kid, in Amsterdam, before the war, because he was beaten by the teacher, and he liked the secular (social-democratic) Dutch primary school he went to after that. He was connected to Dutch communists, but broke with them in the beginning of the war, being aware of the the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact ( 23 August 1939), and because he didn't like their totalitarianism and dogmatism and changed his loyalty to the Social democratic resistance, party and press. P.S.- Milo Anstadt was a member of A Different Jewish Voice ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Een_Ander_Joods_Geluid ) a Dutch-Jewish organisation who wants to break the perceived silence in the Dutch-Jewish community concerning the occupation of the Palestinian Territories by Israel, and strives to support peace activities in this same area.
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Post by pieter on Feb 17, 2013 13:47:54 GMT -7
The history of LwówTown hall in Lviv, Ukr.Lviv, Polish Lwów, German Lemberg, Russian Lvov, city, western Ukraine, on the Roztochchya Upland. Founded in the mid-13th century by Prince Daniel Romanovich of Galicia, Lwów (Lviv) has historically been the chief centre of Galicia, a region now divided between Ukraine and Poland. Its position controlling east-west routes and passes across the Carpathians has given it a stormy history. Polish control was established in 1349. The town was seized briefly by the Cossacks in 1648 and the Swedes in 1704. It was given to Austria on the first partition of Poland in 1772 and occupied by Russia in 1914–15. The government of the short-lived Western Ukrainian National Republic arose in Lviv in 1918, but the Poles drove Ukrainian troops out of the city and regained control. Lwów was seized by the Soviet Union in 1939 and, after German occupation, annexed by the Soviets in 1945. Soviet tanks entering Lvov, 22nd Sept. 1939Soviet troops entering Lvov, 22nd Sept. 1939Soviet cavalry in WilnoComment Pieter: The Sovjets called the city Lviv and the name of the city today is stil Lviv. Ofcourse there lives a considerable Polish minority in Western-Ukraine, and Polish history, culture and historical marks (architecture of buildings, scultptures, art and etc.) will be present there (I presume). Maria Konopnicka, sculpture on her headstone in Lviv, Ukr.Modern Lviv retains its nodal position, with several railways converging on the city. As a result, industrial development has been considerable: engineering products manufactured in the city have included buses, agricultural machinery, loading machinery, bicycles, and television sets; there are also consumer goods and foodstuffs industries. Lviv is a major publishing and cultural centre, especially of Ukrainian culture, which flourished there in tsarist times when it was suppressed in Russian Ukraine. The university, which was founded in 1661 and named for the Ukrainian poet and journalist Ivan Franko under the Soviet regime, is one of the institutions of higher education and research in the city. Pop. (2001) 732,818; (2005 est.) 733,728. Ukrainian poet and journalist Ivan FrankoSource: Encyclopaedia britannicawww.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/352437/LvivLwów during the Interbellum periodIn the interbellum period Lwów (Lviv today) held the rank of Poland's third most populous city (after Warsaw and Łódź) and became the seat of the Lwów Voivodeship. Right after Warsaw, it was the second most important cultural and academic centre of interwar Poland. In the academic year 1937–38 there were 9,100 students attending 5 higher education facilities including the renowned university and institute of technology. In 1920 professor Rudolf Weigl of the Lwów University discovered the vaccine against typhus. The major trade fair called Targi Wschodnie was established 1921. Its geographic location gave it an important role in stimulating international trade and fostering city's and Poland's economic development. Polish biologist Rudolf Stefan Weigl (September 2, 1883 – August 11, 1957, Zakopane) National University LvivWhile the eastern part of the Lwów Voivodeship had a relative Ukrainian majority in most of the rural areas the city itself did not (see table to the right). Prewar Lviv (Lwów) had also a large and thriving Jewish population. The Polish inhabitants of the city spoke the characteristic Lwów dialect. Although Polish authorities obliged themselves internationally to provide Eastern Galicia with an autonomy (including a creation of a separate Ukrainian university in Lviv) and even though in September 1922 adequate Polish Sejm's Bill was enacted, it was not fulfilled. Instead, the Polish government closed down many Ukrainian schools that had previously flourished during Austrian rule and closed down every Ukrainian university department at the University of Lviv with the exception of one. Unlike in Austrian times, when the size and amount of public parades or other cultural expressions corresponded to each cultural group's relative population, the Polish government emphasized the Polish nature of the city and limited public displays of Jewish and Ukrainian culture. Military parades and commemorations of battles at particular streets within the city, all celebrating the Polish forces who fought against the Ukrainians in 1918, became frequent, and in the 1930s a vast memorial monument and burial ground of Polish soldiers from that conflict was built in the city's Lychakiv Cemetery. The Polish government fostered the idea of Lviv as an eastern Polish outpost standing strong against eastern " hordes."
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Post by pieter on Feb 17, 2013 14:30:32 GMT -7
The Polish history of GrodnoGeneral historyHrodna (Grodno) in Belarus todayHrodna, also spelled Grodno, city and administrative centre, western Belarus. It is located on the Neman River, close to the borders of Poland and Lithuania (about 20 km and 30 km away respectively). First mentioned in 1128 as the seat of a princedom, Hrodna has had a stormy history, being sacked by the Tatars in 1241 and by the Teutonic Knights in 1284 and 1391. It passed to Lithuania in the 13th century and later to Poland, reverting to Russia in 1795; it was under Poland from 1921 to 1939. Among relics of Hrodna’s past are the ruins of the castle (1580) of the Polish king Stephen Báthory and of an 18th-century castle. Modern Hrodna is a major industrial centre, especially for fertilizers, synthetic fibres, and numerous consumer goods. The town has medical, agricultural, and teacher-training institutes. Grodno has 327,540 inhabitants ( 2009 census). It is the capital of Grodno Region ( voblast) and Grodno raion ( district). Hrodna todayMedieval originWest Slavic fortified settlement (gord)The modern city of Grodno originated as a small fortress and a fortified trading outpost maintained by the Rurikid princes on the border with the lands of the Baltic tribal union Yotvingians. Its name derives from the Old East Slavic verb gorodit', i.e., to enclose, to fence (see "grad" for details). Mentioned in the Primary Chronicle under 1127 as Goroden' and located at a crossing of numerous trading routes, this Slavic settlement, possibly originating as far as the late 10th century, became the capital of a poorly attested but separate principality, ruled by Yaroslav the Wise's grandson and his descendants. Orthodox church of Sts. Boris and Gleb (12th century)Along with Navahrudak, Hrodna was regarded as the main city on the far west of so-called Black Ruthenia, a border region that neighboured the original Lithuania. It was often attacked by various invaders, especially the Teutonic Knights. In the 1240-1250s the Grodno area, as well as the most of Black Ruthenia, was controlled by princes of Lithuanian origin (Mindaugas and others) to form the Baltic-Slavic state - Grand Duchy of Lithuania on these territories. After the Prussian uprisings a large population of Old Prussians moved to the region. The famous Lithuanian Grand Duke Vytautas was the prince of Grodno from 1376 to 1392, and he stayed there during his preparations for the Battle of Grunwald (1410). Since 1413, Grodno had been the administrative center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship. Grand Duke Vytautas the GreatThe Polish historyThe New Castle in Grodno used to be a summer residence of Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth monarchs.A 16th-century view of Grodno: upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/View_of_Grodno_in_1575.PNGTo aid the reconstruction of trade and commerce, the grand dukes allowed the creation of a Jewish commune in 1389. It was one of the first Jewish communities in the grand duchy. In 1441 the city received its charter, based on the Magdeburg Law. After the First Partition of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, Grodno became the capital of the short-lived Grodno Voivodeship in 1793. As an important centre of trade, commerce, and culture, Grodno remained one of the places where the Sejms were held. Also, the Old and New Castles were often visited by the Commonwealth monarchs including famous Stephen Báthory of Poland who made a royal residence here. In 1793 the last Sejm in the history of the Commonwealth occurred at Grodno. Two years afterwards, in 1795, Russia obtained the city in the Third Partition of Poland. It was in the New Castle on November 25 of that year that the last Polish king and Lithuanian grand duke Stanisław August Poniatowski abdicated. In the Russian Empire, the city continued to serve its role as a seat of Grodno Governorate since 1801. The industrial activities, started in the late 18th century by Antoni Tyzenhaus, continued to develop. Up to the Second World War and the Holocaust, like many other cities in Europe, Hrodna ( Grodno) had a significant Jewish population: according to Russian census of 1897, out of the total population of 46,900, Jews constituted 22,700 (so around 48% percent). World War IAfter the outbreak of World War I, Grodno was occupied by Germany (1915) and ceded by Bolshevist Russia under the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in 1918. After the war the German government permitted a short-lived state to be set up there, the first one with a Belarusian name - the Belarusian National Republic. This declared its independence from Russia in March 1918 in Minsk (known at that time as Mensk), but then the BNR's Rada (Council) had to leave Minsk and fled to Grodno. All this time the military authority in the city remained in German hands. After the outbreak of the Polish-Bolshevik War, the German commanders of the Ober Ost feared that the city might fall to Soviet Russia, so on April 27, 1919 they passed authority to Poland. The city was taken over by the Polish Army the following day and Polish administration was established in the city. The city was lost to the Red Army on July 20, 1920 in what became known as the First Battle of Grodno. The city was also claimed by the Lithuanian government, after it was agreed by the Soviet-Lithuanian Treaty of 1920 signed on July 12, 1920 in Moscow that the city would be transferred to Lithuania. However, Soviet defeat in the Battle of Warsaw made these plans obsolete, and Lithuanian authority was never established in the city. Instead, the Red Army organised its last stand in the city and the Battle of Neman took place there. On September 23 the Polish Army recaptured the city. After the Peace Treaty of Riga, Grodno remained in Poland. Initially, prosperity was reduced due to the fact that the city remained only the capital of a powiat, while the capital of the voivodship was moved to Białystok. However, in the late 1920s the city became one of the biggest Polish Army garrisons. This brought the local economy back on track. Also, the city was a notable centre of Jewish culture, with roughly 37% of the city's population being Jewish. World War IIDuring the Polish Defensive War of 1939 the garrison of Grodno was mostly used for the creation of numerous military units fighting against the invading Wehrmacht. In the course of the Soviet invasion of Poland initiated on September 17, there was heavy fighting in the city between Soviet and improvised Polish forces, composed mostly of march battalions and volunteers. In the course of the Battle of Grodno ( September 20–September 22), the Red Army lost some hundred men (by the Polish sources; by the Soviet sources - 57 killed and 159 wounded) and also 19 tanks and 4 APCs destroyed or damaged. The Polish side suffered at least 100 killed in action, military and civil, but losses still remain uncertain in detail (Soviet sources claim 644 killed and 1543 captives with many guns and machine guns etc. captured). Many more were shot in mass executions after being imprisoned. After the engaged Polish units were surrounded, the remaining units withdrew to Lithuania. In accordance with the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact the city was transferred to the Belarusian SSR of the Soviet Union, and several thousand of the city's Polish inhabitants were deported to remote areas of the Soviet Union. On June 23, 1941 the city came under German occupation that lasted until 16 July 1944. In the course of World War II, the majority of Hrodna's remaining Jews were exterminated in German concentration camps. Being the part of extended East Prussia Grodno was renamed by Germans to Garten (meaning " garden") in 1942. Since 1945 the city has been a centre of one of provinces of the Belarusian SSR, now of the independent Republic of Belarus. The majority of Poles were expelled or run away to Poland 1944-1946 and 1955-1959. Polish wiki: pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grodno
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Post by pieter on Feb 17, 2013 15:38:39 GMT -7
Vilnius dispute
Vilnius dispute, Vilnius also spelled Wilno, post-World War I conflict between Poland and Lithuania over possession of the city of Vilnius (Wilno) and its surrounding region.
Although the new Lithuanian government established itself at Vilnius in late 1918, it evacuated the city when Soviet forces moved in on Jan. 5, 1919. A few months later Polish forces drove the Red Army out of Vilnius and occupied it themselves (April 20, 1919). The Lithuanians rejected the demands of the Polish chief of state, Józef Piłsudski, for union with Poland, and hostilities were avoided only by the Allies’ creation of a demarcation line (the Foch Line) to separate the armies of the two countries; Vilnius was left on the Polish side of the line. In the summer of 1920, however, the Red Army reoccupied Vilnius, and on July 12 Soviet Russia ceded the city to Lithuania. Subsequently, violence broke out between Lithuania and Poland. The League of Nations arranged a partial armistice (Oct. 7, 1920) that put Vilnius under Lithuanian control and called for negotiations to settle all the border disputes. Two days later the Polish general Lucjan Żeligowski drove the Lithuanian troops out, proclaimed the independence of central Lithuania, and established its government at Vilnius. For the next year and a half, negotiations continued under the aegis of the League of Nations, which finally abandoned its role as mediator on Jan. 13, 1922.
Five days earlier, however, General Żeligowski, again prompted by Piłsudski, called for elections for a regional Diet, which on February 20 voted to incorporate central Lithuania into Poland. That arrangement was later accepted by the League’s council, which set the border almost along the Foch Line (Feb. 3, 1923)—a decision that was confirmed on March 15 by the conference of ambassadors of the Allied Powers. Lithuania, however, rejected the settlement and, on the basis of the continuing Vilnius dispute, refused to arrange regular diplomatic relations with Poland. Only in 1938, under the pressure of a Polish ultimatum (issued March 17), did Lithuania agree to receive a Polish representative. Vilnius was restored to Lithuania on Oct. 10, 1939.
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Post by pieter on Feb 17, 2013 15:48:06 GMT -7
Wilno (Vilnius)Vilnius, Russian Vilnyus, Polish Wilno, Russian (formerly) Vilna, city, capital of Lithuania, at the confluence of the Neris (Russian Viliya) and Vilnia rivers. A settlement existed on the site in the 10th century, and the first documentary reference to it dates from 1128. In 1323 the town became capital of Lithuania under Grand Duke Gediminas; it was destroyed in 1377 by the Teutonic Knights. Subsequently rebuilt, Vilnius received its charter of self-government in 1387, and a Roman Catholic bishopric was established there. The town and its trade flourished and grew; in 1525 a printing press was set up, and in 1579 a Jesuit academy was opened. The city underwent many calamities— Russian occupation in 1655–60, Swedish capture in 1702 and 1706, French occupation in 1812, and recurrent fires and plagues. In 1795 Vilnius passed to Russia in the Third Partition of Poland. It was occupied by the Germans in World Wars I and II and suffered heavy damage. From 1920 to 1939 it was included in Poland; it was taken by Soviet troops in 1939 and restored to Lithuania. The Soviets annexed Lithuania, including Vilnius, in June 1940. Soviet rule brought mass deportations (1940–41, 1946–50) of ethnic Lithuanians from Vilnius, and many Russians moved into the city. In 1970 the population of Vilnius was 43 percent ethnically Lithuanian (up from 34 percent in 1959) and 18 percent Polish. In 1991 Vilnius again became the capital of independent Lithuania. A prominent feature of the city before World War II was its Jewish community, for nearly 150 years the centre of eastern European Jewish cultural life. Traceable as far back as 1568, this community comprised 20 percent of the city’s population by the middle of the 17th century. In the 18th century, under the influence of Rabbi Elijah ben Solomon, it underwent a decisive religious and spiritual growth, becoming renowned for rabbinical studies that between 1799 and 1938 produced texts of the Mishna, Jerusalem Talmud, and other works that are still standard. In the 19th century the community became a centre for the Haskala ( Enlightenment) and was the home also of the first Jewish socialists in Russia; by the beginning of the 20th century it had become the focus of the Zionist movement in Russia as well. A flourishing source of Hebrew and Yiddish literature, with numerous newspapers and literary, scientific, and cultural periodicals, it was the birthplace of the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research (founded 1924). The German occupation during World War II destroyed the community, reducing the city’s Jewish population from 80,000 in 1941 to 6,000 by 1945. Many historic buildings survive, representing the Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, and classical styles of architecture. The ruins of the Castle of Gediminas on Castle Hill dominate the old town, with its narrow, winding streets that climb the wooded slopes surrounding the confluence of the rivers. There are a 16th-century Gothic Church of St. Anne and a dozen 17th-century Baroque churches, notably the Church of SS. Peter and Paul. The cathedral dates originally from 1387, but in its present form from 1801. Around the old town are the newer sectors of the city, with a rectangular street plan, large apartment blocks, administrative buildings, and modern factories. The historic centre of Vilnius was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1994. Upper Castle Vilnius The ruins of the Castle of Gediminas on Castle Hill dominate the old town, with its narrow, winding streets that climb the wooded slopes surrounding the confluence of the rivers.Present-day Vilnius is an important industrial centre, producing machine tools, agricultural machinery, electronic calculators and other electrical and electronic apparatus, textiles, clothing, and foodstuffs. The city is the cultural centre of Lithuania. The V. Kapsukas State University is the successor to the Jesuit academy of 1579, and the Vilnius Civil Engineering Institute was founded in 1969. There are institutes of fine arts and teacher-training schools and several theatres and museums. The art gallery occupies the former town hall, built in the 18th century. Pop. (2008 prelim.) 544,206. St.Johns' Church from Gediminas Castle Lithuanians wanted their independence when they were stil under Sovjet rule
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Post by Jaga on Feb 17, 2013 22:06:44 GMT -7
Pieter,
very interesting history. I was in Lviv and in Vilnius - the picture of the river and Vilnius around reminds me the time I was there! I never was in Grodno. I was always curious about this town. It looks that its heritage is very complex, even some old Prussians moved there. I am not going to argue that Grodno should be Polish. It should probably stay Belarussian, like it is now.
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Post by kaima on Feb 17, 2013 23:41:23 GMT -7
I would hardly - I would not - recognize Vilnius from the one picture of the high rises! I spent half of 1993 living there and all of the tall highrise buildings shown have been built in the 20 years that have intervened in that time.
I am amazed.
My sympathies are far more with the Lithuanians than with the Poles when it comes to the historic dispute of "ownership" of Vilnius. It is definitely Lithuanian. The Poles were simply colonists who moved in and were the majority citizens of the city. To my mind that does not make it Polish. Certainly by that standard we could declare El Paso a Mexican city, parts of New York City a Israeli city (with one of the biggest populations of Jews of any city in the world) and give other parts of the city to Puerto Ricans. Miami could belong to Cuba, and what would we do with Black sections of our large cities, declare them "Ethnically Independent"?
A new Polish-Lithuanian union would have been interesting, but I doubt the Lithuanians wanted to give up Russian domination for Polish domination.
Kai
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Post by pieter on Feb 18, 2013 6:45:22 GMT -7
Kai, Maybe you recognise this old part of Vilnius from the time you were there in 1993? ( look under my written reply to you) It must have been wonderful to spend a half year in this beautiful old Baltic, Lithuanian city, with it's multi-cultural past with Polish, German, Jewish, Russian and Tartar influences next to the Lithuanian ones. Like Warsaw Modernity, democracy, freedom, free market/free enterprise, Internet (e-commerce), trade, industrial production and innovative industries have made Vilnius a prosperous city. Present-day Vilnius is the major economic centre of Lithuania and one of the largest financial centres of the Baltic states. Vilnius is an important industrial centre, producing machine tools, agricultural machinery, electronic calculators and other electrical and electronic apparatus, textiles, clothing, and foodstuffs. Even though it is home to only 15% of Lithuania's population, it generates approximately 25% of Lithuania's GDP. Vilnius contributed over 10,015 billion litas to the national budget in 2008. That makes about 37% of the budget. Currently in Vilnius there are growing local advanced solar and laser technologies manufacturers centres (such as photovoltaic elements and renewable energy producers: Arginta, Precizika, Baltic Solar), high performance lasers manufacturers: Ekspla, Eksma, biotechnological manufacturers (Fermentas Thermo Fisher, Sicor Biotech), which successfully supply their products into global markets. In 2009, the Barclays Technology Centre was established in Vilnius, which is one of four strategic engineering global centres. I understand why your sympathies are far more with the Lithuanians than with the Poles when it comes to the historic dispute of " ownership" of Vilnius. First, from historical perspective and secondly as a Slovak you have no Polish connection to Lithuania. To Vilnius you have a connection, because you lived there for half a years in that post-Sovjet era, just two years after the bloody independence struggle. You have no connection to the Polish Wilno of 1920-1939, because you are on the Lithuanian independence sie. That's understandable. I think differently. Not political correct, not ethical or moral, but practical how it was. Vilnius is definitely Lithuanian today. From 1920 until 1939 it was Polish. Before that it was part of the Russian Czarist empire, and for a short period German during th First World War. From 1941 until 1944 it was German again, and after that from 1944 until 1991 part of the SovjetUnion, as the Lithuanian Sovjet Republic. To say simply that the Poles were simply colonists who moved in and were the majority citizens of the city is to simplistic in my view. You had a shared Polish-Lithuanian Common Wealth, and in all Baltics states and in Belarus there were Polish minorities. And example of that is the family of my Polish grandfather, who were ethnic (Roman-Catholic) Poles who were settled in Eastern-Poland, but had a past in the Baltic states. (My grandfather and his father, my great grandfather were born and raised in Talinn, the capital of Estonia, but my mother told me that I/we have probably some Lithuanian blood [roots]. I can't proof that, but that were the rumors). There was both Polish and German gentry (nobility) in the Baltic states (Prussian junkers and Polish schlachtza) next to the Baltic Germans and the Polish populations in the Baltic states and Belarus. You have to understand that it was the time of the Partititions, and Poland and Lithuania didn't exist. Poles moved, worked and lived in Russia too. If you read novels of Gogol, you reed about Polish merchants and farmers -who go to a market- on Saint Petersburg streets. I am certainly not political correct and do feel connected to the name, existance and period that the city Vilnius was the Polish city Wilno. The same is with the Dutch Indies and South-Africa. It is political incorrect due to colonialism, Apartheid and etc. to feel connected to those places, but due to that fact a lot of Indonesians and Indo-Europeans live in the Netherlands and when I am in South-Africa I can speak Dutch to White and Colored people who speak Afrikaans, because (with some difficulty) I can understand Afrikaans. I feel connected to the Afrikaner (Boers) people due to their Dutch roots, religion (Calvinism, very known to me), the fact that a lot of them look Dutch ethnically (although they are a mix of Dutch, German and French settlers in the 17th century). I hate racism and Apartheid, but I don't hate Afrikaners. The same with Lithuania. Maybe the Poles treated the Lithuanians badly, but the Lithuanians treated the Poles badly back. And in contrast with the Poles I will never forget the role of the Lithuanians and other Baltic people in the Holocaust. They were not so nice to the jews either. I agree with you that Lithuanians will never give up their indepedance for again Polish domination or Russian domination. But a new Polish-Lithuanian union could be interesting, if the other Baltic states, Belarus and the Ukraine would like to join. And in that perspective I would think more of a regional Baltic-Slav alliance or Union in staid of a Polish dominated Union. In that perspective I think about alliances like the cooperation between the Scandinavian countries, the Benelux, the Weimar Triangle and the Visgrad Group. Cooperation between these states, but with the autonomy of the Independent states. No country or state today should accept the dominance or imperialism of other states. We live in a different world now. Last thing I would like to say about Vilnius when it was Wilno in the Interbellum period. Under the rule of Pilsudski (1926-1935) there was religious and cultural tolerance for minorities in Poland like Lithuanians, Russians, Urkainains, Germans, jews and Belarussians. Piłsudski's regime began a period of national stabilization and of improvement in the situation of ethnic minorities, which formed about a third of the Second Republic's population. Piłsudski replaced the National Democrats' " ethnic-assimilation" with a " state-assimilation" policy: citizens were judged not by their ethnicity but by their loyalty to the state. Eastern Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Protestant, Judaic and Islamic organizations, praising Piłsudski for his policies of religious tolerance. Mainstream organizations of ethnic minorities similarly expressed their support for his policies of ethnic tolerance, though he was criticized by, in addition to the Polish communists, by the (socialist) Jewish Labour Bund, and by Ukrainian, German and Lithuanian extremists. Cheers, Pieter Vilnius Old TownThe Old Town of Vilnius ( Lithuanian: Vilniaus senamiestis), one of the largest surviving medieval old towns in Central Europe, has an area of 3.59 square kilometres ( 887 acres). It encompasses 74 quarters, with 70 streets and lanes numbering 1487 buildings with a total floor area of 1,497,000 square meters. The oldest part of the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius ( Wilno), it has developed over the course of many centuries, and has been shaped by the city's history and a constantly changing cultural influence. It is a place where some of Europe's greatest architectural styles - gothic, renaissance, baroque and neoclassical - stand side by side and complement each other. Pilies Street is the Old Town's main artery and the hub of cafe and street market life. The main street of Vilnius, Gediminas Avenue, is partially located in the Old Town. The central squares in the Old Town are the Cathedral Square and the Town Hall Square. Pilies Street in the Old Town of VilniusVilnius Cathedral SquareThe Cathedral SquareThe Town Hall Square of VilniusThe Town Hall Square of VilniusOne of the most elaborate architectural complexes is the Vilnius University Architectural Ensemble, which occupies a large part of the Old Town and has 13 courtyards. It was selected to represent Lithuania in the Mini-Europe Park in Brussels. In 1994 the Vilnius Old Town was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List ( No. 541) in recognition of its universal value and originality. The definition of " historic center" itself has a broader meaning than the Old Town, formerly encircled with defensive walls. It embraces the valuable historical suburbs of Vilnius, such as Užupis, which historically used to be outside the city boundaries. Therefore Užupis is often considered a part of the Old Town of Vilnius. An independent republic in the middle of a city? With its own president, constitution and Independence Day?! Welcome to Užupis, a district of Vilnius Old Town – beloved home for many artists, celebrities, politicians and even religious prophets! Užupis is often compared to Montmartre in Paris, with its citizens, their lifestyle and beliefs all contributing to the cosy neighbourhood feel of Vilnius.The Angel of Užupis' VilniusFor 13 years in the row, the citizens of Užupis have declared their district the Independent Republic of Užupis. This picture was taken this year (2010) on April 1st – April Fools’ Day – the official unofficial Independence Day of the Republic of Užupis. Every year the citizens of Užupis organise a celebration for themselves and invite everybody to party together. You can be a student, an ambassador of a foreign country, a farmer or a business man. Whether you’re single or with the family, everybody’s welcome to join the feast. In Užupis, numerous art and socially responsible activities take place all year round, including various shows, the release of live fish to the Vilnelė River, white table cloth day when families bring food left over from the Easter feast and share it with others, or voluntarily cleaning up the neighbourhood. All activities culminate in one huge celebration on April 1st. With its original constitution, Užupis declares no boundaries for personal – or even animal – self-expression, nor for rights and responsibilities. For example, article no. 36 states that Everyone has the right to be personal, while article no. 12 declares that A dog has the right to be a dog. A new tradition for newlyweds has also evolved over recent years – walking across any bridge to Užupis and putting a padlock on its railings – a symbol of strong commitment and locked-in happiness. Whatever time of year you visit Lithuania and Vilnius, do not miss the chance to take a tour of the Republic of Užupis and lock your heart on Užupis, stroll through peaceful streets of our beloved Vilnius, pop into yards, visit many spectacular churches or simply relax in oustanding cafés.The gallery "GALERA" is the place where artists can exhibit their pictures for free. This gallery is part of the Art Incubator, located in Užupis (Vilnius Monmartre). ( www.daumantas.eu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12:galera-2008-en&catid=11:photography&Itemid=11 ) LandmarksThere are more monuments of interest in the Old Town than in any other part of Vilnius; they include: PalacesVilnius Old TownPresidential PalaceSlushko PalaceRadvilu PalaceTyzenhaus PalaceReligious monumentsSt. Anne's ChurchVilnius Cathedral in Cathedral SquareRussian Orthodox St. Nicholas ChurchAll Saints ChurchThe interior of the All Saints ChruchBaroque Saint Casimir church (1616) in the Rotušės square. (Saint Nicholas Russian Orthodox church once looked much more western until Russian Empire rebuilt it in its showcase neo-Byzantic style (mid-19th century). Today it is probably the most beautiful among Russian Orthodox churches of Vilnius.)Gate of Dawn in VilniusHill of Three Crosses: Visible from various locations in Vilnius, the three white crosses commemorate legendary martyrs. The Hill of Three Crosses is a part of a larger park area that preserves the historic wilderness of Lithuania. It’s a great spot for a picnic or to simply get away from exhaust and noise of the city streets. It’s especially beautiful in the autumn.Cathedral of the TheotokosSinagogue of VilniusThe interior of the sinagogue of VilniusA Karaite Kenesa in Vilnius. The Karaim are a Jewish sect who migrated to Lithuania from the Crimea to serve as a military elite unit in the 14th century. Although their numbers are very small, the Karaim are becoming more prominent since Lithuanian independence, and have restored their kenesa. Kenesa is the term for a Karaite or Persian synagogue. The word derives from the Aramaic word for "assembly" (in Hebrew, the word for synagogue is beit knesset).Back view of the Kenesa in VilniusKaraites still exist today, about 10,000 of them living in or near Ramla, outside Tel Aviv–Yafo, and small enclaves survive in Poland, Lithuania and Russia. Their liturgy is less rich than that of other Jewish congregations, having little poetry but many readings of scriptural texts. ( In Poland, Karaites are a recognized minority, represented by the Association of Polish Karaites (Polish: Związek Karaimów Polskich) and the Karaite Religious Association in the Polish Republic (Polish: Karaimskiego Związku Religijnego w Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej). Karaites live primarily in and around Warsaw, Wrocław and Tricity, they are linguistically assimilated. ) The Nemėžis mosque in Vilnius district is an example of little wooden Tatar mosques. You can find in Poland also. The town Nemėžis itself was established by Tatars in the 15th century, and today is situated right on the administrative border with Vilnius city. The town is mostly inhabited by Tatars or descendants of them. Currently there are 4 mosques in Lithuania. Unfortunately some old mosques like in Vilnius, Biržai, Panevėžys, Trakai and other places were destroyed by the soviet communist authorities. The Kaunas mosque, currently the only stone mosque in Lithuania.Other places of interestThe House of the Signatories (This house represents place where the declaration of Independence of 1918 was signed by Lithuanian politicians, between when was the most important and famous Jonas Basanavicius (shown on 50 Litai banknote too))National Museum of LithuaniaLithuanian National Drama TheatreFragments of the Vilnius city wall (The old city wall originates from the 1500s.)Vilnius dungeons ( The Vilnius Dungeons are medieval dungeons under parts of the downtown of Vilnius. Their real size and extent, as well as purpose and age, are arguable; there are some urban legends and various theories about these dungeons. In the dungeons, there are about 4000 dead bodies. Due to the dry climate inside, many of them have naturally mummified, others are just skeletons. )Funeral ceremony of the heart of Polish president J. Pilsudski passes the Rotušės square in Wilno in 1935. Like many Polish-speaking people of Lithuanian descent of the era J. Pilsudski called himself a Lithuanian but did not believe in independent Lithuania. He sought to establish a large country that would encompass Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania and Belarus, and would use Polish as lingua franca. His dreams were behind the annexation of Vilnius region to Poland in 1922.www.novavita.lt/program-tour.htmvilnews.com/?p=9805
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Post by pieter on Feb 18, 2013 8:44:44 GMT -7
Marshal Pilsudski's funeral
Jozef Pilsudski died of liver cancer (they are talking about materials gastric cancer with metastasis to the liver) at Warsaw's Belweder Palace on May 12, 1935 (the ninth anniversary of the coup d'etat), at 20.45. His funeral was a great manifestation of national unity. National mourning was announced. On May 13, 1935 his brain and heart were removed from the body. The brain has been studied by scientists in Vilnius (Wilno) - after the study was published in a limited edition summarizing the first stage of the work published (Brain Jozef Pilsudski). On 17 May Funeral Mass was celebrated by Cardinal Alexander Kakowski.
Marshall's body laid in the crypt of St. Leonard Castle in Kraków's Wawel Cathedral. For a time, however, lasting dispute between the authorities of the clergy and laity of the resting place of Pilsudski. Finally, June 22, 1937, by order of Archbishop of Krakow, by Archbishop Adam Stefan Sapieha, the coffin was transferred to the crypt Marshal for Silver Bells Tower.
Jozef Pilsudski's heart was interred in his mother's grave at Vilnius' Rasos Cemetery, where it remains.
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Post by Jaga on Feb 18, 2013 11:12:03 GMT -7
Kai,
+++A new Polish-Lithuanian union would have been interesting, but I doubt the Lithuanians wanted to give up Russian domination for Polish domination.+++
I think Vilnius should stay Lithuanian. Nobody with common sense opposes it. But Lithuanian see Polish-Lithuanian Kingdom as Polish occupation in spite of the fact that they had a king Jagiello. Lithuanians were also not angels, they occupied huge part of Belarus. Lithuanians - these tall and blond people were a minority in their huge kindgom, therefore they needed Poland to protect their boarders. For the most time Lithuania was bigger than Poland and the main language of Lithuanian empire was Belarussian.
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Post by Jaga on Feb 18, 2013 11:13:22 GMT -7
Pieter,
beautiful pictures. This picture on the river in Vilnius reminded me that when we were there it was awfully hot, so got that we could barely walk..... with Ela and my Polish friend.
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Post by karl on Feb 18, 2013 12:15:34 GMT -7
Pieter
Although Kresy/Vilnius is out side my vest sphere of interest, but, not out side my appreciation of the effort, work, application of technical expertise and interest you have placed in your presentation...
Please accept my thank you...For I have found your work much interesting thusly have followed it through...
I was though, some what saddened with reference to the area of Christiana {Copenhagen} For that was the area we lost my older cousin upon her disappearance.
Karl
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