Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic

The Byelorussian SSR (Belarusian: Беларуская Савецкая Сацыялістычная Рэспубліка [БССР] Belarussiya Savetskaya Sotsyyalistychanaya Respublika [BSSR]; Russian: Белору́сская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респу́блика [БССР] Belorusskaya Sovetskaya Sotsalisticheskaya Respublika [BSSR]) was one of fifteen constituent republics of the Soviet Union. It was one of the four original founding members of the Soviet Union in 1922, together with the Ukrainian SSR, the Transcaucasian SFSR and the RSFSR. The Soviet Republic, along with the Ukrainian SSR and the Soviet Union, were founder members of the United Nations Organization in 1945.

The Soviet republic in the lands of Belarus was declared on January 1 1919, but it took a few years to define its status. Byelorussia was also one of several Soviet Republics occupied by Nazi Germany during World War II. The end of the Soviet Republic occurred in 1991 and the county was later renamed into the current Republic of Belarus.

History

Being part of the Russian Empire before World War I, Belarus declared its first statehood on 25 March 1918, forming the Belarus National Republic. The Republic was, however, short-lived, and was overthrown soon after the German withdrawal. On January 1, 1919 the Soviet Socialist Republic of Belarus (SSRB) was created. Soon it was disbanded, its territory merged into the RSFSR and the new Lithuanian-Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. The latter one was also short-lived, overridden by the 1919 Polish invasion. After Polish-Soviet War ended in 1921, Byelorussian lands were split between Poland, Russia, and the recreated SSRB, which became a founding member of the Soviet Union in 1922 and became known as BSSR.

Polish Autonomous District Dzierzynszczyzna was created within BSSR in 1932 and disbanded in 1935.

In September 1939, the Soviet Union annexed the Polish-held West Belarus during the 1939 invasion of Poland and incorporated it into the BSSR. Part of it was later transferred to the Lithuanian SSR.

After World War II, the Byelorussian SSR was given a seat in the United Nations General Assembly together with the Soviet Union and Ukrainian SSR, becoming one of the founding members of the UN.

Following the August Coup, the Supreme Soviet of Belarus declared independence from the Soviet Union on August 25, 1991. The republic was renamed the Republic of Belarus on September 19 1991. On December 8, 1991 it was a signatory, along with Russia and Ukraine, of the Belavezha Accords, which replaced the Soviet Union with the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Demographics

According to the 1959 Soviet Census, the population of the republic were made up as follows:

Nationalities (1959):

• Belarusians - 81%
• Poles - 16%
• Ukrainians - about 1%
• Russians - <1%

Other ethnic/religious groups (1959):

• Jews - about 1%

The largest cities were:

• Minsk
• Brest
• Gomel (Homel)
• Hrodna (Grodno)
• Mogilev (Mahilyow)
• Vitebsk (Vitsebsk)
• Bobruisk (Babruysk)