The History of Belarus goes back to more than a thousand years. The country of Belarus is a landlocked nation. The countries of Russia surround it to the north and east, the country of Poland is in the west, to the south is Ukraine and to the north is Latvia and Lithuania. The capital city is Minsk. The Geography of Belarus features a flat terrain with forests and lakes. Take one of the Belarus Tours and know about the milestones in the History of Belarus.
The History of Belarus goes back to the 6th century when it was first inhabited by East Slavs. They formed a polity with the Varangians which is known as the Kievan Rus'. The Varangians were Scandinavians and Baltic Slavs warriors. This state began in the site of the present day Novgorod in 862. When Prince Yaroslav the Wise of the Kievan Rus' died, the state was divided into many independent principalities. In the 13th century these principalities were affected by a Mongol invasion. Later the state was incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Later this Duchy fought with Poland against the Teutonic Knights in 1410 at the Battle of Grunwald. With the joint victory of the Duchy and Poland the Eastern Europe's northwestern border lands came under their control.
Another important Historical Fact of Belarus is when the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland were joined through a marriage of their rulers on February 2, 1386. With this union the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth was created in 1569. Later Tsar Ivan the III of Russia began military conquests to get the Kievan Rus' lands which included Belarus. Another major turning point in the History of Belarus is when the Polish-Lithuanian union ended in 1795 and this commonwealth was divided including Belarus by Prussia, Austria and Imperial Russia. The territories of Belarus were taken by Catherine II of Imperial Russia and were held till the Germans occupied it during the World War I.
Another major turning point in Belarus History was when on March 25, 1918 the country declared its independence and formed the Belarusian People's Republic. In 1919 it became the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic. From 1941 to 1945 the country fought with the USSR in the World War II. In 1945, Belarus became a founding member of the United Nations. Another milestone in the History of Belarus was on July 27, 1990 when the country declared itself a sovereign nation. On August 25, 1991 the name was officially changed to the Republic of Belarus. In March 1994, Belarus adopted its Constitution and elected its first President.
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