The Niasviž uprising, or Nieśwież uprising (

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

: Powstanie nieświeskie, ) was a failed anti-Soviet pro-

insurrection residents of the town of Niasviž (, now

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

. It took place on March 14–19, 1919, during the Polish-Soviet War. As a result, the victorious

Bolsheviks The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...

shot five leaders of the uprising. The Niasviž Uprising was later commemorated by two monuments, one of which still exists.

Background

In early 1919, Niasviž was captured without fight by the Bolsheviks, who advanced westwards, behind German troops of the

Ober Ost The Supreme Commander of All German Forces in the East (), also known by its German abbreviation as , was both a high-ranking position in the armed forces of the German Empire as well as the name given to the occupied territories on the German s ...

. In February 1919, the Polish-Soviet War began, and Polish forces moved eastwards, clashing with the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

. The residents of Niasviž, who anticipated the arrival of Polish troops any day, decided to start an anti-Bolshevik rebellion, headed by principal of the local grammar school, Mieczysław Wolnisty. In the night of March 14/15, 1919, the rebels seized key buildings in the town, and liquidated local

council A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or natio ...

. Some Communist leaders were killed, including

commissar Commissar (or sometimes ''Kommissar'') is an English transliteration of the Russian (''komissar''), which means ' commissary'. In English, the transliteration ''commissar'' often refers specifically to the political commissars of Soviet and ...

s Rozenblum and Grynblat. Other Bolsheviks abandoned the town and headed towards

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...

, requesting help along the way. On March 19, the Red Army re-entered Niasviž without fighting, as rebel forces were too weak, and Polish Army troops still were too far away. Soon afterwards, the

Cheka The All-Russian Extraordinary Commission ( rus, Всероссийская чрезвычайная комиссия, r=Vserossiyskaya chrezvychaynaya komissiya, p=fsʲɪrɐˈsʲijskəjə tɕrʲɪzvɨˈtɕæjnəjə kɐˈmʲisʲɪjə, links=yes), ...

arrested five Polish leaders: Mieczysław Wolnisty, Polikarp Kolenda, Józef Januszkiewicz, Konstanty Szydłowski and Stanisław Iwanowski. All were taken to the complex of former Bernardine monastery, which was used by the Soviets as a prison. On March 24, they were shot in a forest near Niasviž.

Aftermath

Following the Polish-Soviet War, Nieswiez became part of the

Second Polish Republic The Second Polish Republic, at the time officially known as the Republic of Poland, was a country in Central and Eastern Europe that existed between 7 October 1918 and 6 October 1939. The state was established in the final stage of World War I ...

, and two monuments, commemorating the rebellion, were built. One was located in the center of the town, and was destroyed during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The other one was erected on March 24, 1926 at a local Roman Catholic cemetery, on the tomb of the five shot Polish leaders. The monument, which was founded by students and teachers of the local school, still exists. After 1944, the inscription ''pomordowani przez bolszewików'' ("murdered by the Bolsheviks") was removed by the Soviets from the tombstone. After 1990, it was renovated.

Sources

* Pod red. Anny Kaminski: Miescy pamiaci achwiarau kamunizmu u Biełarusi. Lipsk: Fundacja Badań nad Dyktaturą SED, 2011, s. 278

Background

Aftermath

Sources

References

See also