My future profession

I'm in my third year of the History Faculty at the Brest State University. I must say that I'm very interested in the subjects which I have chosen of all humanities as my future speciality. History was my favourite subject at school. I was fond of reading historical novels describing life, culture and political events in different countries of the world. It was shortly before leaving school that I made up my mind to enter this faculty and take up History seriously as my future profession.

History (from Greek historia) is a process of developing nature and society. History as a science studies the past of mankind in all its variety and concreteness. "Historia est magistra vitae", said an ancient philosopher.

There are many historical subjects in our programme: Ancient History, the Middle Ages, Russian and Belorussian History, Modern and Contemporary History, etc.

History interests me as a science because it helps people understand and explain the processes going on in various aspects of human life. It also helps people foresee the course of events in future. But it is impossible to study any particular period of history if one doesn't know a lot about what preceded it and what came after it.

Historians study and describe the historic events taking place in different epochs and in different countries. Their descriptions and analyses should be strictly objective and scientific. If we look at the historic past we can see that the entire history of human society is that of wars and struggle for power, as well as people's revolts for better life and freedom. Wars in different times and in different countries, except just ones, were waged with the purpose of conquering other lands and peoples, with making profits on the resources of oppressed nations.

Since World War II a lot has been done by peace-loving nations to save the world from a new global catastrophy. But nobody managed to prevent local wars unleashed in different parts of the planet and taking away thousands of people's lives. Peace and peaceful co-existence remain the key problem of our epoch.

As for me, I'm deeply interested in the history of my native land, Belarus. The period of the 14th-15th centuries attracts me greatly. It was the time when the Belorussian nation was formed with its national language and culture, the Great Duchy of Lithuania being a powerful state in Europe at that time.

The profession of a historian is quite diversified. The graduates of our Faculty can work as teachers and research workers at secondary and higher schools, different museums and archives. Many of them have become well-known scientists or have chosen public activity as their career.

Whether I shall make a good teacher or become successful in some other field of social life remains to be seen. But I'm sure that my knowledge received at the University will help me succeed in my future work.

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National Symbols

The traditional national emblem of Belarus – “Pohonia” (“Chase”) – has many centuries of history. It appeared in written documents beginning from the late 13th century. According to some sources this symbol was first used by Grand Lithuanian Duke Trajdzien (ruled from 1270 to 1284). Some other documents ascribe it to Grand Duke Vicen (ruled from 1294 to 1316).

The Pohonia is shown in the central position on the seal of the Grand Duke Vitaut dating from 1407, and appeared on the covers of the “Statutes of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania” published in Old Belarusian in 1529, 1566 and 1588. After the annexation of the GDL in 1772–95 by the Russian Empire, the symbol of “Pohonia” continued to appear together with the Russian imperial double-headed eagle on the state seals and symbols.

During the German occupation of Belarus in World War II, the Pohonia continued to be used by the collaborationist government. It was replaced when Belarus was liberated by Soviet forces, and became the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic.

The Pohonia was again adopted as the official national symbol of Belarus when it declared its independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991.

The origins of the traditional white-red-white Belarusian flag are lost in the mists of ancient history. It is possible that the banner was designed simply to distinguish Belyj Rus (White Russian) forces from those of the Princes of Kiev and Muscovy by placing the red favored by the Russsian on the background of white.

But the traditional story is that when the united armies of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Litva and Rus defeated the Germans of the Teutonic Order at the great Battle of Grunewald in 1410, a wounded Belarusian knight tore off his blood-streaked bandage and waved it aloft as a victory banner. That banner has been flown ever since, so the story goes, as a sign that Belarus will always prevail – no matter how badly wounded it may be!

On May 14, 1995 the national referendum included the question “Do you agree with the adoption of the new National Symbols?” This question was approved by 75.1% of those voting. President Aleksander Lukashenko then issued two decrees, “On Approval of a Pattern for the National Emblem of the Republic of Belarus” and “On Approval of Regulations for the National Flag of the Republic of Belarus”, officially adopting the new symbols.

The National Emblem consists of a green raised-contour outline of Belarus above a globe of the Earth, bathed in golden sunbeams radiating from the sun “rising” from behind the globe. Above the contour there is a red five-pointed star. The emblem is framed in the wreath of golden wheatears, interlaced with clover flowers on the left and flax flowers on the right. The lower half of the wreath is spiral-wrapped with a red and green ribbon carrying the golden inscription “Respublika Belarus” (Republic of Belarus).

The present National Emblem of the Republic of Belarus symbolizes historical adherence of the Belarusian people to constructive labor, their faith in the triumph of justice and attainment of a worthy place in the world community.

The official National Flag of the Republic of Belarus is a rectangular banner; the ratio of height to length is 1:2. The upper two-thirds of the flag is red, and the lower third is green. The vertical red-on-white Belarusian decorative pattern, which occupies one-ninth of the flag length, is placed against the flagstaff. The flag is fixed on a flagstaff painted golden with ochre.

The red symbolizes Belarusian glorious past. That was the color of the victorious standards of the Belarusian regiments that defeated crusaders at Grunewald, and was the color of the battle flags of the Red Army divisions and Belarusian guerrilla detachments that liberated the country from fascist invaders and their henchmen. Green symbolizes the future. It is the color of hope, spring and revival, the color of forests and fields. The decorative pattern symbolizes Belarusian rich cultural heritage, its spiritual continuity, and the unity of its people.

Adherents of the old symbols claim that the referendum in which they were replaced was unconstitutional, and that the propositions placed on the ballot were worded misleadingly. The “old” symbols had been adopted only four years previously, on the occasion of Belarusian re-emergence as an independent nation. To most Belarusians those symbols were still new, and many might have believed that by “approving the new symbols” they were voting to retain them. Intentionally or not, the new symbols were approved by 75.1% of those voting in the referendum. However, only 64.7% of eligible voters participated. So the new symbols were actually approved by only 48.6% of the Belarusian people. Detractors say that the Belarusian Constitution requires approval of 50% or more of the Belarusian people (not just 50% of those voting) for any change to the Constitution including changes to the official national symbols. Thus a significant portion of Belarusians considers the new symbols to have been adopted unlawfully and still recognize the old symbols as being the “real” ones. Still, an equally significant portion of Belarusians truly supported the new symbols.

Answer the questions:

1) When did the Pohonia as a national emblem appear and reappear in the history of Belarus?

2) What is the origin of the white-red-white Belarusian flag?

3) What does the new National Emblem consist of?

4) What does the new National Emblem symbolize?

5) What does the present official Flag of the Republic of Belarus consist of?

6) What do the colors of the National Flag symbolize?

7) Why do many Belarusians consider the new symbols to have been adopted unlawfully?

Text for annotation

The Napoleonic code was adopted throughout much of Europe, though only in the lands he conquered, and remained in force after Napoleon's defeat. Napoleon said: "My true glory is not to have won 40 battles...Waterloo will erase the memory of so many victories. ... But...what will live forever, is my Civil Code." The Code still has importance today in a quarter of the world's jurisdictions including in Europe, the Americas and Africa.

Dieter Langewiesche described the code as a "revolutionary project" which spurred the development of bourgeois society in Germany by the extension of the right to own property and an acceleration towards the end of feudalism. Napoleon reorganized what had been the Holy Roman Empire, made up of more than a thousand entities, into a more streamlined forty-state Confederation of the Rhine; this provided the basis for the German Confederation and the unification of Germany in 1871. The movement toward national unification in Italy was similarly precipitated by Napoleonic rule. These changes contributed to the development of nationalism and the nation state