Pahonia
Encyclopedia
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Romanization of Belarusian
Romanization or Latinization of Belarusian is any system for transliterating written Belarusian from the Cyrillic alphabet to the Latin.Some of the standard systems for romanizing Belarusian:...
: Pahonya, paˈɣonʲa, Lithuanian: Vytis, Pagaunė, (translated as Chaser) is a historical symbol of Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state from the 12th /13th century until 1569 and then as a constituent part of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until 1791 when Constitution of May 3, 1791 abolished it in favor of unitary state. It was founded by the Lithuanians, one of the polytheistic...
, of which the eastern part later became known as Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
. Pahonia was the official state symbol of the Belarusian National Republic in 1918 and the official coat of arms of Belarus from 1991 to 1995.
Structure
The heraldic shieldShield
A shield is a type of personal armor, meant to intercept attacks, either by stopping projectiles such as arrows or redirecting a hit from a sword, mace or battle axe to the side of the shield-bearer....
features a red field with an armored knight
Knight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
on a white (silver) horse holding a silver sword
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
in his right hand above his head. A silver shield hangs on the left shoulder of the charging knight, and a golden (yellow) Patriarchal cross
Patriarchal cross
The Patriarchal cross is a variant of the Christian cross, the religious symbol of Christianity. Similar to the familiar Latin cross, the Patriarchal cross possesses a smaller crossbar placed above the main one, so that both crossbars are near the top. Sometimes the patriarchal cross has a short,...
appears on the shield.
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The charging knightKnight
A knight was a member of a class of lower nobility in the High Middle Ages.By the Late Middle Ages, the rank had become associated with the ideals of chivalry, a code of conduct for the perfect courtly Christian warrior....
first emerged as a state emblem in the region in 1366. It features on the seal of the
Coat of arms of Lithuania
The coat of arms of Lithuania, consisting of an armor-clad knight on horseback holding an olden sword and shield, is also known as Vytis . The Lithuanian coat of arms is one of the oldest national coats of arms in Europe...
Grand Duke of Lithuania, Algirdas
Algirdas
Algirdas was a monarch of medieval Lithuania. Algirdas ruled the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from 1345 to 1377, which chiefly meant monarch of Lithuanians and Ruthenians...
, which marks a document dating from 1366. The old prototype depicts a knight on horseback holding a sword in his raised hand.
Jogaila
Jogaila, later 'He is known under a number of names: ; ; . See also: Jogaila : names and titles. was Grand Duke of Lithuania , king consort of Kingdom of Poland , and sole King of Poland . He ruled in Lithuania from 1377, at first with his uncle Kęstutis...
(ruled 1377 - 1392), then to Grand Duke Vytautas ruled 1392 - 1430) and to others. By the 14th century, the charging knight on horseback with a sword had begun to feature in an heraldic shield, first in Jogaila's's seal in 1386 or 1387, and also in the seal of Vytautas in 1401. As early as the 15th century, the heraldic charging knight on horseback became the coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state from the 12th /13th century until 1569 and then as a constituent part of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until 1791 when Constitution of May 3, 1791 abolished it in favor of unitary state. It was founded by the Lithuanians, one of the polytheistic...
and of its central part - the Duchy of Vilnius. 16th century documents refer to it using the Polish term Pogoń. At first, the charging knight might appear riding either left or right; and sometimes he held a lance. But as of the first half of the 15th century, all depictions show him riding towards the left (as seen by the viewer), with a sword in his raised hand and a shield in the left hand.
In the 15th century, the colors of the seal became uniform. The livery colors became fixed: a white (silver) charging knight on a red field of the heraldic shield. The charging knight at this time bore a blue shield, and set against the blue field appeared a double (gold) cross. The coat of arms featured the Grand Duke's headgear on the crest.
At first the charging knight showed the figure of the ruler of the country, but with time it came to be understood and interpreted as that of a riding knight chasing an intruder out of his native country. Such an understanding became especially popular in the 19th century and in the first half of 20th century. The explanation has a sound historical foundation. We know that at the Battle of Grunwald
Battle of Grunwald
The Battle of Grunwald or 1st Battle of Tannenberg was fought on 15 July 1410, during the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War. The alliance of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, led respectively by King Jogaila and Grand Duke Vytautas , decisively defeated the Teutonic Knights, led...
(1410), where the united Polish-Lithuanian army crushed the army of the Teutonic Knights
Teutonic Knights
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...
(thus putting an end to the Knights' eastward expansion) thirty Lithuanian and Ruthenian regiments out of a total of forty fought under banners flying the sign of the Pahonia.
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
annexed and extinguished the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the Third Partition of Poland. The Pahonia then became incorporated into the imperial state emblem. After the first partition of Poland
First Partition of Poland
The First Partition of Poland or First Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in 1772 as the first of three partitions that ended the existence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth by 1795. Growth in the Russian Empire's power, threatening the Kingdom of Prussia and the...
, Catherine the Great had given the Pahonia coat of arms to several towns in the newly acquired ethnic Belarusian
Belarusians
Belarusians ; are an East Slavic ethnic group who populate the majority of the Republic of Belarus. Introduced to the world as a new state in the early 1990s, the Republic of Belarus brought with it the notion of a re-emerging Belarusian ethnicity, drawn upon the lines of the Old Belarusian...
and Latgallian territories, including Daugavpils
Daugavpils
Daugavpils is a city in southeastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. Daugavpils literally means "Daugava Castle". With a population of over 100,000, it is the second largest city in the country after the capital Riga, which is located some...
, Ludza
Ludza
Ludza is a town in the Latgalia region of eastern Latvia. The population as of 2004 was 10,247.Until July 1, 2009 Ludza was the administrative centre of Ludza District...
, Sebezh
Sebezh
Sebezh is a town and the administrative center of Sebezhsky District of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located in a picturesque setting between lakes Sebezhskoye and Orono south of Pskov. Population:...
, Polacak, Nevel
Nevel
Nevel is a town and the administrative center of Nevelsky District of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located on Lake Nevel southeast of Pskov. Population:...
, Haradok
Haradok
Haradok is a town in Vitebsk Province in Belarus with the population of 34,700 people. Approximately 14,000 people reside in the town itself around 30,000 people reside within the district. Haradok district is one of the largest in the country. The town is located on the north-east of Belarus and...
, Viciebsk, Surazh
Surazh
Surazh is a town and the administrative center of Surazhsky District, Bryansk Oblast, Russia, located on the Iput River southwest of Bryansk. Population: 1,599 ....
, Velizh
Velizh
Velizh is a town and the administrative center of Velizhsky District of Smolensk Oblast, Russia, situated on the bank of the Western Dvina, from Smolensk. Population:...
. The motive for this was that this territory once belonged to Grand Duchy of Lithuania.
1918-1990
The Pahonia appeared on the state seal of the Belarusian National RepublicBelarusian National Republic
The Belarusian People's Republic was a self-declared independent Belarusian state, which declared independence in 1918. It is also called the Belarusian Democratic Republic or the Belarusian National Republic, in order to distinguish it from Communist People's Republics...
for a short period between 1918 and 1919. West Belarus
West Belarus
West Belarus is the name used in reference to the territory of modern Belarus which belonged to the Second Polish Republic between 1919 and 1939. The area of West Belarus was annexed into the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic following staged elections soon after the Nazi-Soviet Invasion of...
became part of interwar Poland, and the Pahonia was used as the symbol of several provinces which had sizeable Belarusian minorities, namely the Polesie Voivodeship
Polesie Voivodeship
Polesie Voivodeship was an administrative unit of interwar Poland . It ceased to exist in September 1939, following German and Soviet aggression on Poland .-Population:...
, the Wilno Voivodeship (1923–1939), and the Nowogródek Voivodeship (1919–1939). It was also used by West Belarusian separatist organizations.
During Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
times the emblem was forbidden and used only by Belarusian emigrant communities in the USA, Canada, and elsewhere. During the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the Belarusian Central Rada
Belarusian Central Rada
The Belarusian Central Rada was nominally the government of Belarus from 1943–44. It was a collaborationist government established by Nazi Germany within the occupation and colonial administration of Reichskommissariat Ostland.- Timeline :...
, a puppet Nazi régime in Belarus, also used the Pahonia symbol.
1918-1990
In the late 1980s, during a new wave of Belarusian national rebirth, the Belarusian Popular Front adopted the Pahonia as its coat of armsCoat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
, despite the fact that its public display constituted a criminal offense. In 1990, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union
Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
, the Pahonia became the coat of arms of the independent Republic of Belarus.
In 1995, following a controversial referendum, Alexander Lukashenko
Alexander Lukashenko
Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko has been serving as the President of Belarus since 20 July 1994. Before his career as a politician, Lukashenko worked as director of a state-owned agricultural farm. Under Lukashenko's rule, Belarus has come to be viewed as a state whose conduct is out of line...
scrapped the Pahonia's status as the official coat of arms and replaced it with a modified Soviet emblem
National emblem of Belarus
The national emblem of Belarus , which replaced the historic Pahonia arms in a 1995 referendum, features a ribbon in the colors of the national flag, a map of Belarus, wheat ears and a red star. It is sometimes referred to as the coat of arms of Belarus, although this is incorrect due to the lack...
. Since then the Pahonia has served as one of the symbols of the anti-Lukashenko opposition
Opposition (politics)
In politics, the opposition comprises one or more political parties or other organized groups that are opposed to the government , party or group in political control of a city, region, state or country...
in Belarus.
Pahonia as a regional coats of arms
Pahonia has been the main element of emblems of all Voivodeships on the lands of modern Belarus in the times of the Grand Duchy of LithuaniaGrand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state from the 12th /13th century until 1569 and then as a constituent part of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until 1791 when Constitution of May 3, 1791 abolished it in favor of unitary state. It was founded by the Lithuanians, one of the polytheistic...
and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
.
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After annexation of Belarus to the Russian Empire, the Vitebsk
Vitebsk
Vitebsk, also known as Viciebsk or Vitsyebsk , is a city in Belarus, near the border with Russia. The capital of the Vitebsk Oblast, in 2004 it had 342,381 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth largest city...
and Vilno governorates have inherited coats of arms of their former voivodeships.
Pahonia is official emblem of the Vitsebsk voblast
Vitsebsk Voblast
Vitsebsk Voblast or Vitebsk Oblast is a province of Belarus with its administrative center being Vitebsk .As of a 2009 estimate, the voblast has a population of 1,230,800...
and part of official emblem of the Homyel voblast.
Appearances on urban coats of arms
While being part of the Russian EmpireRussian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
, some towns in Belarus, notably Viciebsk, Haradok
Haradok
Haradok is a town in Vitebsk Province in Belarus with the population of 34,700 people. Approximately 14,000 people reside in the town itself around 30,000 people reside within the district. Haradok district is one of the largest in the country. The town is located on the north-east of Belarus and...
, Połacak and others, were given Pahonia as part of their coats of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
. Some of them continue usage of Russian-given coats today:
Rečyca, Mahiloŭ and several other cities have historically had the Pahonia as part of their city coat of arms:
Pahonia as a political symbol
Pahonia/Pogoń has been used by several political movements on the territory of the former Grand Duchy of LithuaniaGrand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state from the 12th /13th century until 1569 and then as a constituent part of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until 1791 when Constitution of May 3, 1791 abolished it in favor of unitary state. It was founded by the Lithuanians, one of the polytheistic...
and in present-day Belarus
Other usage
Pahonia is part of the emblems of several organizations in Belarus, including the World Association of BelarusiansWorld Association of Belarusians
The World Association of Belarusians "Baćkaŭščyna" is an international organisation uniting people of Belarusian descent globally. Currently 135 organisations of the Belarusian diaspora from 28 countries are members of Baćkaŭščyna.The organisation was founded in 1990...
, the Frantsishak Skaryna Belarusian Language Society
Frantsishak Skaryna Belarusian Language Society
The Frantsishak Skaryna Belarusian Language Society is an association in Belarus. The association's main activity is promotion and development of the Belarusian language...
, the Union of Poles of Belarus as well as the BelaPAN
BelaPAN
The Belarusian Private News Agency or shortly BelaPAN is an independent Belarusian news agency and one of the main Belarusian news agencies along with the state-controlled BelTA....
news agency.
See also
- Pogoń Litewska coat of arms
- Pogoń Ruska coat of arms
- Coat of arms of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
- Coat of arms of LithuaniaCoat of arms of LithuaniaThe coat of arms of Lithuania, consisting of an armor-clad knight on horseback holding an olden sword and shield, is also known as Vytis . The Lithuanian coat of arms is one of the oldest national coats of arms in Europe...
(Vytis)