History
Summary
- Dziahiĺna is a small town where Kozakiewicz family lived for many centuries.
- Dziahiĺna belonged to Grand Duchy of Lithuania until 1794, to Minsk Governate of Russian Empire until 1919, to Soviet Union until 1991, and now to the independent Republic of Belarus.
- The town and all of its residents were subjects to the powerful magnate Radziwiłł family until 1834. In 1834 the town was purchased by the Januszkiewicz family. In 1879 the town was bought by the Russian Voshchinin family. After the revolution and civil war, all land and property was nationalised by the government and belonged to the state until 1991.
- Most of the residents were likely members of the Greek Catholic Church until 1839, and members of Russian Orthodox Church afterwards.
- The cemetery next to the town is the place of final rest for many of the Kozakiewicz family.
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| The town Dziahiĺna on Napoleon map, early XIX century |
Dziahiĺna (in Belarusian Дзягільна, in Russian Дягильно) is know from XVI century, already in 1588 it belonged to a powerful magnate Radziwiłł family. Until 1794 the was a folwark (farming community) in Kojdanowa county, Minsk Voivodeship in Grand Duchy of Lithuania (of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth).
After the Second partition of the Commonwealth in 1793 (annexation by Russian Empire), Dziahiĺna was assigned to Minsky Uyezd of Minsk Governate of Russian Empire. In the beginning of XX century it had 90 households and 494 inhabitants.
From 1919 part of Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic. From 1991 Dziahiĺna is in Dzyarzhynsk district, of the independent Republic of Belarus. Population 523.
Landowners
During the Polish-Lithuanian Commnweath, Dziahiĺna was part of the vast Radziwill estate – one of the richest families in the kingdom. After the annexation of the country by the Russian Empire, there were specific documents of the landownership in the Russian Imperial census:
- in 1795 property of princess Anelia Woroniecka (nee Miączyńska), widow of prince Hieronim Florian Radziwiłł
- in 1811 property of prince Dominik Hieronim Radziwiłł
- in 1816 property of princess Stefania Radziwiłł
- in 1834 property of Michail Januszkiewicz, father of poet and ethnographer Adolf Januszkiewicz
- in 1850 property of January Januszkiewicz (Adolfs brother)
- in 1879 sold to a Russian Voshchinin family, several farmers owned small plots of land
In 1918 the land and all property was nationalised from by the communists.
Religion
Villagers belonged to three streams of christianity: catholic, eastern orthodox, and byzantine-catholic.
Originally Orthodox christians, after 1596 large proportion of the peasantry followed Union christianity: eastern-orthodox rite under the jurisdiction of the Holy See. In 1839 Russian government outlawed Union and most parishes were converted to Russian Orthodox jurisdiction. Villagers living in Dziahiĺna belonged to parishes in the nearby Kojdanow (now Dziaržynsk). Easter-orthodox christians attended the church of Protection of the Holy Virgin, catholics attended church of St. Hanna. Documents suggest that Kozakiewicz family at different times belonged to all three christian streams.
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| St. Hanna catholic church, photo 1900s |
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| Protection of the Holy Virgin eastern orthodox church, photo 1917 |