Tadeusz Rejtan entered into the history books because of his courageous struggle against the first partition of Rzecz Pospolita. During the 1773 partition he headed a small group of ambassadors from the Belarusian lands of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania who, appealing to the laws of the state, spent four days attempting to persuade others to back down from their treacherous plans. The partition act however, was ultimately signed. Despite their defeat, the brave defenders of the Fatherland; Belarusian Litwins Tadeusz Rejtan, Samuel Korsak (both from Novogrudok) and Stanislaw Bohuszewicz-Minkowski (from Minsk) remained forever in world history as an example of sincere patriotism.
Participants of the festival vividly present history
Undoubtedly, Tadeusz Rejtan is the best remembered amongst them; his personality has inspired Belarusian painters, poets and writers for more than 200 years. Through a combination of circumstances, his name is almost forgotten in his homeland, though he is well thought of beyond the borders of the country. The festival in Minsk marked 275th years since Tadeusz’ birth. The curators of the festival, the Tadeusz Rejtan Art Community, are keen to create a state memorial museum in Rejtans estate. This is situated in Grushevka village in the region of Lyakhovichi. This would be similar to an estate museum which was built in honour of Adam Mickiewicz, Napoleon Orda and Tadeusz Kosciuszko, as well as the families of Niemcewicz, Puslowski and Stanislav Zhukovsky.
The festival at Minsk’s Arts Palace brought together painters, poets, writers, musicians, performers and local historians from all corners of Belarus. The two-week festival programme featured concerts and literary-musical events, with meetings organised with opera singer and populariser of Belarus’ musical heritage, Victor Skorobogatov and famous historian Ales Kravtsevich. The works by writer Vladimir Korotkevich occupied a special place in the exhibition, alongside pieces by painter Jazep Drozdowicz.
The unique range of work Rejtan Family. Faces. Events, encompassed around a hundred works occupying the core of the exhibition space. The festival’s curators, Ales Rodin and Dmitry Yurkevich, played a significant role in the organisation of the event.
By Vladimir Velikhov
