Coexistence of nations and religions on the eastern areas of the Congress Kingdom of Poland

Augustów County was one of the eight Congress Kingdom of Poland. In the year 1866 it was devided into Łomża and Suwałki guberniyas. Coexistance of different nations and religions on this area is discussed in the following work. As regards nations, there lived the Polish, Lithuanians, White Russians, Russians, Germans and Jews, however as it regards religions there lived: Roman - Catholics, Greek - Catholics, members of the Orthodox Church, Evangelical as well as Jewish faith. In the end of the previous century one could observe differences as it comes to the use of the Polish and Lithuanian languages during the service in the Roman Catholic Church. Contacts of the Greek Catholics and the Catholics of the Latin rite were proper. The feeling of unfriendliness could be observed between Catholics and members of the Ortodox Church and to a smaller extent to Evangelics. There was a distinct difference between the Christians and members of the Jewish faith who made people feel great antipathy to them. As a rule religion agreed with the nationality, any change of the religion meant abandonment of his own nation. The Government issued a lot of regulations and laws as regards the latter, mostly for the Jewish. Conversion from Mosaism to Catholic religion was not wery popular, the same was between Christian religions. This conversion was mostly made due to mixed marriages. Until the time of January Uprise each religion had its own elementary schools. After the year 1864 schools were overtaken by the civil parishes which introduced gradually Russian language as the common one for all of them