Background
Y. Chachot was born in the estate of Malyushytsy of the Navahrudak district (now in the Karelichi district of the Hrodna Region ), into the family of a modest nobleman, who was an estate tenant. The future poet’s childhood was spent in Repihava (near Baranavichy).
In 1815, after finishing school in Navahrudak, he entered the department of ethical and political sciences of Vilna University at the same time with A. Mickiewicz. But a year later financial instability forced the poet to stop his studies and get a job at Vilna bureau dealing with sorting out the princes Radziwills’ archives. In spite of frequent trips, the friendly connections with Philomats and Philarets did not break off.
At students’ gatherings Y. Chechot was a constant organizer of theatrical performances, composed poems in Belarusian, ‘choruses’ and dramatic sketches for them. Song Da Pakintse zh Gorla Drats (Stop Overstraining Your Voice) with his lyrics was very popular among the Philomats. Y. Chachot, who was a few years older than A.Mickiewicz, turned to the treasures of Belarusian folklore a bit earlier than his friend did.
First success came to the young poet not with writing operetta libretto Malgozata from Zembacin (though it was highly praised by Mickiewicz), but with the ballads Navahrudak Castle, Kaldychava Pike, Myshanka, Uznogi where the local legends were used creatively. In fact, they laid the beginning of Romanticism in Polish literature. Combined with the encouragement from Maryla Vereshchaka near Svityaz, they had a major influence on Mickiewicz’s switch from classicist to romantic principles in his creative work. In fact, the brilliant ‘student’ surpassed his temporary ‘teacher’, because he did not follow the rules precisely, but, proceeding from them, raised to creative generalizations. Nevertheless, A. Mickiewicz remained grateful to Y. Chachot for new guidelines in the creative work.
In 1823, Y.Chachot, together with other members of the secret societies was jailed in the former Basilian cloister. After the announcement of the court decision he was exiled first to Kizil, and then, because of his health problems, to Ufa where he served in a bureau of the local governor and gained great authority. Finally, in 1833 he was allowed to return to the Belarusian lands: to Lepel, where he worked at the administration of the Berezinsky canal. There again he took a keen interest in the Belarusian folklore, started recording local traditional songs (either himself or with the help of his acquaintances).
In 1841, he came to his native area of Navahrudak, to Shchorsy, where he worked as librarian for the famous book collections of the Hraptovichs.
In 1837–1846 Y.Chachot published in Vilna six books of Belarusian Country Songs, containing a thousand texts recorded in the areas of the rivers Nyoman, Dzvina and Dnieper. The first five books contained Polish translations, while in the sixth book the texts were original. The folklore records were accompanied by original poems in Belarusian written by Y.Chachot. Thus, Y.Chachot made an important for the Belarusian literature step forward, setting an example for others. Though, the Belarusian poems by the author of Country Songs are not distinguished artistically. They are spoilt by didacticism. The poet used primitivism deliberately to descend to the level of illiterate peasants, to whom, as he hoped, educated and humane gentry would read his poems, thus promoting the society’s moral revival. Philomats’ aspirations for decisive actions were changed for enlightenment evolutionism.
Y. Chachot’s introductions and comments to Country Songs are of great importance for the Belarusian culture. There he expressed his ideas on Belarusian people’s life, its folklore and language. A small Belarusian dictionary and about a hundred of Belarusian sayings are attached to the introduction of the 1846 collection. The language and folklore content of ‘Slavic-Krivichi songs’ were examined in a wide context, compared with Polish, Russian and Ukrainian analogues. But first and foremost, their peculiarity and originality are emphasized. In the recorded works, as was stated in the introduction to 1844 edition, one can feel ‘special attractiveness, form novelty and laconic brevity in the expression of feelings’, which ‘salon writers’ lack.
In the spring of 1847, he went to Druskeniki (now Druskininkai, Lithuania) for medical treatment, where he died. He was buried near the cathedral in the neighbouring village Rotnitsa. A tombstone bore an inscription in verse from Anton Odyniec, «His name will always be in his Fatherland next to Adam Mickiewicz and Tomash Zan».
