Prior to First World War
Both Homo erectus and Neanderthal remains have been found in the region. From 5,000 to 2,000 BCE, Bandkeramik cultures predominated. In addition, remains for the Dnieper-Donets culture were found in Belarus and parts of Ukraine. Cimmerians and other pastoralists roamed through the area by 1,000 BCE, and by 500 BCE, Slavs had taken up residence in the area, which was circumscribed by the Scythians who roamed its outskirts. Various Asiatic barbarian by the Huns and Avars swept through c. 400–600 CE, but were unable to dislodge the Slavic presence.
The region that is now Belarus was first settled by Slavic tribes in the 6th century. They gradually came into contact with the Varangians, bands of Scandinavian warriors and traders. Though defeated and briefly exiled by the local population, the Varangians were later asked to return and helped to form a polity—commonly referred to as the Kievan Rus'—in exchange for tribute. The state of Kievan Rus' originated in 862 in the vicinity of either Kiev or the present-day city of Novgorod.
Upon the death of Kievan Rus' ruler Yaroslav I the Wise, the state split into independent principalities. These Ruthenian principalities were badly affected by a Mongol invasion in the 13th century, and many were later incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Of the principalities held by the Duchy, nine were settled by ancestors of the Belarusian people. During this time the Duchy was involved in several military campaigns, including fighting on the side of Poland against the Teutonic Knights at the Battle of Grunwald in 1410; the joint victory allowed the Duchy to control the northwestern borderlands of Eastern Europe.
On 2 February 1386, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland were joined in a personal union through a marriage of their rulers. This union set in motion the developments that eventually resulted in the formation of the Polish–Lithuanian
