The Belarusian Democratic Republic (BNR; Belarusian: Беларуская Народная Рэспубліка, romanized: Belaruskaya Narodnaya Respublika, БНР) was a state proclaimed by the Council of the Belarusian Democratic Republic in its Second Constituent Charter on 9 March 1918 during World War I. The Council proclaimed the Belarusian Democratic Republic independent in its Third Constituent Charter on 25 March 1918 during the occupation of the contemporary Belarus by the Imperial German Army.The government of the Belarusian Democratic Republic never had power over the whole territory of Belarus. In 1919, it co-existed with an alternative Communist government of Belarus (the Socialist Soviet Republic of Byelorussia, which later became part of the Lithuanian–Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic), moving its seat of government to Vilnius and Grodno, but ceased to exist due to the capture of the whole Belarusian territory by Polish and Socialist Soviet Republic of Byelorussia forces during the Polish–Soviet War of 1919–1921.Currently, its government in exile, the Rada (Council) of the Belarusian Democratic Republic is the oldest still functioning government in exile.