In Europe, culture made significant contributionin strengthening nationalistic feelings.

Romanticism was a cultural movement, which sought to develop a particular form of nationalist sentiment. Criticizing the glorification of reason and science, it made an effort to create a sense of shared collective heritage, a common cultural past as the basis of a nation.

Folk culture such as folk songs, folk poetry and folk dances popularized the true spirit of the nation and united common people.

Language too played an important role in developing nationalist sentiments. After the Russian occupation, the Polish language was forced out of schools and the Russian language was imposed everywhere. A large number of priests and bishops, however, used Polish for church gatherings and all religious instructions. So, they were put in jail or sent to Siberia by the Russian authorities as punishment. Thus, the use of Polish came to be seen as a symbol of the struggle against Russian dominance. The emphasis on vernacular language and the collection of local folklore was not just to recover an ancient national spirit, but also to carry the modern nationalist message to a large audience who were mostly illiterate.