|
 The
foundation of Vilnius
Vilnius is the capital of
Lithuania and one of the country's oldest cities. It stretches along both
banks of the fast flowing Neris River, and is set among hills
with pine
forests. Vilnius is a very old city indeed.
The name of Vilnius derives from the
name of stream Vilnia which flows right across the heart of the city.
Archaeological excavations have revealed that people inhabited the valley
at the Gediminas Hill on the confluence of the Vilnia and Neris rivers as
early as the l-st century A. D. Traditionally, however, the foundation of
a city is traced back to the first official mentioning of the city's name.
The honour for founding Vilnius
is justly given to Gediminas (a Lithuanian Duke) in the year 1323.
According to the
Lithuanian Folk Culture Centre,
here is the myth about the foundation of Vilnius
At first the Lithuanian capital
was Kernave. But having found a beautiful place on a group of lakes during
one of his hunts, Grand Duke Gediminas founded Trakai and moved his
capital there. Soon after that he went on a hunt again and four miles away
from Trakai, on a beautiful hill on the shore of the Vilnia river, he shot
a huge aurochs. Since that time the hill has been known as Aurochs Hill.
It was too late to return to Trakai, and the Grand Duke camped for the
night in the Sventaragis valley on the Vilnia river, the sacred place
where Lithuanian dukes used to be cremated. In his sleep Gediminas had a
dream: he dreamed an iron-clad wolf which was standing at the top of the
Crooked Hill (now called the Bald Hill) and howling as if there were a
hundred wolves inside it. The High Priest, Lizdeika, interpreted the dream
for the Grand Duke in the following way: the iron-clad wolf meant that
Grand Duke was going to build a city, his future capital, at the foot of
the hill. The howling of the wolf meant that the
fame of the city would spread far and wide in the world.
Grand Duke Gediminas collected a great number of people and built two
castles - the Lower castle in Sventaragis valley and the Upper castle at
the top of Crooked Hill. He gave the city around the castles the name of
Vilnius and transferred his capital there.
The legend has great
deal of truth in it. In 1985 archaeologists
uncovered the remnants of the ancient pagan temple which had stood right
on the site of the present Cathedral.
Having
declared Vilnius his "royal town", Gediminas created the conditions for
its subsequent growth as the political, economical and cultural centre of
Lithuania. The fortress on Castle Hill was used for defense purposes and
was called the Upper Castle.
Old Vilnius emerged over hundreds of
years, expanding, changing, and embodying the creative imagination and
experience of many generations of architects and builders from Lithuania
and abroad; under the care of generous and perceptive benefactors, it
became a city rich in architectural treasures and urban harmony.
Following the craftsmen in other European towns at the end of the 15th
century, Vilnius craftsmen began to join together by professions into
guilds. Many Catholic churches and monasteries appeared in the town. Stone
buildings sprang up inside the Lower Castle. The new Cathedral was among
them. Crafts and trade continued to develop in the 16th century. Many
beautiful new buildings in the late Gothic and Renaissance style appeared
in the town. The most significant event in the cultural life of 16th
century Lithuania was the founding of the Vilnius Academy in 1579, which
was endowed with the rights and privileges of a university. In 1795
Vilnius became the centre of a new gubernia consisting of the lands
annexed to the Russian Empire. A number of new Classical style buildings
were built, including the Cathedral, which had been reconstructed at the
end of the 18th century, a new town hall, and the Governor-Generals'
Palace. In 1860, a railway, the first in Lithuania, crossed Vilnius and
connected with St. Petersburg and Warsaw.
During World War I Vilnius was occupied by the Kaiser's troops for three
and a half years. On 16 February, 1918, Lithuanian Council in Vilnius
proclaimed an independent Lithuanian Republic. In the autumn of 1920,
Vilnius and the region to which it belonged were occupied by Poland. On
October 10th, 1939, Lithuania and the Soviet Union signed a treaty on
mutual aid, in accordance with which Vilnius and the Vilnius Region were
returned to Lithuania. In 1940, Vilnius became the capital of Soviet
Lithuania, which meant it was an administrative centre of occupied
Lithuania.
On March 11th, 1990, the Supreme Council restored Lithuania's
independence.
May 1st 2004
The EU lets in Lithuania as a fully
commissioned member. The fact was received by the people of Lithuania with
joy and many manifestations were organized to commemorate the historical
day. Europe expects Lithuania to enrich the European culture with its rich
cultural tradition. Not to mention the back thought in the minds of many
European citizens: the eventual evolution of EU to the United States of
Europe, where Lithuania, together with its other two sister Baltic States,
will be a worthy jewel. |
