| Trakai | |||
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| Coordinates: | |||
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| Country |  Lithuania |
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| Ethnographic region | Aukštaitija | ||
| County | Vilnius County | ||
| Municipality | Trakai district municipality | ||
| Elderate | Trakai elderate | ||
| Capital of | Trakai district municipality Trakai elderate |
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| First mentioned | 1337 | ||
| Granted city rights | 1409 | ||
| Population (2007) | |||
| - Total | 5,406 | ||
| - Rank | 56th | ||
| Time zone | EET (UTC+2) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | EEST (UTC+3) | ||
.png/100px-Coat_of_arms_of_Trakai_(Lithuania).png)
Trakai is a historic town and lake resort in Lithuania. Wikipedia talkFeatured lists for an explanation of this and other inclusion tags below -->This list of countries, arranged alphabetically Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania (Lietuvos Respublika is a Country in Eastern often referred to as Northern Europe or in the Lithuania can be divided into historical and cultural regions (called Ethnographic regions Wikipedia_talkFeatured_lists#Proposed_change_to_all_featured_lists for an explanation of this and other inclusion tags below -->The territory of Lithuania Vilnius County (Vilniaus apskritis Okręg wileński is the largest of the 10 counties of Lithuania, located in the east of the country around the City Wikipedia_talkFeatured_lists#Proposed_change_to_all_featured_lists for an explanation of this and other inclusion tags below --> Municipalities of Lithuania ||} Seniūnija ( elderate or eldership in English is the smallest administrative division of Lithuania. The Trakai district municipality is one of 60 municipalities in Lithuania. Magdeburg Rights (Magdeburger Recht or Magdeburg Law were a set of German town laws regulating the degree of internal autonomy within cities and villages granted with In Lithuania there are 103 cities (in Lithuanian: singular – miestas Plural – miestai Eastern European Time ( EET) is one of the names of UTC+2 Time zone, 2 hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. UTC+2 corresponds to the following Time zones Eastern European Time Egypt Standard Time Central Africa Time Daylight saving time ( DST Eastern European Summer Time ( EEST) is one of the names of UTC+3 Time zone, 3 hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. UTC+3 is used in the following locations Moscow Time Eastern European Summer Time West Asian Summer Time Trakai Island Castle is located in Trakai, Lithuania on an island on the shores of Lake Galvė. A town is a type of settlement ranging from a few to several thousand (occasionally hundreds of thousands inhabitants although it may be applied loosely even to huge metropolitan Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania (Lietuvos Respublika is a Country in Eastern often referred to as Northern Europe or in the It lies 28 km west of Vilnius, capital of Lithuania. Because of its proximity to Vilnius, Trakai is a popular tourist destination. Trakai is the administrative centre of Trakai district municipality. The Trakai district municipality is one of 60 municipalities in Lithuania. The town covers 11. 52 km² of area and, according to 2007 estimates, is inhabitated by 5,406 people. A distinctive feature of Trakai is that the town was built and preserved by people of different nationalities. Communities of Karaims, Tatars, Lithuanians, Russians, Jews and Poles lived here side by side. The Crimean Karaites (Crimean Karaim: sg къарай - qaray, pl Tatars ( Tatar: Tatarlar/Татарлар sometimes spelled Tartars, are a Turkic -speaking ethnic group or multiple ethnic groups Lithuanians are the Baltic Ethnic group native to Lithuania, where they number a little over 3 million The Russian people (Русские— Russkie) are an East Slavic Ethnic group, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ The Polish people, or Poles, (Polacy) are a Western Slavic Ethnic group of Central Europe, living predominantly in Poland.
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Name
Name of the town is known since 1337 as first recorded in chronicles as German: Tracken; it is a derivative from the Lithuanian word trakai (singular: trakas meaning a glade in English). The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Lithuanian ( lietuvių kalba) is the official state language of Lithuania and is recognised as one of the official languages of the European Union. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States Since the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the city was referred to as Troki in Polish. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, officially the Commonwealth of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania also known as the Most Serene Republic Polish ( język polski, polszczyzna) is the Official language of Poland.
Demographics
Trakai's majority of inhabitants (61%) is Lithuanian, it has a substantial Polish minority (21%), as well as Russian.
Geography
There are 200 lakes in the region, of which the deepest (46. A lake (from Latin lacus) is a Terrain feature (or Physical feature) a body of Liquid on the surface of a world that is localized to the 7 m) is Galvė with its 21 islands. Lake Galvė is a Lake in Trakai Lithuania. It has 21 islands and one of them houses Trakai Island Castle. An island (ˈaɪlənd or isle (/ˈaɪl/ is any piece of land that is completely surrounded by water in two dimensions above high tide and isolated from other significant Galvė covers an area of 3. 88 km², Vilkokšnis lake - 3. 37 km², the lake of Skaistis - 2. 96 km². There are Trakai Historical National Park and Aukštadvaris Regional Park founded in the territory of the region. Trakai Historical National Park is a National park in Lithuania. Aukštadvaris is a Town in Trakai district municipality in Lithuania on Verknė river
Trakai Historical National Park was founded on April 23, 1991 to preserve Trakai as a centre of Lithuanian statehood as well as its authentic nature. Events 215 BC - A temple is built on the Capitoline Hill dedicated to Venus Erycina to commemorate the Roman defeat at Year 1991 ( MCMXCI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar. It is the only historical national park not only in Lithuania but also throughout Europe. The territory of the park covers 82 km², 34 km² of which are covered by forests, and 130 km² are covered by lakes.
Aukštadvaris Regional Park was founded in 1992 to preserve the valuable landscapes of Verknė and Strėva upper reaches. Strėva River is a river in Trakai and Kaunas district municipalities, Lithuania. The area of the park is 153. 50 km², most of which is covered by forests. There are 72 lakes here, the biggest of which is Vilkokšnis.
Trakai is a town built on water. The town is surrounded by the lakes of Luka (Bernardinai), Totoriškės, Galvė, Akmena, Gilušis. There are a number of architectural, cultural and historical monuments in Trakai. The history museum in the castle was established in 1962. Festivals and concerts take place in the island castle in summer.
History
Beginnings
The first settlements in this area appeared as early as the first millennium A. D. The town, as well as its surroundings, started developing in the 13th century in the place of Senieji Trakai (Old Trakai). Senieji Trakai (literally "Old" Trakai is a historic Lithuanian village located 3 km east of Trakai, with 1500 inhabitants According a legend, after a successful hunting party, Grand Duke Gediminas discovered a beautiful lake-surrounded place not far from Kernavė, then capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and decided to build a castle in the location. Gediminas (ca 1275 – winter 1341 was the Monarch of medieval Grand Duchy of Lithuania with the title lt didysis kunigaikštis (вялікі князь Kernavė, a medieval Capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, today is a tourist and archeological village (with The Grand Duchy of Lithuania (Lietuvos Didžioji Kunigaikštystė old literary Lithuanian Didi Kunigiste Letuvos, Ruthenian: Wialikaje Kniastwa Litowskaje That is how the Old Trakai Castle was built in Senieji Trakai. Senieji Trakai Castle was a Castle in Senieji Trakai (literally Old Trakai in Lithuania. The name of Trakai was first mentioned in Teutonic Knights chronicles in 1337. The Teutonic Order is a German Roman Catholic religious order. This year is considered to be the official date of town's foundation. When Grand Duke Gediminas finally settled in Vilnius, Senieji Trakai was inherited by his son the Duke Kęstutis. Kęstutis (kæsˈtuːtıs born ca 1297 died on August 3 or August 15, 1382 in Kreva) was Monarch of medieval Lithuania Duchy of Trakai developed and the town entered its best decades.
Golden age
Grand Duke Kęstutis moved the town from Senieji Trakai to its current location, which is sometimes known as Naujieji Trakai. The litas ( ISO currency code LTL symbolized as Lt plural litai or litų) is the currency of Lithuania. Trakai Peninsula Castle is in Trakai, Lithuania. The Castle was built in the 14th century by Kęstutis, the Duke of Lithuania in the peninsula Kęstutis (kæsˈtuːtıs born ca 1297 died on August 3 or August 15, 1382 in Kreva) was Monarch of medieval Lithuania The new location was a place of intensive construction: a new castle was built in the strait between lakes Galvė and Luka and known as the Peninsula Castle, and another one, known as the Island Castle, on an island in Lake Galvė. Trakai Peninsula Castle is in Trakai, Lithuania. The Castle was built in the 14th century by Kęstutis, the Duke of Lithuania in the peninsula Trakai Island Castle is located in Trakai, Lithuania on an island on the shores of Lake Galvė. A village grew around the castles. The new castles were the birthplace of the most famous ruler of Lithuania – Vytautas the Great. Vytautas the Great ( Lithuanian:; Vitaŭt; Latin: Alexander Vitoldus; Witold Ruthenian: Vitovt; c Vicinity of Trakai was protected by Senieji Trakai, Strėva, Bražuolė, Daniliškės and other hillforts from attacks of the Teutonic Knights. A hill fort is a fortified refuge or defended settlement Despite the protection, both wooden castles were successfully raided by the Teutonic Knights several times in a row.
The town was in the center of a conflict between Grand Duke Jogaila (later to become King of Poland) with his uncle Kęstutis. Jogaila, later Władysław II Jagiełło (b about 1362 d 1 June 1434 was Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland. Kęstutis (kæsˈtuːtıs born ca 1297 died on August 3 or August 15, 1382 in Kreva) was Monarch of medieval Lithuania In 1382 Jogaila's and Kęstutis armies met near Trakai, but Jogaila tricked Kęstutis and imprisoned him in Kreva. Kreva (Крэва 'krɛva Krėva Krevas Krewo is a township in Hrodna Voblast, Belarus. A few weeks later Kęstutis dies in captivity and Jogaila transferred the castles to his brother Skirgaila, who became a governor of Lithuania Proper. Skirgaila, also known as Ivan; ca 1353 or 1354 – 11 January 1397 in Kiev; baptized 1383/1384 as Casimir) was a regent of the However, his rule was briefly interrupted when in 1383 joint forces of Kęstutis's son Vytautas and the Teutonic Knights captured the town. In 1392 Vytautas and Jogaila signed Astrava Treaty ending their quarrel. The Ostrów or Astrava Agreement (Astravos sutartis Ugoda w Ostrowie was a treaty between Jogaila (Władysław II Jagiełło King of Poland and Vytautas became the Grand Duke of Lithuania while Jogaila technically remained his superior. Vytautas also regained his father's lands, including Trakai. Despite his official capital being Vilnius, Vytautas spent more time in Trakai. In early 15th century he replaced the older, wooden fortress with a stone-built castle. Some design elements were borrowed from the castles of the Teutonic Knights as Vytautas spent some time with the Teutons forming an alliance against Jogaila in earlier years.
Trakai became a political and an administrative centre of the Duchy, sometimes named a de facto capital of Lithuania. [1] Construction of the brick castles was finished and a Catholic church was built. In 1409 the town was granted with Magdeburg Rights; it one of the first towns in Lithuania to get city rights. Magdeburg Rights (Magdeburger Recht or Magdeburg Law were a set of German town laws regulating the degree of internal autonomy within cities and villages granted with The village started rapidly developing into a town. In 1413 it became a seat of the Trakai Voivodeship and a notable center of administration and commerce. Trakai Voivodeship, Trakai Palatinate, or Troki Voivodeship (Trakų vaivadija Województwo Trockie was a unit of administrative division and local government
Decline and reconstruction
After the Grand Duchy of Lithuania joined the Kingdom of Poland into Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1569, the castles remained a royal property, but the town's importance gradually declined, with the nearby Vilnius and the political center of the Commonwealth in Kraków being far more important. The Grand Duchy of Lithuania (Lietuvos Didžioji Kunigaikštystė old literary Lithuanian Didi Kunigiste Letuvos, Ruthenian: Wialikaje Kniastwa Litowskaje The Kingdom of Poland of the Jagiellons was the Polish state created by the accession of Wladislaus II Jagiełło, Grand Duke of Lithuania, to The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, officially the Commonwealth of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania also known as the Most Serene Republic Kraków, in English also spelled Krakow or Cracow (ˈkrækaʊ M-W: krăk'ou krāk'ō is one of the largest and oldest cities in Poland Nevertheless, it continued to be the seat of local Sejmik. A sejmik (diminutive of the Polish word " Sejm " meaning a type of Parliament) was a regional assembly in the Polish–Lithuanian In Polish sources the town name was started to be referred to as Troki. In 1477 the castle on the lake was a meeting place of king Casimir IV of Poland with Venetian envoys. Casimir IV Jagiellon (Kazimierz IV Jagiellończyk; Kazimieras Jogailaitis Kazimir Jahajłavič 30 November 1427 &ndash Venice ( Italian: Venezia, Venetian: Venesia or Venexia) is a city in Northern Italy, the capital of the After that the castle became sort of a luxurious prison for political prisoners. Sigismund I the Old imprisoned there the members of Goštautai family, believed to be conspiring with Michał Gliński. Sigismund I the Old (Zygmunt I Stary Žygimantas II Senasis 1 January 1467 – 1 April 1548) of the Jagiellon dynasty reigned as Goštautai was a Lithuanian noble family one of the most influential families in the 14-16th centuries Michael Lvovich Glinski (known as Mikhail Lvovich Glinsky in Russian and Michał Gliński in Polish c Also Helena, widow of Alexander of Poland was kept there in order to prevent her escape to Muscovy. Alexander Jagiellon ( Lithuanian: Aleksandras Jogailaitis; Polish: Aleksander Jagiellończyk; 5 August 1461 – 19 August The Grand Duchy of Moscow (Великое княжество Московское was a medieval Russian polity centered on Moscow between 1340 and The castle was refurbished by king Sigismund I of Poland, who set up his summer residence there. Sigismund I the Old (Zygmunt I Stary Žygimantas II Senasis 1 January 1467 – 1 April 1548) of the Jagiellon dynasty reigned as However, after his death in 1548 the castle gradually fell into disrepair.
During the wars between Russia and Poland between 1654 and 1667 the town was plundered and burnt. The Russo-Polish War of 1654–1667, also called the War for Ukraine, was the last major conflict between the Tsardom of Russia and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth In the effect of the war with Muscovy in 1655, both castles were demolished and the town's prosperity finally collapsed. The Grand Duchy of Moscow (Великое княжество Московское was a medieval Russian polity centered on Moscow between 1340 and The castle ruins remained a historical landmark. During the Great Northern War (1700–1721) Trakai was plundered gain, famine and plague swept through the country. The Great Northern War (1700-21 was fought between Russia and Sweden for supremacy in the Baltic Sea.
After the Partitions of Poland in 1795, the area was annexed by the Russian Empire. The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya After the World War I, the area was captured by Poland. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland In 1929 Polish authorities ordered reconstruction of the Trakai Island Catle. The works in the Upper castle were almost complete in 1939, when the Polish Defensive War started and the area was soon annexed by the Soviet Union and then by Nazi Germany. The Invasion of Poland (1939 precipitated World War II. It was carried out by Nazi Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small German-allied The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 During the war, more than 5000 Jews from the Trakai region were murdered by the Nazis. In 1944, during Operation Tempest, the town was liberated by joint forces of the Polish Home Army and Soviet partisans. Operation Tempest (Akcja Burza Plan Burza sometimes also rendered into English as Operation Storm) was a series of uprisings conducted during World War II by the The Soviet partisans were members of a Resistance movement which fought a Guerrilla war against the Axis occupation of the Soviet Union After World War II it was again annexed by the Soviets. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including
In 1961 the reconstruction of the upper castle and a high tower construction were complete. Then the works came to a halt as a result of Nikita Khrushchev's speech of December 21, 1960. Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (April 17 1894 – September 11 1971 served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 following Events 69 - The end of the Year of the four emperors: Following Galba, Otho and Vitellius, Vespasian Year 1960 ( MCMLX) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Soviet First Secretary declared that reconstruction of the castle would be a sign of glorification of Lithuania's feudal past. Feudalism, a term first used in the early modern period (17th century in its most classic sense refers to a Medieval Europe Political system composed Works in the lower castle were not restarted until the 1980s and were completed by the Lithuanian authorities in the early 1990s. Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania (Lietuvos Respublika is a Country in Eastern often referred to as Northern Europe or in the Today the Island Castle serves as the main tourist attraction and hosts various cultural events like operas and concerts.
Karaim community
Karaims (or Karaites) are a small Turkic-speaking religious and ethnic group resettled to Trakai by Grand Duke Vytautas in 1397 and 1398 from Crimea, after one of his successful military campaigns against the Golden Horde. Kenesa is the term for a Karaite or Persian Synagogue. The word derives from the Aramaic word for "assembly" (in Hebrew, The Crimean Karaites (Crimean Karaim: sg къарай - qaray, pl The Karaim language (Crimean dialect къарай тили Trakai dialect karaj tili is a Turkic language with Hebrew influences in a similar manner to Crimea (kraɪˈmiːə or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea (Крим Автономна Республіка Крим Avtonomna Respublika Krym; Крым This article refers to the medieval Turkic state For the Irish rock band see The Golden Horde (band. Both Christian and Karaim communities were granted separate self-government in accordance with the Magdeburg Rights. Despite ever increasing Polonisation, Trakai remained a notable center of Karaim cultural and religious life. Polonization (polonizacja is the acquisition or imposition Some famous scholars were active in Trakai in the 16th and 17th centuries, such as Isaac ben Abraham of Trakai (1533–1594?), Joseph ben Mordecai Malinovski, Zera ben Nathan of Trakai, Salomon ben Aharon of Trakai, Ezra ben Nissan (died in 1666) and Josiah ben Judah (died after 1658). As a means of recording the passage of Time, the 17th Century was that Century which lasted from 1601 - 1700 in the Gregorian calendar Some of the Karaims became wealthy and noble. The local Karaim community, the backbone of the town's economy, suffered severely during the Chmielnicki Uprising and the massacres of 1648. The term Khmelnytsky Uprising (also Khmel'nyts'kyi/Chmielnicki Uprising or Khmelnytsky / Chmielnicki Rebellion) refers to a Rebellion or By 1680 only 30 Karaim families were left in the town. Their traditions, including not accepting neofites, prevented the community from recuperating its strength. Religious conversion is the adoption of a new religious identity or a change from one religious identity to another Early in the 18th century war, famine, and plague reduced the Karaims only to three families. The 18th century lasted from 1701 to 1800 in the Gregorian calendar, in accordance with the Anno Domini / Common Era numbering system By 1765 Karaim community increased to 300.
Sister cities
A partnership agreement was signed with the city of Rheine in Germany in 1996 and Malbork city in Poland in 1997. Rheine is a city in the district of Steinfurt, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Malbork (Marienburg in Westpreußen Civitas Beatae Virginis is a Town in northern Poland in the Żuławy region with 41000 inhabitants (2001 Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Trakai is also a sister city to Alanya in Turkey. Alanya (ɑˈlɑnjɑ is a seaside resort city and district of Antalya Province in the Mediterranean Region of Turkey, 120 km (75 miles from the city Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches
Famous people
References
- ^ (Lithuanian) http://viduramziu.lietuvos.net/socium/sostine2.htm
External links
- Trakai Town Site
- Trakai Historical National Park
- Neringa Latvytė-Gustaitienė. The Holocaut in Trakai Region during WWII (A study in Lithuanian language)
- World Karaite movement
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