Trakai is a city in Vilnius County, 30 km west of the center of Vilnius. The center of Trakai district municipality and borough, 3 boroughs (Naujasodi, Pietinė and Šiaurinė). In the southern part of Trakai, there are culture houses, the central hospital and polyclinic of Trakai district, and a post office. Urbanism monument (since 1969).
Trakai Old Town is one of the 5 state-protected old towns of
Lithuania (169 ha), on the island stands the main attraction of the city
- Trakai Island Castle. An interesting and informative exposition of the
Trakai History Museum in the Castle of the Island. A unique Karaim
ethnographic exhibition. There is Trakai alkakalnis.
In the very
north of the city, on the Castle Island of Lake Galvė, the Gothic castle
of Trakai Island (built from the second half of the 14th century until
the end of Vytautas' reign) has been preserved, where since 1962 the
Trakai History Museum operates. in 1977 Trakai Castle bridge was built
for pedestrians across Galvė. The Karaim bridge, standing in one of the
narrowest parts of the peninsula between Galvė and Totoriški lakes, is
connected with the Karaim history of the city.
In addition to the
island castle, there are many other architectural monuments:
The
remains of the Trakai peninsula castle (XIV century) and the island
castle (beginning of the XV century). There is a park on the peninsula;
parish of Trakai St. Church of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary,
consecrated in 1409, the holy painting of the Mother of God of Trakai,
the burial chapel of the Riomeri family, delivered to the church in
1700;
brick Trakai St. Church of the Nativity of the Mother of God
(built in 1863);
18th century Trakai kenesa and 19th-20th centuries.
the cemetery, the gate and fence of the old cemetery are an
architectural monument (the first one was built in the 15th century);
Trakai Dominican Monastery;
St. John Nepomuk's chapel pillar (a
miraculous painting of the Mother of God crowned by Pope Clement XI in
the 18th century);
to the north of Pilies island, on the peninsula
separating Galvė and Skaištis lakes (former Algirds island), the
Užutrakis manor with a 19th-century the neoclassical manor house built
at the end and the park designed by Eduard Andrė;
Trakai's former
tavern (end of the 18th - beginning of the 19th century);
The remains
of the former Bernardine monastery in Trakai;
Tatarishki manor (XIX
century).
Karaim st. 22, the exposition of the Karaim exhibition of
the Trakai Museum based on the collections of Seraja Šapšalas is open.
After renovation, it was opened in 1997. on June 28, celebrating the
600th anniversary of the settlement of Karaims and Tatars in Lithuania.
Culture:
Trakai Tourism Information Center
Trakai History
Museum
Exhibition of sacred art
Karaim ethnographic exhibition
Trakai Royal Palace Theatre
Craft days, the music festival "Here is
our house", and chamber music evenings at the Užutrakis manor are held
in the city.
The city is surrounded by lakes, which are full of islands of various
sizes (Galvė washes the northern edge of the city, Lukas or Bernardinė
lake in the east, Gilušis in the south, Totoriškių lake in the west).
Also, at the southern edge of the city, there are Babrukas, Lovka,
Plomėnai Lake in the west, and Nerespinka in the east. Directorate of
Trakai Historical National Park.
Trakai is one of the favorite
places for short-term rest. There are suitable conditions for swimming,
fishing, yachting, boating, and a wide selection of other recreation
methods. During the summer season, a special tourist bus runs from
Trakai railway station and Trakai bus station to the old town,
Užutrakis, camping and hotel. The function of city transport is
performed by suburban buses, served by Trakų buses UAB.
New city
Old town of Trakai
Shut up
The origin of the city's name is clear - it comes from the plural of
the word trãkas ("a higher place in the forest, a cut or burnt place in
the forest; a set of bush varieties that make up the lower part of the
forest"). This version is presented as early as 1861. in the Russian
Annals of the Vilnius Governorate.
The current city of Trakai is
Naujei Trakai, since the first settlement of Trakai is present-day
Senieji Trakai. It is believed that the latter was built by Ldk
Gediminas in a completely new place, after burning the forest area.
The oldest settlements known to archaeologists existed on the site of
present-day Trakai as early as the 1st millennium BC. Ave. m. e.
However, the name Trakai itself probably did not originally belong to
the current ones, but to the Old Trakai, 4 km southeast of Trakai
(mentioned since 1337, at that time it could already have been a
principality). 1994-1997 archaeological research has shown that Old
Trakai was founded around the 13th century. at the end, then, probably
on the instructions of Ldk Gediminas himself, after cutting down a
forest in a completely "culturally empty" place and building a
castle-type castle. It is likely that in 1316 it was to these Traks.
Gediminas moved his capital as the LDK monarch from Kernavė or some
other place, building a castle (in fact, he already moved the capital to
Vilnius in 1323). Meanwhile, the current or New Trakai became the second
political administrative center of the LDK after Vilnius (but not the
capital of Lithuania) only around 1375, when the LDK sub-monarch
Kęstučius settled in the 14th century. In the Trakai Peninsula Castle
(the first Trakai Castle), which was completed in the 8th decade of the
14th century, but was destroyed in 1382-1383. during internal fighting.
1409 Trakai Island Castle (the second castle in Trakai) was the
strongest and grandest in LDK. It immediately became the most important
residence of Duke Vytautas the Great.
XIV century a linear city
plan took shape. Around the 15th century in the beginning, after Trakai
became a considerable city, in 1409 they were granted the rights of the
city of Magdeburg, a parish school was opened; a little later, the
Karaite community of Trakai received the same rights - separately from
the Christian part of the city. The period of prosperity of the city is
considered to be the 15th and 16th centuries, the 15th century. a town
hall was built.
Until the 16th century At the beginning of the
19th century, the LDK archive - Lithuanian Metrics - was stored in
Trakai. XVI-XVII centuries. The significance of Trakai as an important
political, commercial and cultural center has declined. The city
suffered a lot in the 17th century. in the middle of the ATR-Russian
war, when Trakai was ravaged by the Russian occupying army for several
years, it was during this war that both Trakai castles turned into
ruins. 1654-1667 the city was looted and burned, 1700-1721. It also
burned during the Northern War. 19th century Trakai is the center of
Trakai County of Vilnius Governorate.
in 1915 German artillery
shelling destroyed the city center. in 1924 the Polish authorities
established the Teachers' Seminary, which trained pedagogues for primary
schools in the Vilnius region. Between the wars, the Trakai Border Guard
Corps was located in the city. in 1938 a Karaite museum was founded.
in 1946 August 3 became a city under the county. in 1954 part of the
city territory is connected to the vicinity of Old Trakai. 1960 Trakai
Landscape Reserve was established in 1991. - Trakai Historical National
Park. During the Soviet era, there was a tourist base, a camping site, a
yacht club, and 2 rowing bases. in 1984 a culture house was built
(architect A. Paulauskas). in 1996 the current coat of arms of Trakai is
confirmed. in 2008 granted the status of a resort area.
Trakai Boarding Sports School
Trakai Vytautas Didios Gymnasium
Trakai Gymnasium
Trakai Primary School
Lithuanian Police School
Trakai Public Library
Kristinas Astikas (1363-1443), LDK nobleman
Isaac Trakietis
(1533-1594), Karaite cleric, writer
Abraham ben Josiah (1636-1687),
physician
Antanas Pšezdeckis (1718-1772), officer, LDK political
figure
Boguslav Kaplanovskis (1814-1898), Karaite cleric
Josifas
Žilinskis (1834-1916), surveyor, officer, general
Feliksas Maleckis
(1854-1928), Karaite cleric
Boguslav Firkovičius (1865-1915), Karaite
cleric
Simonas Kobeckis (1865-1933), poet, playwright, pioneer of
modern Karaite literature
Vladimir Bielski (1866-1946), poet
Seraja Šapšalas (1873-1961), Lithuanian Karaite spiritual and cultural
figure
Rafał Abkowicz (1896-1992), Karaite cleric
Simon
Firkovičius (1897-1982), Karaite cleric, writer, poet
Ananiasz
Zajączkowski (1903-1970), orientalist, professor
Simon Kobeckas
(1911-1985), Karaite poet, playwright
Pola Wawer (1914-1997), doctor,
ophthalmologist
Aleksander Dubiński (1924-2002), orientalist
Szymon Pilecki (b. 1925), engineer, officer
Edward Narkiewicz
(1938-2007), painter
Halina Kobeckaitė (b. 1939), philosopher,
diplomat
Marek Czasnojć (b. 1942), photographer, photojournalist
Algirdas Vaclovas Patackas (b. 1943), engineer technologist, resister,
political and public figure, signatory
Romualdas Kozyrovičius (b.
1943), civil engineer, politician, diplomat
Natalia Kalashnikova (b.
1957), rower
Povilas Čukinas (b. 1983), basketball player
Steponas
Babrauskas (b. 1984), basketball player
Football
Trakai FK professional football club. A club that plays
in the highest league in Lithuania, the A league. The club plays its
home matches at the LFF Stadium in Vilnius, which can seat 5,400
spectators. Its new Trakai Stadium can hold 2,000 spectators, but it
does not meet the requirements of the A levels.
VJFK Trakai
children's, youth and amateur football club.
Academic rowing
Trakai is the main center of academic rowing in Lithuania with a
well-developed infrastructure. In Galve Lake since 1962. the annual
"Amber Oars" regatta takes place, bringing together many oarsmen from
various European and Asian countries.
in 2012 the world youth
rowing championship under the age of 23 was held.
in 2013 the world
junior under-19 rowing championship took place.
in 2016 the European
junior rowing championship under the age of 19 was held.
in 2017 the
world junior under-19 rowing championship took place.
Canoeing
and kayaking
The international Galvė Regatta is held in Trakai - a
traditional kayak and canoe rowing competition.
Sailing
The
founding meeting of the Vilnius Yacht Club took place in 1926. January
19 In Vilnius. Members of the yacht club sailed in Trakai lakes. 1930
part of the Trakai peninsula was handed over to sailors and a new yacht
club building was built. in 1939 After Lithuania regained the territory
of Vilnius, the Vilnius Yacht Club with all its inventory was handed
over to the Association of Archers. After the Second World War, Trakai
became the main base for sailing. Using the surviving pre-war inventory,
the first post-war sailors were trained, Lithuanian sailing
championships were held. Later, Vilnius "Žalgiris" yacht club was
established. Many champions of the USSR and independent Lithuania were
trained. City and Lithuanian sailing regattas are held regularly.