BELARUS
"White Russ" in the Middle Ages was the name given to a free, independent, unconquered part of Russ. However, it took centuries before Belarus (White Russ) became an independent sovereign state with its own government, Constitution, State Emblem, the National Flag and Anthem. A newly independent state since 1990, the Republic of Belarus is now an integral part of the world community.
Belarus – officially the Republic of Belarus – is situated in the West of the former USSR, in the center of Europe, and on the century-old crossroad of trade routes. Bordering on Lithuania, Latvia, Russia, the Ukraine, and Poland, Belarus has a territory of 207.6 thousand sq. km stretching 560 km from North to South and 650 km from West to East. Population: 10.2 million including 78 per cent Belarusians, 13 per cent Russians, 4 per cent Polish, 3 per cent Ukrainians, 1 per cent Jewish, and other. Official languages: Belarusian, Russian. Religions: Christian Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Greek Catholic (Uniates), Protestant denominations, Islam, and Judaism. Capital: Minsk (1.7 million). Major cities: Gomel (503,000), Vitebsk (364,000), Mogilev (369,000), Grogno (306,000), Brest (297,000).
Belarus is the country of lowlands, small hills, forests, and blue lakes. The nature of this country is soft, harmonic, and moderate. We have neither severe frosts nor exhaustive heat.
One third of the Belarusian territory is covered with forests where birches, oaks, maple and pine trees dominate. The fauna of this country is rich and diverse: here one can find European bison, elk and deer, wild boar and wolf, bear and fox, beaver and lynx – not to mention myriad birds.
Belarus is the country of a unique history and a rich cultural heritage which is carefully protected.
Belarus – from the tourist point of view – is an interesting region providing good recreation and unforgettable impression for groups and for individual travelers.
Minsk - the capital
First mentioned in the Medieval Chronicles under the year of 1067, Minsk, the capital of Belarus, has a population of 1.7 million. The city is situated in a picturesque place on the banks of the river Svisloch which in old days used to be one of the busiest trade routes connecting the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea. The climate is moderate continental with an average January temperature of -6 °C and an average July temperature of +18 °C.
Minsk of today is the city of wide streets, modern and old architectural ensembles, fountains, shady parks and green boulevards well deserving the opinion of being one of the best cities of the former Soviet Union.
Minsk is the city where one can find the best of the Belarusian cultural heritage – museums, exhibitions, theaters, world famous Belarusian ballet, folk dance and choir performances, etc.
Minsk is the city where everyone feels at ease. The city has a lucrative geographic position (700 km West of Moscow, 900 km South of St. Petersburg, 500 km East of Warsaw, 650 km North of Kiev).
Minsk is a crossroad of the most popular European tours. It is connected by automobile highways, railroads, and airlines with all the European capitals and also with the main cities of Asia, Middle East, and North America.
Foreign visitors are attracted to this city by its surprisingly clean, beautiful, calm, optimistic and hospitable atmosphere so as to see with their own eyes the life, history, and traditions of the Belarusian people.
Grodno
300 km West of Minsk on the border with Poland. Founded in the 11th cent. as a fortress on the banks of the Niemen, today the city ranks number one among old Belarusian cities in its authentic planning and 12th-16th cent. churches, numerous 17th-18th cent. religious and public buildings.
Lida
180 km of Minsk: founded in the 14th cent. as a small trade and handicraft village, the town is famous for its Fortress started in 1323 by Gedemin, the ruler of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania to resist the attacks of Crusaders and of Tartars. During the 14th-15th cent. the fortress developed to a complex of defense architecture of this period.
Novogrudok
146 km of Minsk, the birth place of Adam Mickiewicz, an outstanding Polish poet, offers his memorial museum and the picturesque environs once described by the poet.
Slonim
190 km from Minsk, founded in 1252, the town is famous for the following architectural monuments:
St.Andrew Catholic Church, 15th cent. Late Baroque architecture;
Bernardines Catholic Church and Monastery, 17th cent. Baroque architecture;
Bernardines Catholic Church and Cloister , mid- 17th cent. Baroque and Rococo architecture. The Church is open for services.
Slonim is known as a typical old Belarusian town where Jewish population prevailed before WW II . There is a 17th cent. Synagogue – the only Synagogue in Belarus where the entire interior is preserved.
Golshany
130 of Minsk: a village in the Region of Grodno founded in the 13th cent., Golshany is known for:
16th-18th cent. Baroque architecture castle and palace buildings complex;
16th-18th cent. Franciscan Catholic Church and monastery
Zhirovitsy
150 km of Minsk, has been known since the 15th cent. Its monastery of that age is famous for its architecture and is today the center of Orthodox education. One of the most honored Orthodox Christian centers of Belarus, the village is known for the fact that there at the Assumption Monastery, 17th-18th cent. architectural monument, there is an icon of the Mother of God, one of the most venerated sacred images in Belarus
Vitebsk
280 km North-East of Minsk, is known today as the cultural capital of Belarus. Founded in 974 on the high banks of the Western Dvina, the city was badly damaged during World War II. Nevertheless, the city has a number of historic places of interest. The birth place of Marc Chagall, an outstanding artist of the early 20th cent., Vitebsk is the site of Chagall Plainair Festival of Arts. The annual Slavyansky Bazar (Slavic Bazaar) Music and Arts Festival held in July is a most popular cultural events in this country.
Polotsk
228 km of Minsk is the oldest of Belarusian cities and the center of Old Slavic history and culture. Founded in 862, Polotsk is famous for its 11th cent. St. Sophia Cathedral. The walls of a 12th cent. fortress and a convent of the same age are still there. The Convent is named after St. Ephrosinia of Polotsk, a benefactress and matron saint of Belarus. It is there where one can see her symbol Cross which has ever been considered the national heritage of the Belarusian people. Made by a famous medieval jeweler Lazar Bogsha the original Cross was lost during 1941-45. In 1997 a duplicate was made.
Budslav
165 km of Minsk: since the 16th cent the village of Budslav has been a place of Catholic pilgrimage where thousands of the believers arrive to venerate the Budslav Icon of Mother of God kept in the Bernardine Catholic Church there. In 1992, this Icon was declared the patron icon of Belarus by the Pope of Rome
Mogilev
201 km East of Minsk, was founded in 1267 on the banks of the Dnieper. The site of many historic events, the city has 17th-18th cent. monuments as well as examples of the early 20th cent. architecture. The village of Lesnaya near Mogilev has a memorial dedicated to the victory of the Russian army of Peter the Great in 1718 during the Northern War with Charles XXII of Sweden
Gomel
300 km South-East of Minsk on the border with Russia and the Ukraine, is the second largest city in Belarus. Founded in 1142, the city was not much known until when in 1772, three years after the first partition of Poland, the Empress Catherine the Great donated it to a famous Russian Commander P.Rumyantsev, hero of Russo-Turkish wars. He started, and his sons completed, the construction of a palace with a park ensemble in the Classical Style. The whole complex today is a wonderful example of the late 18th-early 19th cent. architecture.
Turov
268 km West of Gomel, the oldest town in the area, has 6th-9th cent. Slavic monuments and burial mounds of Old Slavs. In Old Russ, Turov was a center of culture and education
Brest
340 km South-West of Minsk on the border with Poland, is an important railway junction and a starting point for motor tourists travelling to Belarus from Western Europe. Founded in 1019 at the confluence of the Bug and the Mukhavets, the city has an old fortress made a memorial after World War II events, Berestye archaeological open air museum with the 11th-13th cent. structures and relics.
Kamenetz
39 km of Brest: founded in 1276, the town is known for a 13th cent. Kamenets, or Belaya Vezha (White Tower) built to defend the western boarders of the Russian state (Romanesque and Gothic architecture).
Pinsk
300 km South of Minsk, is second largest city in Brest Region. Its first written mention in chronicles was dated 1097 and the city is famous today for the abundance of architectural, historic and cultural monuments among which are 16th-18th cent. St. Francis Catholic Church and Monastery, 17th cent. Jesuit Collegium, 18th cent. Karl Baromey Catholic Church, 18th cent. St. Barbara Church is a unique monument of Baroque architecture. A synagogue has been restored in the city. The history of Pinsk whose population in the early 20th cent. was 80 per cent Jewish is connected with the names of Argun Perlov, founder of Hasidism movement in the area, Chaim Weizmann, a scientist and the first President of Israel, Golda Meir, a former Israeli prime minister, and others. One of the most interesting cities of the Southern part of Belarus, the city and its environs are famous for both the natural beauty as the center of Belarusian Polesye, the low-lying land of waters and mists, and for its historic sites
Syncovichy
205 km of Minsk: the church of Syncovichy, built in late 15th- early 16th cent. on the northern outskirs of the village is an example of defense architecture featuring also Gothic elements. A similar 16th cent. church with the elements of defense architecture is situated in the village of MURAVANKA.
Kossovo
150 km of Brest: founded in the 15th cent. as a settlement on a trade route, Kossovo is famous for a Palace Complex built in 1883 as designed by Ph. Yashtold and V. Marconi in Gothic style with elements of fortress architecture.
