Polotsk, located in the Vitebsk region, is considered to be the most ancient city of Belarus and one of the oldest cities of Kievan Rus, which doubly proves its historical, cultural and architectural attractiveness, numerous evidence of which can be found in a carefully preserved heritage.
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How to get to Polotsk
In Polotsk, trains arrive from Vitebsk (1 hour 35 minutes), Riga (7 hours), Molodechno (3-4 hours), Nevel (3 hours 50 minutes), Gomel (9 hours 40 minutes), Moscow (11 hours ) and Minsk (5 hours 50 mi).
Traveling by car from Braslav, you should go along the road P14, from Vitebsk - to P20, from Rossony - to P24, from Glubokoe - to P45, from Lepel - to P46. In addition, Polotsk has a regular bus service with Riga, St. Petersburg, Minsk, Vitebsk, Lepel, Braslav.
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A bit of history
The first mention of Polotsk dates back to 862. In the middle of the 10th century there was the Polotsk principality, whose first prince is Rogvolod. In the years 1432-1436. Polotsk was the capital of the Grand Duchy of Russia, in 1504-1772. - the capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and since 1569 - the capital of the voivodship of Rzeczpospolita.
Later part of the territory of Polotsk was once again part of the Moscow and then the Russian state. As a result of the partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Polotsk was in the provincial capacity for twenty years, which contributed to the city's considerable economic and cultural development. Since 1796, Polotsk has become a district town of the Byelorussian province, and since 1802 - Vitebsk province. And, finally, since 1991, after the end of the Soviet period, Polotsk became part of the independent Republic of Belarus.
Entertainment, excursions and attractions Polotsk
In the ancient city of Kievan Rus preserved a great many monuments of architecture and objects of cultural heritage. First of all, the Sophia Cathedral, built in 1044-1066, is later of interest, is later destroyed, and then restored in the Baroque style. The cathedral is considered one of the earliest temples of Ancient Rus and the most ancient stone building of Belarus.
On the territory of Polotsk the buildings of the former women's Orthodox Savior-Euphrosyne Monastery, founded by Princess Euphrosyne of Polotsk in 1125, and the Monastery of the Holy Monastery of God .On the territory of the Savior-Euphrosyne Monastery, the Transfiguration Church of the 12th century, the Euphrosynivsky Refectory Church and the Cross Exaltation Cathedral of the 19th century are remarkable ., and on the territory of the Holy Epiphany Monastery of interest is the Holy Epiphany Cathedral of the 18th century in the Baroque style .In addition, the ruins of other ancient monasteries have been preserved in Polotsk - these are the buildings of the Bernardine monastery and Franciscan monastery of the 18th century .
One of the attractions of Polotsk is also considered the Red Bridge, laid across the Polota River and received its name in memory of the bloody battle between the Russians and the French during the Patriotic War of 1812.
Considerable historical interest is represented by huge boulders with crosses cut out on them, discovered along the course of the Western Dvina and on land and named Borisov stones named after Polotsk prince Boris Vseslavovich .The original purpose of the stones was to mark the routes of trade routes .According to another version, the stones were sacred and installed on the temples of the Gentiles, while the cross and inscriptions were woven into them during the Christianization of the population .Currently, only four stones have been preserved, one of which, found 5 km from Polotsk, is set near the St. Sophia cathedral .
Museums of Polotsk
In Polotsk there is a considerable number of interesting museums - it is a local history museum and a museum of Belarusian book printing. The Museum of Local Lore on Nizhne-Pokrovskaya Street 11 is considered to be the oldest museum of the city, founded in 1926 and located in the building of the Lutheran church, executed in the Neo-Gothic style. The exposition of the museum is represented by archaeological finds, ethnographic materials, collections of bonistics (obsolete banknotes and booms), photographs, weapons, household items, printed and periodicals.
The exposition of the Museum of Belarusian book printing, located on the street Nizhne-Pokrovskaya, 22, is devoted to the history of the book from the first manuscript scrolls to the present day - the museum is the only one of its kind in Belarus.
In addition, it is worth visiting the museum of military glory, the museum of traditional hand weaving in Poozerie and the natural-ecological museum located in the building of the former water tower.
Photo of Polotsk (4)