Birštonas is one of the most beautiful places in Lithuania, and it is impossible to describe it - you must see it with your own eyes. The Nemunas River winds beautifully around Birštonas and surrounds the entire town.
Centuries-old spruces, pines and oaks grow on the steep, loamy slopes that drop into the Nemunas. Pine trees grow green among the sand and tickle your chest with their pure, fresh air and scent. Nature is enchanting and captivating and helps you forget your everyday worries.
No one can say today how many years the name Birštonas has survived. The folk historian Antanas Poška claims that Birštonas was called Beržtynai or Berštynės in ancient times. In ancient writings, the town was called Bistein and Birstan. In the past, Birštonas was a village with a ducal hunting lodge, a favourite place for the Grand Dukes of Lithuania and Polish kings.
The royal resort was the retreat of Casimir Jogailaitis, Alexander, Sigismund the Old and Sigismund Augustus. After the end of the Jogailaitis dynasty and the rise of Prienai, the town began to disappear, especially during the wars with the Russians and Swedes.
Birštonas, with its well-fortified wooden castle on the slopes of Nemunas, was already famous before the Battle of Žalgiris. Later, after the end of the Crusader raids, Birštonas was known for a time as the hunting lodge of the Dukes of GDL. Lithuanian and Polish rulers often hunted in the vicinity of Birštonas. The royal forests covered a vast area. The breathtaking surroundings of Birštonas also appealed to Grand Duke Vytautas of Lithuania. When a plague epidemic raged in Lithuania in the 15th century, King Casimir and his family stayed at the Birštonas estate to protect themselves from the plague. In 1643, King Wladyslaw IV of Poland had the church of Birštonas built and donated seven villages with serfs to it. Since then, the church's influence in the town and its surroundings has continued to grow.
Reviews