The most famous palace in Belarus is the Niasviž Palace of the Radzivil Princes.

The first wooden castle was built in the 16th century and was located on the territory of the present-day Old Park. In 1583, next to it, on the order of Prince Mikalaj Kryštof Radzivil Sirotka, the construction of a large brick castle began. This building has withstood many wars and battles. However, due to the development of artillery, the role of castles in the defensive system gradually decreased. In 1706, during the Great Northern War, the Swedish king Charles XII managed to take the castle. When the Radzivils returned to their family home and saw the castle destroyed by the Swedes, they decided to rebuild it as a comfortable palace for living. The Niasviž Palace was famous for its library and archive, as well as the treasury, where, according to legend, the sculptures of the apostles adorned with jewels were kept. However, the subsequent hard war times devastated him. During the war of 1812, the castle was plundered, and most of its treasures were taken to St. Petersburg. Nevertheless, the glory of the cultural center in the Belarusian lands was returned to the Niasviž Palace before the end of the 19th century. In the halls of the palace, one could see endless hunting trophies, portrait galleries of princes, paintings and tapestries on the walls, knightly armor, and the best furniture, and clocks from all over Europe were collected in the rooms. Green crowns of parks were planted around the castle. In the 20th century, during the Soviet-Polish war, the Niasviž Palace changed hands several times, until the Treaty of Riga (1921) divided Belarus into two parts. The state border was laid 10 kilometers to the east, and Niasviž turned out to be a border town of the Second Polish Commonwealth. World War II put an end to the history of the Radzivil family in Niasviž. The Radzivils left their family nest forever. After the end of the war, in the BSSR, a sanatorium was located in the Niasviž castle. After the Republic of Belarus gained independence, it was decided to turn this object into a museum. In 1993, the historical and cultural museum-reserve "Niasviž" was founded. In 2001, restoration work began in the Niasviž Palace, which lasted a whole decade. In 2012, the Niasviž Palace was officially opened for tourists. Today Niasviž is one of the most popular tourist routes in our country. This architectural, residential and cultural complex is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Publication date: 24.11.2017.

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