Lida - is a city of Grodno region of Belarus, the administrative center of the Lida district. The main attraction of the city Lida is a castle, founded here in 1323. The construction of the castle lasted about five years. Thus, the castle in Lida is already about 700 years old. This makes this architectural monument one of the oldest preserved stone structures in Belarus, and if you take into account the fact that Lida Castle has very impressive dimensions, it immediately becomes clear that we have one of the most important sights of Belarus. Lida Castle was recently completely renovated. But the quality of restoration causes some questions. The fact is that when rebuilding the castle, building materials such as brick, slabs, staircases and others were actively used. Naturally, all these architectural solutions do not even resemble what Lida Castle was in its heyday. For example, its walls were made of natural stone.
Briefly describe the history of the castle in the city of Lida. So, the Lida Castle was built on a loose sandy hill of rubble stone in the first half of the 14th century by order of Prince Gedemin in the form of an irregular quadrangle with two corner towers. Initially, the castle in the city of Lida was surrounded by marshy banks of two rivers connected in this place and a moat. Later, an artificial lake was included in the system of fortifications.
The first major battles took place under the walls of the castle in 1384. Then during the next three centuries the Lida Castle also regularly took part in various wars. Attacked the castle and the crusaders, and detachments of Russian princes, and Crimean Tatars. The castle also participated in local internecine wars. With varying success, the castle was captured by the attacking party, then successfully repulsed the attack. During the Northern War, in the early 18th century, the castle was twice badly damaged by attacks by the Swedes, who blew up its towers. From these events the time of desolation and destruction of the Lida Castle began. The last battle here occurred in 1794 between the rebels of Kościuszko, who defended themselves in the ruins of the castle, and the Russian army.
In 1891, after a fire that destroyed the entire center of the city of Lida, the city authorities began the analysis and sale of castle buildings, using the building materials received to restore the city. From the slopes of the castle hill began to take the sand. In the 1920s, when the city of Lida was part of the interwar Poland, the castle buildings were slightly updated. In 1953, Lida Castle was included in the list of architectural monuments taken under state protection, although this did not stop its further destruction. Only in 1982 was the complete conservation of the Lida Castle. A little later, in the middle of 1990s, restoration work was finally begun, which continued intermittently for two decades.
The city of Lida is big enough. The castle is located in the center of Lida. Therefore, unfortunately, the surrounding urban landscape with high-rise buildings and avenues is not very in harmony with the Lida Castle. Nevertheless, next to the castle there is a small, well-arranged green area with a pond and fountains. Tourists and travelers are very active in visiting Lida Castle. A lot of tourist and excursion routes pass through the Lida Castle. A number of different historical events are held here. Of course, Lida Castle, being in the center of the city, is surrounded by proper infrastructure. There are restaurants, hotels, ATMs and other facilities that tourists need.
Of course, in the city of Lida there are other important sights. One of them is the Catholic church of the Cross Exaltation, located very close to the famous Lida Castle. The Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in the city of Lida is also called "farny", it means the main among the Lida Catholic churches. This temple is made in the Baroque style. The construction of the church was completed in 1770. The fate of the temple is extremely good. This church in the city of Lida never closed, did not go from one confession to another, and suffered two world wars without loss. And only during the fire of 1821 two small turrets were lost that adorned the main facade of the temple. In 1794, Kościuszko rebels were buried in the fence of the church in the city of Lida, who died here in a skirmish with the Russian cavalry. Unfortunately, this fence with the brama has not survived to our days.
The interior of the church in the city of Lida is very richly decorated, it is decorated with ornamental molding and sculptures in the Rococo style, as well as fresco paintings of the vaults and walls of the temple. The altars of the temple are built of artificial marble. In this Lida church the icon of the Mother of God is kept, which was brought to the territory of Belarus by the Franciscans in the 14th century, when laying the first church in this place. So, the church in the city of Lida is an important architectural monument of the 18th century, a historical and cultural value and a landmark of Belarus. This ancient church is not too striking for its size, but thanks to its location next to the castle, as well as the richly decorated interior, the church of the church in Lida enjoys well-deserved attention of tourists.
A little further, there is the next important landmark of the city of Lida, namely the Orthodox Cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel. This temple was erected in the city of Lida from 1797 to 1825. Originally, the church was built as a Catholic church in the Catholic monastery. Near the church housed a monastery building and a belfry. It is very remarkable that the construction of the temple was financed personally by the Russian Emperor Paul I. The monastery was liquidated in 1832 (in connection with the suppression of the uprising of 1830-31), and the secular noble school was located in the monastery's buildings. The temple was badly damaged during the fire in 1842. Restoration of the temple lasted more than twenty years. And in connection with the outbreak of the uprising, the restored church in 1863 was immediately transferred to the Orthodox Church.
In the interwar period, when Lida was a part of Poland, the church was again returned to the Catholic Church. In 1957, this church in the city of Lida was closed by the Soviet authorities. In the early 1960s, the building of the temple began to be used as a planetarium. In 1996, the temple was returned to the Orthodox Church and became a cathedral. The Cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel is an architectural monument of the early 19th century, an important landmark of Belarus and deserves the attention of tourists. Near the temple, is still located the former monastic building, closely attached to the cathedral, as well as the bell tower.
There are in the city of Lida and a few more small sights. For example, the wooden Catholic church of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary, which was built in 1933 (in the next photo), is a rather interesting monument of the Belarusian wooden architecture. Also recently, four new Catholic churches were built in the city of Lida.
Another small attraction of the city of Lida is the Catholic chapel of St. Barbara, built in 1930 (in the following photo on the right). In addition, in the city of Lida in recent years, several modern Orthodox churches were built.
Also, an ancient locomotive, established in the city of Lida on a pedestal, deserves a special mention and thus fulfills the role of a monument. Among other interesting features of the city of Lida can be identified the design of water columns. Most of them are executed as shown in the photo below. This trifle came in very handy and liked the tourists. After all, many tourists visiting the city of Lida, are young people traveling by bicycle on various tourist routes. And for them the opportunity to get drunk, stock up on water and wash right on the run, it's not superfluous.
Sketches of Napoleon Orda, Lida: