Kavarskas
Encyclopedia
Kavarskas with a population of only 700, is the fourth smallest city in Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...

. The Šventoji River
Šventoji River
The Šventoji River is the longest river that flows entirely within Lithuania and the largest tributary of the Neris River. It originates from the Lake Samanis in the Gražutė Regional Park and flows into Neris near Jonava. The longest tributary of the Šventoji is the Širvinta River.The Šventoji...

 flows through the town. In 1956 near Kavarskas a water lifting station was built and part of the Šventoji River
Šventoji River
The Šventoji River is the longest river that flows entirely within Lithuania and the largest tributary of the Neris River. It originates from the Lake Samanis in the Gražutė Regional Park and flows into Neris near Jonava. The longest tributary of the Šventoji is the Širvinta River.The Šventoji...

's water was channeled to the Nevėžis River
Nevežis River
Nevėžis River is the sixth longest river in Lithuania and one of the main tributaries of the Neman River. Its length is , and it flows only within the geographical confines of Lithuania. It is the second longest river in Lithuania, after the Šventoji River, that flows exclusively within its borders...

. Nowadays there is a water-power plant operating there.

History

In place of the modern town, in the 15th century there was the Mažieji Pienionys (Little Pienionys) estate. At the end of 15th century Grand Duke of Lithuania Alexander Jagiellon
Alexander Jagiellon
Alexander of the House of Jagiellon was the Grand Duke of Lithuania and later also King of Poland. He was the fourth son of Casimir IV Jagiellon...

 transferred the estate to Stanislovas Kovarskis, the treasurer of the king. As he had no successors, the estate was inherited by his brother, Andrius Kovarskis, the canon of the Vilnius Cathedral
Vilnius Cathedral
The Cathedral of Vilnius is the main Roman Catholic Cathedral of Lithuania.It is situated in Vilnius Old Town, just off of Cathedral Square. It is the heart of Lithuania's Catholic spiritual life....

. Thus the name of the Little Pienionys estate was changed to Kavarskas.

In written sources Kavarskas was first mentioned in 1538. In that year a church was built. In the 16th century, Kavarskas and the surrounding area belonged to nobles Astikai
Astikai
Astikai was a Lithuanian noble family, that prospered in late 14th and early 17th centuries. Kristinas Astikas, a noble from Kernavė, was the founder of the family. There is some vague evidence, that his father was Sirputis and his grandfather was Viršpulis, mentioned in chronicles...

, later – Ogiński (Oginskiai), Tyszkiewicz
Tyszkiewicz
The Tyszkiewicz family was a wealthy and influential magnate family of Ruthenian/Lithuanian nobility with roots traced into the times of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania...

 (Tiškevičiai), and Siesickiai. In 1956 Kavarskas was granted town rights.
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