Palanga
Encyclopedia
Palanga is a republican city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea directly at 21°E. It is the largest city in the Kurzeme Region of Latvia, the third largest city in Latvia after Riga and Daugavpils and an important ice-free port...
. Palanga began to develop as a resort in the early 19th century. The pier has been a favourite spot for taking a stroll and other recreation since 1892. Józef Tyszkiewicz's son, Feliks Tyszkiewicz, built the neo-renaissance
Neo-Renaissance
Renaissance Revival is an all-encompassing designation that covers many 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Grecian nor Gothic but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range of classicizing Italian modes...
Tiškevičiai Palace
Tiškeviciai Palace, Palanga
The Tiškevičiai Palace, Tiskevičius Palace, or Tyszkiewicz Palace is a Neo-Renaissance style building in Palanga, Lithuania, built for the Tyszkiewicz family. The construction was started in 1893 and finished in 1897. The palace is surrounded by a park with ponds, fountains, and collections of...
in 1897. The French landscape architect
Landscape architect
A landscape architect is a person involved in the planning, design and sometimes direction of a landscape, garden, or distinct space. The professional practice is known as landscape architecture....
Édouard André
Édouard André
Édouard François André was a French horticulturalist, landscape designer, as well as a leading landscape architect of the late 19th century, famous for designing city parks and public spaces of Monte Carlo and Montevideo....
designed a large park around the palace, between 1897 and 1907. The palace became a favourite gathering place for concert performances. Amongst the good friends and associates of Feliks Tyszkiewicz was the notary, Jonas Kentra.
Following the Lithuanian press ban
Lithuanian press ban
The Lithuanian press ban was a ban on all Lithuanian language publications printed in the Latin alphabet within the Russian Empire, which controlled Lithuania at the time. Lithuanian-language publications that used the Cyrillic alphabet were allowed and even encouraged...
of 1864, Palanga became an important location for the smuggling of Lithuanian publications
Knygnešiai
Book smugglers were people who transported Lithuanian language books printed in the Latin alphabet into Lithuanian-speaking areas of the Russian Empire, defying a ban on such materials in force from 1866 to 1904...
from the west. The Rev. Marcijonas Jurgaitis, physician Liudas Vaineikis
Liudas Vaineikis
Liudas Vaineikis was a physician and notable member of the Knygnešiai book sumggling movement during the Lithuanian press ban , when the printing and distribution of Lithuanian language materials using the Latin alphabet was illegal in the Russian-controlled parts of the region.Vaineikis, born in...
, and notary Jonas Kentra, played significant roles in this activity. After Kentra obtained official permission, a public performance featuring the comedy, Amerika pirtyje (America in the Bath), was performed in the Lithuanian language. This had previously not been permitted. However, later the Tsarist authorities deported Vaineikis and twenty-five other people to Siberia in 1901.
The Tiškevičiai Palace
Tiškeviciai Palace, Palanga
The Tiškevičiai Palace, Tiskevičius Palace, or Tyszkiewicz Palace is a Neo-Renaissance style building in Palanga, Lithuania, built for the Tyszkiewicz family. The construction was started in 1893 and finished in 1897. The palace is surrounded by a park with ponds, fountains, and collections of...
's park was converted into a botanical garden
Botanical garden
A botanical garden The terms botanic and botanical, and garden or gardens are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word botanic is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens. is a well-tended area displaying a wide range of plants labelled with their botanical names...
in 1960. Today it contains two hundred different types of trees and shrubs, including an oak tree planted by President Antanas Smetona
Antanas Smetona
Antanas Smetona was one of the most important Lithuanian political figures between World War I and World War II. He served as the first President of Lithuania from April 4, 1919 to June 19, 1920. He again served as the last President of the country from December 19, 1926 to June 15, 1940, before...
. The palace, now the Palanga Amber Museum
Palanga Amber Museum
The Palanga Amber Museum , near the Baltic Sea in Palanga, Lithuania, is a branch of the Lithuanian Art Museum. It is housed in the restored 19th-century Tiškevičiai Palace and is surrounded by the Palanga Botanical Garden. The museum's collection of amber comprises about 28,000 pieces, of which...
, has an extensive collection of amber jewelry and other artifacts. Symphonic concerts as well as other musical festivals and events take place in the summer, usually in the evening.
Location
Palanga is a resort town through which the ŠventojiŠventoji River (Baltic)
The Šventoji or Latvian Sventāja River is a river in the northwest of Lithuania and southwest of Latvia. It begins in Skuodas district and for 30 km flows on the international border between Latvia and Lithuania. Šventoji River flows into the Baltic Sea near Šventoji settlement north of Palanga....
and Rąžė (Samogitian
Samogitian language
Samogitian is a dialect of the Lithuanian language spoken mostly in Samogitia . Attempts have been made to standardize it...
: Ronžē) Rivers flow into the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
. Rąžė was formerly known as Alanga and gave Palanga its name: Palanga which literally means on the Alanga River. The Palanga municipality extends 24 kilometers from Nemirseta in the south to the Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
n border in the north. Palanga is subdivided to Nemirseta
Nemirseta
Nemirseta is a district of the Lithuanian seaside resort Palanga, located on the Baltic coast north of Klaipėda.-History:The place, which consists mainly of two deserted buildings which lost their purpose as a border check point, is notable for having marked for about five centuries the...
, Vanagupė, Kunigiškiai, Manciškiai, and Šventoji – five neighboring fishermen villages which were united into one city following administrative changes to the area. During the time when the Klaipėda Region
Klaipėda Region
The Klaipėda Region or Memel Territory was defined by the Treaty of Versailles in 1920 when it was put under the administration of the Council of Ambassadors...
was part of Germany, Nemirseta was the northernmost village of East Prussia
East Prussia
East Prussia is the main part of the region of Prussia along the southeastern Baltic Coast from the 13th century to the end of World War II in May 1945. From 1772–1829 and 1878–1945, the Province of East Prussia was part of the German state of Prussia. The capital city was Königsberg.East Prussia...
; conversely Palanga was a border checkpoint between Russian Lithuania and Germany.
Transportation
The municipality is accessed by roads from KlaipėdaKlaipeda
Klaipėda is a city in Lithuania situated at the mouth of the Nemunas River where it flows into the Baltic Sea. It is the third largest city in Lithuania and the capital of Klaipėda County....
and Šiauliai
Šiauliai
Šiauliai , is the fourth largest city in Lithuania, with a population of 133,900. It is the capital of Šiauliai County. Unofficially, the city is the capital of Northern Lithuania.-Names:...
. There are no railroads in the municipality (the closest rail connection is in Kretinga
Kretinga
Kretinga is a city in the Klaipėda County, Lithuania. It is the capital of the Kretinga district municipality. It is located east of the popular Baltic Sea resort town of Palanga, and about north of Lithuania's 3rd largest city and principal seaport, Klaipėda.The population was listed as 21,423...
, the capital of the Kretinga district municipality
Kretinga district municipality
Kretinga district municipality is one of 60 municipalities in Lithuania....
). Palanga's International Airport
Palanga International Airport
Palanga International Airport is an international airport located in the western part of Lithuania near the Baltic Sea. The airport focuses on servicing short and mid-range routes. The facility expansion completed in 2007 has made long-range route servicing a possibility. Since 1993, the number of...
, the third largest in Lithuania, offers connecting flights to Scandinavia and Germany. The airport is located between Palanga and Šventoji, and it handles more flights in the summer due to the resort nature of the municipality.
Places of interest
Jonas Basanavicius
Jonas Basanavičius was an activist and proponent of Lithuania's National Revival and founder of the first Lithuanian language newspaper Aušra. He was one of the initiators and the Chairman of the Organizing Committee of the 1905 Congress of Lithuanians, the Great Seimas of Vilnius...
Street, which is a pedestrian only thoroughfare during the high season. There are dozens of restaurants, bars, rides, and other forms of entertainment. The aforementioned Amber Museum is open to the public, as are as the museum's extensive botanical gardens. Anaičiai Ethnographic Cemetery holds a collection of 19th- and early 20th-century graves. In the Sculptures Garden, one can find 28 contemporary Art statues by artists from Armenia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Ukraine.
Also found in Palanga is one of the oldest operating pharmacies in Lithuania. It was established in the mid-19th century.
The city is also home to a regional radio station, FM Palanga.