Raudondvaris
Encyclopedia
Raudondvaris is a village on the Neman River
in Kaunas district, Lithuania
, 10 km (6.2 mi) west of Kaunas
.
chronicles in 1392. The old castle was rebuilt after the Battle of Grunwald
and became Grand Duke's property. In 1549 Grand Duke Sigismund II Augustus
presented the castle to his wife, Barbara Radziwiłł. After her death the castle fell to ruin. A new Renaissance
red brick palace, known as Raudondvaris Castle
, was built in 1615 on the high bank of the Nevėžis River
by the Radziwiłłs. The palace is surrounded by a park with a palm house
(no longer in use). The residence was known for its remarkable fine arts collection, including paintings by da Vinci
, Caravaggio, Rubens and del Sarto
. The palace belonged to the Tyszkiewicz
family until the end of World War I, when it was converted into a shelter for children. It suffered damage during World War II and was rebuilt only in 1959–1973. Currently it houses collections devoted to the Tyszkiewicz
family and Juozas Naujalis.
Another notable building in Raudondvaris is the basilica of St. Theresa, founded by Benedykt Tyszkiewicz (rebuilt in the 20th century), with altars painted by Michał Elwiro Andriolli, and Tyszkiewicz family tombstones.
Neman River
Neman or Niemen or Nemunas, is a major Eastern European river rising in Belarus and flowing through Lithuania before draining into the Curonian Lagoon and then into the Baltic Sea at Klaipėda. It is the northern border between Lithuania and Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast in its lower reaches...
in Kaunas district, 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...
, 10 km (6.2 mi) west of Kaunas
Kaunas
Kaunas is the second-largest city in Lithuania and has historically been a leading centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the biggest city and the center of a powiat in Trakai Voivodeship of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413. During Russian Empire occupation...
.
History
The town was first mentioned in TeutonicTeutonic Knights
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...
chronicles in 1392. The old castle was rebuilt after the Battle of Grunwald
Battle of Grunwald
The Battle of Grunwald or 1st Battle of Tannenberg was fought on 15 July 1410, during the Polish–Lithuanian–Teutonic War. The alliance of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, led respectively by King Jogaila and Grand Duke Vytautas , decisively defeated the Teutonic Knights, led...
and became Grand Duke's property. In 1549 Grand Duke Sigismund II Augustus
Sigismund II Augustus
Sigismund II Augustus I was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the only son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548...
presented the castle to his wife, Barbara Radziwiłł. After her death the castle fell to ruin. A new Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
red brick palace, known as Raudondvaris Castle
Raudondvaris Castle
Raudondvaris Castle , also referred to as Raudondvaris Manor, is a Gothic-Renaissance gentry residence, located in the eponymous town of Raudondvaris, Lithuania....
, was built in 1615 on the high bank of 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...
by the Radziwiłłs. The palace is surrounded by a park with a palm house
Palm House
A palm house is a greenhouse that is specialised for the growing of palms and other tropical and subtropical plants. Palm houses require constant heat and were built as status symbols in Victorian Britain...
(no longer in use). The residence was known for its remarkable fine arts collection, including paintings by da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci was an Italian Renaissance polymath: painter, sculptor, architect, musician, scientist, mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer, botanist and writer whose genius, perhaps more than that of any other figure, epitomized the Renaissance...
, Caravaggio, Rubens and del Sarto
Andrea del Sarto
Andrea del Sarto was an Italian painter from Florence, whose career flourished during the High Renaissance and early Mannerism. Though highly regarded during his lifetime as an artist senza errori , his renown was eclipsed after his death by that of his contemporaries, Leonardo da Vinci,...
. The palace belonged to the 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...
family until the end of World War I, when it was converted into a shelter for children. It suffered damage during World War II and was rebuilt only in 1959–1973. Currently it houses collections devoted to the 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...
family and Juozas Naujalis.
Another notable building in Raudondvaris is the basilica of St. Theresa, founded by Benedykt Tyszkiewicz (rebuilt in the 20th century), with altars painted by Michał Elwiro Andriolli, and Tyszkiewicz family tombstones.