Biržai | |
|---|---|
City | |
 | |
 Coat of arms | |
  Biržai Location of Biržai | |
| Coordinates:56°12′N24°45′E / 56.200°N 24.750°E /56.200; 24.750 | |
| Country |  Lithuania |
| Ethnographic region | Aukštaitija |
| County |  Panevėžys County |
| Municipality | Biržai district municipality |
| Eldership | Biržai city eldership |
| Capital of | Biržai district municipality Biržai city eldership Širvėna eldership |
| First mentioned | 1455 |
| GrantedTown rights | 1589 |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 10,146 |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| Website | birzai |
Biržai (pronunciationⓘ, also known by severalalternative names) is a city in northernLithuania. Famous for its reconstructedBiržai Castlemanor, the whole region is renowned for its many traditional-recipebeer breweries.
The exact origin of the city name is not known, but it is derived from theLithuanian wordberžas (which meansbirch).[1] The name of the city in other languages includesGerman:Birsen;Polish:Birże,Russian:Биржай (and pre-1917Биржи);Yiddish:בירז,romanized: Birzh.[2] It is simplified toBirzai in English.
The city's first written mention dates to 1455. The construction ofBiržai Castle began in 1586, and the town was grantedMagdeburg Rights in 1589.[3] In 1575, as preparation for the castle's construction, adam was built at the confluence of theAgluona andApaščia Rivers, and the artificialLake Širvėna, covering about 40 km2 (15 sq mi), was created. It is the oldest survivingartificial lake in Lithuania.
The town's history is closely associated with theRadziwiłł family (Lithuanian: Radvila).Jerzy Radziwiłł was the first noble to settle in the city. Later, after his daughter,Barbara Radziwiłł married theGrand Duke of Lithuania andKing of PolandSigismund II Augustus in 1547, the power and influence of the family grew immensely. The Radvila family established aProtestant church and school, and the town became a cultural center of theProtestant Reformation in Lithuania.
The local community ofLithuanian Jews, which settled in theDuchy of Biržai at the end of the 16th century, was influential, establishing an interest-free loan society, two major flour mills, and an internationallinen export business.[2] TheIslamicLipka Tatars performed military, police, and postal duties for the Radziwill family.[4]
During theWars with Sweden,Biržai Castle was an important point of defense. In 1625,Gustavus Adolphus,king of Sweden, attacked the castle with 8,000 soldiers and it was forced to surrender. The castle was left in ruins and was rebuilt, only to be burnt in 1655. In 1662–1669, it was rebuilt again in theRenaissance style. On 9 March 1701,August II the Strong andPeter I of Russia (Peter the Great) signed a pact in the castle to unite their forces against Sweden. However, in 1704 the castle was completely destroyed and was left in ruins until its restoration in the 1990s.
The town's population suffered greatly due to wars and religious conflicts between the Protestants and Catholics. In the late 18th century, Biržai lost its town rights. The Radziwiłłs lost their wealth and influence, and Biržai was sold to theTyszkiewicz family to cover debts in 1811. In 1849–1862, the Tyszkiewicz family built theneoclassicAstravas Manor palace across the lake from the site of the original castle.
In 1869 the town had about 2,600 residents. Thirty years later the population had grown to 4,400.
DuringWorld War II, the entire Jewish population of Biržai was annihilated. 15 Jews were shot to death by German soldiers at the Biržai Jewish cemetery in July 1941.[5] On 8 August 1941,Gestapo and Lithuanian collaborators murdered the entire Jewish population of the town, some 2,400 people, by shooting them to death at a mass grave in a forest grove 3 kilometres (1.9 miles) outside the town.[6]The town was almost completely burned down during the war. Oldtown was destroyed.
In 1968 the population reached 10,000. Currently there are 10,146 people living in Biržai.
After the unrest and conflicts settled down, 19th-century wooden residential house building styles prevailed. The ongoing industrial revolution at the time meant that asbestos or metal-sheet roofing was common. With the majority of buildings being wooden, masonry buildings eventually emerged to battle cold winters and hot summers. In the early 20th century, central roads were cobblestone. During the World Wars, the old town was destroyed and the majority of wooden buildings in the main street burned down.
During theSoviet rule, the town's population grew to twice its previous size. To accommodate the growth, around 60 new apartment buildings were constructed and main streets asphalted. There was also an increase in new houses being built from bricks instead of wood, and the majority of them were left unplastered.
With the help of the European Union's Development Assistance grants, the town was able to regain a unique style: Since 2014, numerous apartment building renovations were carried out with more planned. The road infrastructure is also being improved and some new construction, built to attract visitors and to restore the historic appearance, is in progress.
The northern part of the town, along with Lake Širvėna, lies withinBiržai Regional Park. About 9,000sinkholes have been identified in the park,[7] formed abruptly aftergypsum in the soil has been dissolved by underground water. Some of these holes are dry, while others have become small ponds or lakes filled with water from the many underground rivers and streams. New holes appear annually. According to local legend, the 20-meter-deep sinkhole known asKarves ola (Cow's Cave) was discovered by a farmer after his cow disappeared. A tunnel at its bottom leads to a cave and underground lake.[8]
| Climate data for Biržai (1991–2020 normals, extremes present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 8.4 (47.1) | 13.0 (55.4) | 18.8 (65.8) | 27.8 (82.0) | 30.7 (87.3) | 33.3 (91.9) | 33.7 (92.7) | 33.3 (91.9) | 28.9 (84.0) | 22.7 (72.9) | 16.2 (61.2) | 10.5 (50.9) | 33.7 (92.7) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −1.1 (30.0) | −0.5 (31.1) | 4.3 (39.7) | 12.3 (54.1) | 18.3 (64.9) | 21.5 (70.7) | 23.9 (75.0) | 23.0 (73.4) | 17.4 (63.3) | 10.3 (50.5) | 4.2 (39.6) | 0.4 (32.7) | 11.2 (52.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −3.3 (26.1) | −3.2 (26.2) | −0.5 (31.1) | 7.1 (44.8) | 12.6 (54.7) | 16.1 (61.0) | 18.4 (65.1) | 17.4 (63.3) | 12.5 (54.5) | 6.7 (44.1) | 2.2 (36.0) | −1.5 (29.3) | 7.1 (44.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −5.8 (21.6) | −6.0 (21.2) | −2.9 (26.8) | 2.3 (36.1) | 6.9 (44.4) | 10.8 (51.4) | 13.2 (55.8) | 12.4 (54.3) | 8.4 (47.1) | 3.8 (38.8) | 0.2 (32.4) | −3.6 (25.5) | 3.3 (37.9) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −35.1 (−31.2) | −35.5 (−31.9) | −29.5 (−21.1) | −16.7 (1.9) | −4.1 (24.6) | 0.1 (32.2) | 3.5 (38.3) | 0.4 (32.7) | −5.3 (22.5) | −10.8 (12.6) | −20.4 (−4.7) | −31.4 (−24.5) | −35.5 (−31.9) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 47 (1.9) | 42 (1.7) | 38 (1.5) | 37 (1.5) | 52 (2.0) | 75 (3.0) | 82 (3.2) | 64 (2.5) | 51 (2.0) | 65 (2.6) | 54 (2.1) | 51 (2.0) | 658 (26) |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 88 | 86 | 79 | 70 | 68 | 72 | 75 | 76 | 82 | 86 | 90 | 90 | 80 |
| Source 1: Lithuanian Hydrometeorological Service[9] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: NOAA (extremes 1961-1990)[10] | |||||||||||||
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