Lahoysk is a town in Minsk Region,

Belarus Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...

. It serves as the administrative center of Lahoysk District. As of 2025, it has a population of 15,567.

History

First chronicled in 1078, Lahoysk was the centre of a small 12th-century principality, later absorbed into the

Principality of Polotsk The Principality of Polotsk (obsolete spelling: ''Polock''; ; ), also known as the Duchy of Polotsk or Polotskian Rus', was a medieval principality. The origin and date of the establishment of the state are uncertain. Chronicles of Kievan Rus' ...

. In the 18th and 19th centuries, it was a seat of the

Tyszkiewicz family The House of Tyszkiewicz (, singular: , , singular: , , singular: , , singular: , , singular: ) was a wealthy and influential Polish-Lithuanian (adjective), Polish-Lithuanian magnate family of Ruthenians, Ruthenian origin, with roots traced to t ...

In the 12th century it became the centre of its own duchy, the Duchy of Logozhsk. Since the 13th century it was part of the

Grand Duchy of Lithuania The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a sovereign state in northeastern Europe that existed from the 13th century, succeeding the Kingdom of Lithuania, to the late 18th century, when the territory was suppressed during the 1795 Partitions of Poland, ...

. Under the name Logosko it was mentioned in the ''

List of Russian Cities, Near and Far The ''List of Russian cities, far and near'' is a commonly accepted tentative title for the 14th–15th century appendix found in several manuscripts, including the Commission Scroll of the ''Novgorod First Chronicle'' (1440s), , and , usually pr ...

''. In different periods it came into the possession of Jagiello,

Skirgaila Skirgaila, also known as Ivan/Iwan ( or 1354 – 11 January 1397; baptized 1383/1384 as ''Casimir''), was a regent of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania for his brother Jogaila from 1386 to 1392. He was the son of Algirdas, Grand Duke of Lithuan ...

Vytautas Vytautas the Great (; 27 October 1430) was a ruler of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. He was also the prince of Grodno (1370–1382), prince of Lutsk (1387–1389), and the postulated king of the Hussites. In modern Lithuania, Vytautas is revere ...

and

Czartoryski The House of Czartoryski (feminine form: Czartoryska, plural: Czartoryscy; ) is a Princely Houses of Poland, Polish princely family of Lithuanian-Ruthenians, Ruthenian origin, also known as the Familia (political party), Familia. The family, whic ...

princes as well as of the Tyszkiewicz counts. In 1505, in the war against the

Crimean Khanate The Crimean Khanate, self-defined as the Throne of Crimea and Desht-i Kipchak, and in old European historiography and geography known as Little Tartary, was a Crimean Tatars, Crimean Tatar state existing from 1441 to 1783, the longest-lived of th ...

, the town was captured by the Tatars, plundered and burned. During the Northern War of 1700–1721 it was captured by Swedish forces. At the same time the Castle of Lahoysk was destroyed. In 1765 a Basilian monastery was built there. As a result of the

Second Partition of Poland The 1793 Second Partition of Poland was the second of partitions of Poland, three partitions (or partial annexations) that ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth by 1795. The second partition (politics), partition occurred i ...

in 1793, the town became part of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

. In 1814–1819, the

built a palace at Lahoysk, which was destroyed during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. According to some data, in 1842 brothers Konstanty and

Eustachy Tyszkiewicz Count Eustachy Tyszkiewicz, Leliwa coat of arms, (18 April 1814 – 27 August 1873) was a Polish noble from the Tyszkiewicz family. He was an archaeologist and historian of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania and White Ruthenia, then part of th ...

established an archaeological museum in Lahoysk. Its collection has served as the basis for the creation in 1855 of the Wilnius Archaeological Museum. In 1897, Lahoysk became the centre of a parish in the

Barysau Barysaw or Borisov (, ; , ) is a city in Minsk Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Barysaw District. It is located on the Berezina, Berezina River and north-east from the capital Minsk. As of 2025, it has a population of 1 ...

uyezd An uezd (also spelled uyezd or uiezd; rus, уе́зд ( pre-1918: уѣздъ), p=ʊˈjest), or povit in a Ukrainian context () was a type of administrative subdivision of the Grand Duchy of Moscow, the Tsardom of Russia, the Russian Empire, the R ...

. In 1890 the town had 1180 inhabitants, most of them

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

(685 persons). There was a synagogue, an Orthodox church and a Catholic church in the town. In 1918 Lahoysk became part of the

Belarusian Democratic Republic The Belarusian People's Republic (BNR; , ), also known as the Belarusian Democratic Republic, was a state proclaimed by the Council of the Belarusian Democratic Republic in its Second Constituent Charter on 9 March 1918 during World War I. The ...

and later of the

Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic The Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR, Byelorussian SSR or Byelorussia; ; ), also known as Soviet Belarus or simply Belarus, was a republic of the Soviet Union (USSR). It existed between 1920 and 1922 as an independent state, and ...

that was incorporated into the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

. Since 1924 Lahoysk is the centre of the Lahoysk District. In 1998, it was given the status of a city.

Places of interest

St. Nikolai Orthodox Church

Today, an increasing number of tourists come to visit St. Nicholai Church, because this is one of the few remaining churches on the European territory painted in the Apocalypse style, using the art of painting on freshly spread moist lime plaster with waterbased pigments (

fresco painting Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting becomes ...

). St. Nicholai Church is an Orthodox church located in the central part of the city Logoisk (Belarus) on the right side of the Gaina river . Built in 1862, it can accommodate up to 700 people. In 2017 the abbot is the father of Vladimir Zimnitsky. The church is built of stone. It has the shape of a rectangle with an open dome and bell tower in the middle of the gable. The first mention of the church was in 1653. Overall, in its history, St. Nicholai Church was restored four times: in 1734, 1795, 1824 and 1866. In 1866, the church built on the site of the ancient church Prechistenskaya. In 1907 the ancient icon of Our Lady, considered lost, was returned to the St. Nicholai Church . At the end of 1920 the church was closed; it housed a grain warehouse. In 1941 the church was re-opened. In the 1980s, St. Nicholai Church walls were painted by master painters from

Sergiev Posad Sergiyev Posad ( rus, Сергиев Посад, p=ˈsʲɛrgʲɪ(j)ɪf pɐˈsat) is a city that is the administrative center of Sergiyevo-Posadsky District in Moscow Oblast, Russia. Population: The city contains the Trinity Lavra of St. Serg ...

. St. Nicholas painted the story Apocalypse, its altar – on the theme of the Lord's supper. Among the many well-executed images have all Belarusian saints. The second chapel (located in the north, the left of the main chapel, the side of the church) was consecrated in honor of St. Symeon the New Theologian. File:St. Nikolai Orthodox Church 2.jpg File:St. Nikolai Orthodox Church.jpg File:St. Nikolai Orthodox Church 3.jpg

St. Kazimir Catholic Church

St. Kazimir Catholic Church is a Catholic church, located in the city of Logoisk, Belarus. It was built in 1999 by the architect M. Kalechits. It is located in the central part of Logoisk, on the left side of the river Gaina. The building is a light beige color with a modern silhouette, which features Gothic Revival traced. The church was built on the site of the destroyed in the mid-20th-century St. Kazimir Catholic Church, which was located on the former site of the tomb of the Tyshkevich family. Near the church is the grave of Count K. Tyshkevich, where the installed the monument. St. Kazimir Catholic Church during the four centuries of its history was erected four times. The church was founded in 1604 by Count Alexander Tyshkevich as a sign of his conversion to the Catholic faith. The wooden church burned down in 1655 during the war of 1654–1667 between Rzeczpospolita and the Russian kingdom. On 17 April 1787 Count A. Tyshkevich took up the construction of the stone church, whose construction was completed on 20 October 1793 by his son Vikenty. The church functioned until 1950; then it was closed and dismantled. In the late 1980s, believers established a cross on the former site of the shrine and began to seek permission to build the church. In 1991, the city authorities decided to transfer these lands of the Roman Catholic Church. The new church was built in less than 10 years ago. The rebuilt church was consecrated on 19 June 1999. File:St. Kaimir Catholic Church 3.jpg File:St. Kaimir Catholic Church .jpg File:St. Kaimir Catholic Church 2.jpg

Holy spring of St. Nicholai (Crinitsa)

The spring of St. Nicholai in Logoisk is one of the city's attractions. It is located near the Church of St. Nicholai, from under which originates and source. Crinitsa has been declared to be a hydrological natural monument of local importance. In 2005, the source by Consecrated Metropolitan of Minsk and Slutsk Filaret. It is believed that the water from this holy spring healing, heal many ailments. Crinitsa and the surrounding area equipped, built two fonts. Place attracts many pilgrims and travelers to try the spring water, and if possible to find cure of diseases. File:Holy spring of St. Nicholai (Crinitsa) 2.jpg File:Holy spring of St. Nicholai (Crinitsa) .jpg

Tyshkevich palace

Tyshkevich Palace in Logoisk is an architectural monument of late classicism (Empire). Most of the palace, as well as farm buildings almost completely destroyed and the chapel at the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

by the retreating Germans. The ruins of the walls of the side wing of the palace and well known Tyshkevich's park. The monumental structure was raised on a high base of rectangular shape (70 × 20 m). In the courtyard of the estate were "the hut" ledovnya (refrigirator-building), congestive, stable box and other outbuildings. All parts of the palace were covered with gable roofs. Ceremonial palace museum apartment resembled a suite. Here in 2 huge oblong halls were presented things from the rich museum collection. The decoration of the interiors has been made in the

Empire style The Empire style (, ''style Empire'') is an early-nineteenth-century design movement in architecture, furniture, other decorative arts, and the visual arts, representing the second phase of Neoclassicism. It flourished between 1800 and 1815 duri ...

. It is assumed that these rooms are on the 1st floor of the side wing of the palace. Its a story, that Tyshkevich's castle and St. Kazimir Catholic Church was connected with underground road. File:Tyshkevich's castle 3.jpg File:Łahojsk, Tyškievič. Лагойск, Тышкевіч (N. Orda, 1864-76) (2).jpg File:Tyshkevich's castle 2.jpg

Sculpture 'The Mother of God in Logoisk'

On 24 September 2016, the sculpture 'The Mother of God in Logoisk' (the author is Vladimir Slobodchikov, who currently lives in Silichy village) was installed and blessed in Logoisk. According to the bishop who blessed the monument, it is now possible to come for help and consolation, or in a moments of joy. File:Sculpture 'The Mother of God in Lahoysk' .jpg File:Sculpture 'The Mother of God in Lahoysk' 3.jpg File:Sculpture 'The Mother of God in Lahoysk' 2.jpg

Notable people

(1814 – 1873), government official, archaeologist and historianІмёны Свабоды: Яўстах Тышкевіч (The Names of Freedom: Eustachy Tyszkiewicz)
(in Belarusian) *

Uładzimir Hančaryk Uładzimir Ivanavič Hančaryk or Vladimir Ivanovich Goncharik (, ; born 29 April 1940) is a Belarusian politician. Early life Hančaryk was born in Lahojsk, a town outside of Minsk, in the Byelorussian SSR. Political career Beginning in 1986, ...

(born 1940), candidate in the 2001 presidential election.

Notes

References

External links

Lahoysk online

Virtual museum of Lahoysk

The murder of the Jews of Lahoysk
during

, at

Yad Vashem Yad Vashem (; ) is Israel's official memorial institution to the victims of Holocaust, the Holocaust known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (). It is dedicated to preserving the memory of the Jews who were murdered; echoing the stories of the ...

website. {{Authority control

Lahojsk Lahoysk is a town in Minsk Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Lahoysk District. As of 2025, it has a population of 15,567. History First chronicled in 1078, Lahoysk was the centre of a small 12th-century principality, ...

Populated places in Minsk region Lahoysk district Polochans Holocaust locations in Belarus