Skuodas (; Samogitian: ''Skouds'') is a city located in

Klaipėda County Klaipėda County () is one of ten counties in Lithuania, bordering Tauragė County to the southeast, Telšiai County to the northeast, Kurzeme in Latvia to the north, and Kaliningrad Oblast in Russia to the south. To the west is the Baltic S ...

, in northwestern

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

, on the border with

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

. The Bartuva river flows through the town. Is currently the capital of Skuodas District Municipality.

History

Skuodas was first mentioned in written sources in 1253. At that time it belonged to Ceklis land. In 1572 Chełmno municipal rights were granted to Skuodas thanks to

Jan Hieronimowicz Chodkiewicz Jan Hieronimowicz Chodkiewicz (, ) ( – 4 August 1579) was a 16th-century Lithuanian noble. He was Grand Pantler of Lithuania from 1559, Elder of Samogitia (1564–1579), Governor of Livonia (1566–1578), Grand Marshal of Lithuania (1566 ...

who owned the city. The same year after the city rights were granted, a new part of the city started to settle on the right wing of Bartuva river. In the centre of this part there were built a new rectangular square, town hall, commercial buildings. It was a

private town Private towns in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth were privately owned towns within the lands owned by magnates, bishops, knights and princes, among others. Amongst the most well-known former private magnate towns are Białystok, Zamość, R ...

, administratively located in the

Duchy of Samogitia The Duchy of Samogitia (, , ) was an administrative unit of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from 1422 (and from 1569, a member country of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth). Between 1422 and 1441 it was known as the Eldership of Samogitia. Si ...

of the

Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, also referred to as Poland–Lithuania or the First Polish Republic (), was a federation, federative real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania ...

. In 1614,

Jan Karol Chodkiewicz Jan Karol Chodkiewicz (; 1561 – 24 September 1621) was a Polish–Lithuanian identity, Polish–Lithuanian military commander of the Grand Ducal Lithuanian Army, who was from 1601 Field Hetman of Lithuania, and from 1605 Grand Hetman of Lit ...

, one of the greatest military commanders in the history of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, founded a new parish church with an adjacent school. In 1625, the town passed as a trousseau to the

Sapieha family The House of Sapieha (; ; ; ) is a Polish-Lithuanian noble and magnate family of Ruthenian origin,Энцыклапедыя ВКЛ. Т.2, арт. "Сапегі" descending from the medieval boyars of Smolensk and Polotsk. Vernadsky, George. ...

. In 1645, the municipal rights were changed to

Magdeburg rights Magdeburg rights (, , ; also called Magdeburg Law) were a set of town privileges first developed by Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor (936–973) and based on the Flemish Law, which regulated the degree of internal autonomy within cities and villages gr ...

Władysław IV Vasa Władysław IV Vasa or Ladislaus IV (9 June 1595 – 20 May 1648) was King of Poland, Grand Duke of Lithuania and claimant of the thrones of Monarchy of Sweden, Sweden and List of Russian monarchs, Russia. Born into the House of Vasa as a prince ...

. Sapieha family owned the city until 1832. In 1776 Skuodas lost city rights and became just a border city with a customs. In 1821 present masonry Evangelical Lutheran Church was built. In 1847 the current

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

was built using masonry of stone and bricks. It reflects features of

Romanesque Revival architecture Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended t ...

. This church was consecrated by bishop

Motiejus Valančius Motiejus Kazimieras Valančius (; , also known by his pen-name ''Joteika'' and ''Ksiądz Maciek''; 1801–1875) was a Catholic Bishop of Samogitia, historian and one of the best known Lithuanian/Samogitian writers of the 19th century. Biograph ...

in 1850. In 1614 parish school was established. Railway branch line Priekule-

Klaipėda Klaipėda ( ; ) is a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast. It is the List of cities in Lithuania, third-largest city in Lithuania, the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, fifth-largest city in the Baltic States, and the capi ...

was built in 1915 and printing house was established in 1911. The town had a Jewish community in the 19th century, with four synagogues. By 1897, almost 2,300 Jews formed 60% of the population and dominated commerce in the town. During the interwar period Skuodas had about 4410 inhabitants. It was known for its shoe factory ''Kontinent''. Skuodas also had a new cinema with modern equipment. The city suffered severely during

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 ...

. It was occupied by the

Soviet Union 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 ...

from 1940, then by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

from 1941, and once again by the Soviet Union from 1944. In 1941, following the German invasion, and the establishment of persecutions by Lithuanian collaborators, 500 Jews of the town were massacred. After the war the ruined rectangular square was rebuilt. In 1992 the coat of arms of Skuodas was approved. Nowadays Skuodas has a gymnasium, a primary school, a secondary school and a high school. There is also a museum, post office, centre of the culture, central hospital of municipality, foster home and public library in the city.

History of the name

The city's name ''Skuodas'' originated from the surname, Skuodas. In Polish it was known as ''Szkudy'', and in German as ''Schoden''. At the end of the 16th century, the new part of the city was called ''Johanisberg'' or ''Johanisburg''. However these names did not catch on.

Famous residents

* Eugenijus Gedgaudas (1924-2006), Lithuanian born USA radiologist; *

Simonas Daukantas Simonas Daukantas (; 28 October 1793 – 6 December 1864) was a Lithuanian/Samogitian historian, writer, and ethnographer. One of the pioneers of the Lithuanian National Revival, he is credited as the author of the first book on the history of Li ...

(1793-1864), famous Lithuanian historian, author of the first historical works in

Lithuanian Lithuanian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Lithuania, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe ** Lithuanian language ** Lithuanians, a Baltic ethnic group, native to Lithuania and the immediate geographical region ** L ...

; * Vaclovas Intas (1927-2007), doctor, founder of

Mosėdis Mosėdis is a small town in Samogitia, northwestern Lithuania in Klaipėda County and Skuodas district. Mosėdis is mostly known for its Rare Stones Museum. The museum and its impressive outdoor collection were started by Vaclovas Intas and have ...

Museum of Stones; * Vytautas Vaclovas Donėla (born 1930), Lithuanian philosopher; *

Alvydas Duonėla Alvydas Duonėla (born 27 June 1976 in Skuodas) is a Lithuanian sprint canoer. He won seven medals at the ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships with three golds (K-2 200 m: 2001, 2002, 2003), two silvers (K-2 200 m: 2005, K-2 500 ...

(born 1976), retired Lithuanian canoeist, world champion; *

Vygaudas Ušackas Vygaudas Ušackas (born 16 December 1964 in Skuodas, Lithuania) is Member of the Board of Directors of a Lithuanian born European-American company Avia Solutions Group, which is a Leader in End-to-End Capacity Provider for Passenger and Cargo Ai ...

(born 1964), a Lithuanian diplomat, former Lithuania's Minister for Foreign Affairs, current

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

's special representative and the head of EU mission for

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

; *

Remigijus Motuzas Remigijus is a masculine Lithuanian given name. Notable people with the name include: * Remigijus Kančys (born 1987), Lithuanian marathon runner * Remigijus Kriukas (born 1961), Lithuanian painter *Remigijus Lupeikis (born 1964), Lithuanian cyclis ...

(born 1956), a Lithuanian diplomat, current ambassador of Lithuania to Russia; *

Zinaida Sendriūtė Zinaida Sendriūtė (born 20 December 1984) is a Lithuanian discus thrower. Her personal best is 65.97 metres, achieved in May 2013 in Kaunas. She competed at the 2006 European Championships, 2008 Olympic Games The 2008 Summer Olympics ...

(born 1984), a Lithuanian discus thrower, represented Lithuania in the 2016 Olympic Games.

Twin cities

Lindås Lindås is a List of former municipalities of Norway, former municipality in the Nordhordland district in the old Hordaland county, Norway. It existed from 1838 until its dissolution on 1 January 2020 when it was merged into the new Alver Munici ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

Gallery

Skuodo dvaras.JPG, Skuodas Manor Skuodo bažnyčia. Fasadas.JPG, Holy Trinity church Image:Skuodo paminklas Tautos kančiai 2011.JPG, Monument for the Pain of the Nation Image:Bartuva Skuode.JPG, Bartuva river in Skuodas

References

External links

Official site

Travel guide to SkuodasThe murder of the Jews of Skuodas
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 Cities in Lithuania Cities in Klaipėda County Municipalities administrative centres of Lithuania Telshevsky Uyezd Holocaust locations in Lithuania