Vileyka or Vilyeyka 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 Vileyka District. It is located on the Viliya River, northwest of Minsk. The first historical record dates from 16 November 1460. As of 2025, the town has a population of 26,375. The Vileyka VLF transmitter operated by the

Russian Navy The Russian Navy is the Navy, naval arm of the Russian Armed Forces. It has existed in various forms since 1696. Its present iteration was formed in January 1992 when it succeeded the Navy of the Commonwealth of Independent States (which had i ...

is located near Vileyka. It provides

VLF Very low frequency or VLF is the ITU designation for radio frequencies (RF) in the range of 3–30 kHz, corresponding to wavelengths from 100 to 10 km, respectively. The band is also known as the myriameter band or myriameter wave ...

communication between Russian Navy's headquarters and atomic submarines in the Atlantic, Indian and parts of the Pacific Ocean.

History

In the 10th–13th centuries, the territory was under 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' ...

, and in XIV–XVII under

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, ...

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal mea ...

Kurenets. The city was first mentioned in 1460 as a borough center of the Vileyka Starostwo of the

Ashmyany Ashmyany or Oshmyany is a city in Grodno Region, Belarus. It is located from Vilnius in Lithuania, and serves as the administrative center of Ashmyany District. The river Ashmyanka passes through the city. As of 2025, it has a population of 16 ...

county in

. * 1635 –

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 ...

bestowed Vileyka upon Aleksander Korwin Gosiewski "for exclusive service to the state". * 1765 – Vileyka has 30 houses, 165 inhabitants, and became a county center. * 1793 – during 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 ...

the town is ceded to 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 ...

. * 1795 – under the decree of

Catherine II of Russia Catherine II. (born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 172917 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the reigning empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after overthrowing her husband, Peter I ...

the town receives the status of a city and becomes a center of Vileyka

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 ...

Minsk Governorate Minsk Governorate was an administrative-territorial unit (''guberniya'') of the Russian Empire, with its capital in Minsk. It was created from the land acquired in the partitions of Poland and existed from 1793 until 1921. Its territory covered th ...

, then

Vilna Governorate The Vilna Governorate was a province ('' guberniya'') of the Northwestern Krai of the Russian Empire. In 1897, the governorate covered an area of and had a population of 1,591,207 inhabitants. The governorate was defined by the Minsk Governo ...

(1842–1917). * 1810, May 24 – almost the entire city is destroyed by the fire. * 1861 – 2931 inhabitants, 1880 – 3450, by the end of 19th century – more than 3500 inhabitants. * 1906 – big

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

started. * 1907 – the city acquires a branch of Warsaw – Saint Petersburg Railway and a city station. * 1915, September 14 – occupied by the German Army, but several days later recovered by the Russian Army during the Sventiany Offensive. * 1917, November 8 – Soviets come to power during the

October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...

* 1918, December – occupied by German Army * 1919 – ceded to Poland in the

Peace of Riga The Treaty of Riga was signed in Riga, Latvia, on between Poland on one side and Soviet Russia (acting also on behalf of Soviet Belarus) and Soviet Ukraine on the other, ending the Polish–Soviet War (1919–1921). The chief negotiators o ...

following

Polish–Soviet War The Polish–Soviet War (14 February 1919 – 18 March 1921) was fought primarily between the Second Polish Republic and the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, following World War I and the Russian Revolution. After the collapse ...

, becoming the center of the Wilejka county in the Wilno Voivodeship (1923–1939) * 1939 – annexed back to Soviet Union during the

Soviet invasion of Poland The Soviet invasion of Poland was a military conflict by the Soviet Union without a formal declaration of war. On 17 September 1939, the Soviet Union invaded Second Polish Republic, Poland from the east, 16 days after Nazi Germany invaded Polan ...

in accordance with the conditions of the

Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, officially the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and also known as the Hitler–Stalin Pact and the Nazi–Soviet Pact, was a non-aggression pact between Nazi Ge ...

. Becomes center of the Vileyka Voblast of BSSR * 1941, June 24-25 – following the German invasion of the USSR over 1,000 inmates from Vileyka prison were forcibly marched eastward towards

Barysaw 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 ...

. During the march, an estimated 500 to 800 prisoners died at the hands of guards. * 1941, June 25 – occupied by troops of the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Army Group Centre Army Group Centre () was the name of two distinct strategic German Army Groups that fought on the Eastern Front in World War II. The first Army Group Centre was created during the planning of Operation Barbarossa, Germany's invasion of the So ...

during the first stage of Operation Barbarossa and placed under the administration of the ''

Generalbezirk Weißruthenien ''Generalbezirk Weißruthenien'' (; ) was an administrative subdivision of the ''Reichskommissariat Ostland'' of Nazi Germany that covered western Belarus from 1941 to 1944. It served as the Nazi civilian administration for the German occupati ...

'' of ''

Reichskommissariat Ostland The (RKO; ) was an Administrative division, administrative entity of the Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories of Nazi Germany from 1941 to 1945. It served as the German Civil authority, civilian occupation regime in Lithuania, La ...

''. Over 15,000 civilians massacred including 6,972

Polish Jews The history of the Jews in Poland dates back at least 1,000 years. For centuries, Poland was home to the largest and most significant Jews, Jewish community in the world. Poland was a principal center of Jewish culture, because of the long pe ...

.Dr. Smilovitsky, Vileik
(Polish: Wilejka)
JewishGen, Yizkor Book Project. From materials of the Extraordinary Commission. See also: Belarusian Home Defence (BKA) pacification actions * 1941, July 12 and 30 – German SS forces murder the remaining Jewish citizens in Vileyka (over 500 people). * 1944, July 2 – Vileyka recaptured by troops of the

3rd Belorussian Front The 3rd Belorussian Front () was a Front of the Red Army during the Second World War. The 3rd Belorussian Front was created on 24 April 1944 from forces previously assigned to the Western Front. Over 381 days in combat, the 3rd Belorussian Fr ...

of the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

during the

Minsk Offensive The Minsk offensive () was part of the second phase of the Belorussian strategic offensive of the Red Army in summer 1944, commonly known as Operation Bagration. The Red Army encircled the German 4th Army (Wehrmacht), Fourth Army in the city of ...

. * 1944 – the center of the Vileyka Raion formed * 1954 – furniture plant started * 1959 – repair plant opened * 1973 – "Zenit-BelOMO"Zenit-BelOMO
zenit-belomo.by optical plant started * 1973 – Vileyka reservoir started * 1994 – Vileyka voted for Zianon Pazniak in the

1994 Belarusian presidential election Presidential elections were held in Belarus on 23 June 1994, with a second round on 10 July. They were the first national elections held in Belarus since the country seceded from the Soviet Union three years earlier. The result was an overwhe ...

* 1998 – Vileyka

hydropower station Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

started

Geography

The modern city is located on the right bank of the river Viliya, in the northwest part of the

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...

region, 100 kilometers from Minsk. The town's population numbers 30,000 people. There is a railway station of the Maladzyechna–

Polotsk Polotsk () or Polatsk () is a town in Vitebsk Region, Belarus. It is situated on the Dvina River and serves as the administrative center of Polotsk District. Polotsk is served by Polotsk Airport and Borovitsy air base. As of 2025, it has a pop ...

line in the city. The roads to Maladzyechna, Smarhon, Myadzyel,

Dokshytsy Dokshytsy (; ; ; ) is a town in Vitebsk Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Dokshytsy District. It is located approximately southwest of Vitebsk and one kilometer from the source of the Berezina, Berezina River. Its popula ...

, Plyeshchanitsy run through the city. The town's industry is represented by the Zenit plant, wood processing enterprises (including a furniture factory), a motor repair plant, building materials plants, light and food enterprises. Vileyka also houses the Museum of Regional Studies. The territory of the Vileyka district is . Forests account for 41% of the territory. The main part of the district is situated within the borders of Narach-Vileyka lowland. In the year 1974, near the town of Vileyka Belarus's largest artificial reservoir was built — Vileyka reservoir with a total area of and a volume of .

Demography

According to the 1921 census, the town's population was 62.8% Polish, 27.4% Belarusian and 8.1%

Jewish 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 ...

Notable residents

* Alaksandar Ułasaŭ(1874-1941), a Belarusian politician, a founder and the first editor of the newspaper

Naša Niva ''Nasha Niva'' (, lit. "Our field") is one of the oldest Belarusian weekly newspapers, founded in 1906 and re-established in 1991. ''Nasha Niva'' became a cultural symbol, due to the newspaper's importance as a publisher of Belarusian literature ...

, and a victim of Stalin's purges

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Vileyka is twinned with: *

Mozhaysk MozhayskAlternative transliterations include ''Mozhaisk'', ''Mozhajsk'', ''Mozhaĭsk'', and ''Možajsk''. (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, town and the administrative center of Mozhaysky District, Moscow Oblast, Mozhaysky Distri ...

, Russia * Pereiaslav,

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

Willmar, Minnesota Willmar ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Kandiyohi County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 21,015 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Agricultural expansion and the establishment of Willmar as a division ...

, United States

Notes

References

External links

Official site of Vileyka Regional Executive Committee

Pictures of nearby Russian Navy long-haul communications center

Foto,Forum,Articles – Vilejka.be.together!

Unofficial reference and information site of Vileyka
{{Authority control Holocaust locations in Belarus Populated places in Minsk region Populated places in Belarus Vileyka district