Lukiškės. Life in the shadow of a prison

It is believed to have been the graveyard of the poor, and several noblemen had lavish palaces in the vicinity. According to legend, one such man, Jerzy Littawor Chreptowicz, the castellan of Smolensk, used to see the poor beings buried in the cemetery without any Christian rites. The nobleman took pity on them and donated 40,000 silver coins to the Dominican monks so they could build a wooden church next to the cemetery and bury the poor for free. Thus, in 1642 (or 1624), a single-towered church was built under the care of four monks. In 1665, during the war, the Cossacks burned the church and the rebuilt church burned again. Finally, in 1690, the construction of a brick church began. It took almost 40 years to build; it is the tallest single-nave church in Lithuania (24 m) and its height is equal to the length of the church. 

Next to it was the Lukiškės Dominican Hospital or ‘szpital’, which became the first secular hospital in Vilnius in 1799. Initially, there were 250 beds, but after six years, it was able to accommodate 700 patients who were mostly poor people, women in child birth, and soldiers. Until 1968, it was the city’s most important and largest hospital. During the Soviet era, the church was closed and some of its wealth and valuables were relocated or looted. After the restoration of independence, the sanctuary was returned to the faithful, and the painting of Our Lady of Mercy, considered miraculous, was also returned. In 2015, the tower was equipped with a 61-bell carillon – the largest in Lithuania – which rings daily at 13.00 and 19.15.

The establishment of a church, a monastery and a hospital led to the incorporation of the suburb of Lukiškės into the city, and the construction of St. George’s (now Gedimino) Avenue improved access to the outlying district. The location of the market square was already marked on the city plan approved by the Tsar in 1837. Later, it was planned to accommodate as many as five markets. The new location did not make the townspeople and traders happy as the market was not ready for active trading, the open field was rather exposed to the elements, puddles accumulated after the rain, and it was cold and windy in winter. At the end of the 19th century, agricultural exhibitions began to be held, and a wooden pavilion was built, which was used as a circus from 1897. In 1900, when it was decided to turn Cathedral Square into a square, the city’s main trade festival, which still happens to this day – St. Casimir’s Fair or Kaziuko Mugė – was moved to Lukiškių Square. Each year, merchant huts known as ‘balagans’ were built for the fair, and when the fair was over, they were demolished again. 

In 1863-1864, the square was the site of public executions, hangings, and the place where prominent participants of the uprising were shot. In 1936, the square was renamed after Józef Piłsudski and a monument to him was erected. Soon afterwards, the market was removed and the space itself was reconstructed, with paths, greenery, lighting – making it suitable for parades. In 1952, the monument to Piłsudski was replaced by a monument to Lenin. The Church of St. Philip and St Jacob stood in the background of the sculpture, and as it did not fit in with Soviet ideology, it was even considered for demolition. After the restoration of independence and the removal of the monument, the ongoing debate began on what the functions of Lukiskes Square should be. In 2017, the square was reconstructed and hosts the Kaziuko Fair in the spring, as well as various events, performances, and concerts throughout the year.

At the end of the 19th century, unrest began to break out on the outskirts of the Russian Empire, serious measures were taken to maintain order: the Criminal Code was amended, opposition to the authorities was banned, and preparations were made for even greater repression. The courthouse, built in 1899, was supposed to become a beacon of justice, but remained a symbol of oppression and misery for nearly a century. It was occupied by the German and later Polish occupation authorities, and when Lithuania was occupied by the Soviets, the NKVD and the NKGB moved into the building. Later, a prison and an interrogation centre were set up here. People who did not demonstrate loyalty to the system or resisted it were arrested en masse, tortured, killed, or exiled. 

After the restoration of independence, the building housed the Lithuanian Special Archive, which contains documents from the former KGB archive, the Lithuanian Genocide and Resistance Research Centre, the courts, and the Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights. It contains more than 130 000 different exhibits, most of which were left behind by the retreating Soviet security forces. The museum features former detention, shooting and torture chambers, as well as regular exhibitions on the painful history of the Lithuanian nation in the 20th century.

As the importance of Lukiskių Square grew, in 1913 a luxurious palace, the Merchants’ Club, was built nearby. At that time, it was owned by the richest and most influential people in Vilnius. Its members were concerned with the protection of business and industrial interests, the market for raw materials, export policy, and learned from similar clubs abroad. 

The façade of the building was decorated with expensive and rare ‘Empire-style’ sandstone, and guests were greeted by sumptuous decor, mirrors and bas-reliefs. The ceiling was decorated with symbols of the Roman god Mercury, the god of trade, eloquence, travellers, commerce and profit. There was even its own cinema inside.

The sculpture of the Atlas, who holds the world on its shoulders, is a highlight of the building. The original sculpture depicted the Greek titan naked, but the sculpture was removed after the 1947 reconstruction. It is said that before the war, Vilnius residents used to arrange meet at the rendezvous spot near the building with ‘the boy of shame’. When the sculpture was restored and repositioned in 2011, it grew to a height of 3.1 metres and Atlas’ modesty was also restored as his private parts were covered!

The idea of establishing a state library dates back to the beginning of the 19th century, but it was not implemented until 1919. Initially, the fund was housed in the Seimas palace, but the lack of suitable premises made it difficult for the library to function. After the Poles occupied Vilnius, the predecessor of the National Library, the Lithuanian Central Bookshop, was established in Kaunas. During the occupations, the institution lost many important publications, and in 1950 alone more than 30 tonnes of books were taken away for recycling or burned. 

The current building that houses the Martynas Mažvydas National Library was completed in 1958, but the library itself only moved to Vilnius in 1963.The Socialist Realist-style building is decorated with impressive columns, and the central staircase has been the platform for many a peaceful rally. At least one copy of every publication must be donated to the National Library, which currently holds around 7 million documents and publications. Differently from public libraries, national libraries do not usually lend publications. There are several reading rooms, regular events, exhibitions, conferences and, since 2017, the Statehood Centre. 

After the Second World War, the inhabitants of Vilnius were so fond of ice-skating that they even set up skating rinks in the yards of blocks of flats. The largest skating rink in the city was in Žalgirio (also known as ‘Jaunimo’ or Youth) Stadium, which was located at the bend of the Neris at the end of the Lukiškės quarter. Skates could be rented or brought along, and the ticket price was just 15 kopeks.

In 1976, the current Seimas Palace was built on the site of the former stadium, and soon the Supreme Soviet of the USSR moved in. In Soviet times, however, the Parliament functioned differently than today, with appointed deputies meeting here several times a year, voting on the bills that had already been tabled, and then dispersing until the next meeting. 

The building is made up of three parts, known as the 1st, 2nd and 3rd wings of the Seimas. The first chamber is the ceremonial hall of 11 March, where Lithuania’s independence was declared. On the west side of the palace, the January 13th Memorial is a glass structure preserving the surviving parts of the barricades, wayside shrines, inscriptions, and flags. 

The square in front of the Seimas was completed in 1985 and named in memory of the Day of the Restoration of Lithuanian Independence on 11 March 1990. During the bloody events of January the 13th, people gathered here to defend the Seimas Palace. The bonfires lit by the defenders of the Parliament have become a tradition, and every year, on the eve of the Day of the Defenders of Freedom, a ceremony of lighting bonfires starts from this square and stretches along the entire Gediminas Avenue. On 13 January and on other national holidays, the Changing of the Flag ceremony take place here. The square is decorated with several sculptures, the most striking of which is probably the quadrangular pyramid. It was once a fountain, but it has since fallen into disrepair and ceased to function. In preparation for the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2013, the fountain was dismantled and its sides were covered with maps depicting the territory of the Lithuanian state in different periods. The fountain’s fate is unclear: in 2018, the jets and other parts were stolen from the production base, and it is probably impossible to recreate the square’s original decoration without them. 

How did Lithuania’s largest and last prison in the city come to be located in the capital, right in the city centre? Until the second half of the 19th century, there was little need for a prison as an institution, as serfs were punished by their masters and people were exiled for serious crimes, so the prison was just a place to sit while awaiting trial. However, with the abolition of serfdom, and the imposition of short- and long-term imprisonment, the former institution was demolished and replaced within three years by a fortress-prison. At a cost of almost 1.5 million roubles (€40 million), it was the most expensive prison in the Russian Empire. The 115-year-old institution closed its doors in 2019, and two years later, a second version of the prison began to be built, with a community of artists, creators, and spaces for events, concerts and exhibitions. There is a bar open daily, and various guided tours and walks are regularly organised.

If you turn down the narrow Mečetės (Mosque) Street, don’t be surprised to find no houses of worship here. The first Tatar Mosque is believed to have been built here in the time of Vytautas, and written sources first mention it in the mid-16th century. In 1581, the following was written about the place of worship: ‘There are no images nor deity nor evil spirit here. The walls of the sanctuary are bare, but the floors are covered with colourful rugs. The services are always held on Fridays”. Traditionally, there was a cemetery for the faithful next to the house of worship. The wooden mosque eventually fell into disrepair, so the last local Tatars collected donations in the early 20th century and drew up plans to rebuild the stone mosque. Unfortunately, World War I ruined the plans and the money collected disappeared somewhere. During the Soviet era, the mosque became a warehouse, and the religious references on Mečetės Street were erased from the town plan and became Slyvų (Plum) Street, while the adjacent former Mahometonų Street became Obuolių (Apple) Street. The Tatar Mosque was officially closed in 1951, and in 1968, the house of worship and the adjacent cemetery were razed to the ground, soon to be replaced by the Semiconductor Physics Institute. It was only after the restoration of independence that the street was restored to its original name, and the only sign that a mosque that once stood here is the plaque on the wall.

The green oasis next to the White Bridge and Lukiškių Square got its name in 1996 when the US State Secretary Madeline Albright visited the country. In 1999, a commemorative stone was unveiled in Washington Square to honour Lithuanian-American ties, and in 2010, a plaque was erected next to the square, which quotes, in both Lithuanian and English, the official State Department statement of 23 July 1940 by another acting US Secretary of State, Sumner Welles, condemning the aggression by the Soviet Union. Interestingly, only one building bears the address of Washington Square: the street name is affixed to the corner of the building, in English, in the same style as the original street signs in Washington itself. The square was planned to be planted with trees and greenery native to the US, and has one of the oldest fountains in Vilnius.