General information
Vawkavysk is a city in the southwest part of the Grodno region located on the river Ross’. Vawkavysk is the center of the Vawkavysky district which a long time ago won an award for an excellent vacation spot in Belarus. The district contains 191 settlements and more than 73 thousand inhabitants. It received its name thanks to the river of Volkovyya on which the city is located.
There are more legends about the origin of the city’s name. One of the most widespread versions is that in ancient times there lived a set of volkolaks with which locals were constantly fighting.
History of Vawkavysk
The first mention of the city dates back to 1005 when the city’s castle was on border of accommodation of two tribes – dregovichy and yatvyagi. The city was stretched on hills such as Zamchishche, Shvedskaya gora and Muravelnik. Rapid growth and richness of Vawkavysk was explained by its favorable location as it was located along the route ‘from the Vikings to the Greeks ‘which connected the Baltic and Black seas. Vawkavysk was known for its craftsmen making a large variety of goods such as clothes, ware, armor and weapon.
The city suffered from wars and destructions throughout its history. After the 3rd partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1795 the city became a part of the Russian Empire. In 1812 during war, general of the Russian army P. Bagration established his headquarters in the city, and this is still available for viewing today. This sight attracts tourists not only by its unusual architecture, but also due to the fact that there is a museum within dedicated to P. Bagration
Vawkavysk reference information
| Belarusian (latin) | Vaukavysk |
| Belarusian(cyrillic) | Ваўкавыск |
| Russian (latin) | Vawkavysk |
| Russian (cyryllic) | Волковыск |
| Founded | 1005 |
| Population | 44, 084 |
| Region | Grodno region |
| Area (sq.km) | 79 km² |
| Phone code | +375 1513 |
| Time zone | UTC+3 |
| Postal code | 231900 |
| License plate | 4 |
| Link | Vawkavysk.grodno-region.by |
Sightseeing in Vawkavysk
Saint Vaclav’s church in Vawkavysk was constructed in 1848 and is extraordinary beautiful. It would be interesting to visit Saint Nikolay’s church of 1874 as well. Vawkavysk honour and remember its heroes; there is the memorial cross established in the memory of the participants of the Kastus Kalinovsky uprising (1863-1864). The city also has a cemetery dedicated to the Polish soldiers of the 1920s and a cemetery of soldiers of World War I.
Excursion to Vawkavysk would be incomplete without a visit to ‘Shvedskaya gora’ and ‘Zamchishche’ – hills where city fortifications were located earlier. According to a legend ‘Shvedskaya gora’ was created at the time of the Northern war of 1700-1721 by the Swedish soldiers over a tomb of their commander.
There are unique archaeological monuments; the only ones of its kind in Eastern Europe found in the city, there are also flint extraction mines with parking and processing workshops from stone and bronze near the Krasnoselskiy village. More than 80 almost intact products survived. The Krasnoselsky archaeological complex is declared to be a national park.
Accommodation in Vawkavysk
There is a hotel, a farmstead, sanatoriums called ‘Energetik’ and ‘Praleska’ available for accommodation in the region.
Economy
The industry of the area is represented by the enterprises of mechanical engineering, the construction industry, and processing of agricultural products. There are 29 industrial enterprises working in the Volkovyssky district. The largest is ‘Krasnoselskstroy material’ that produces cement, slate and chalk, that are widely known and used in the country and abroad. Meat and dairy products are produced at ‘Volkovyssky myasokombinat’ and ‘Bellakt’.
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