Białowieża Primaeval Forest, known as Belaveskaya Pushcha or Belovezhskaya Pushcha in Belarus and Puszcza Białowieska in Poland, is an ancient woodland straddling the border between Belarus and Poland, located 70 km (43 mi) north of Brest. It is one of the last and largest remaining parts of the immense primeval forest which once spread across the European Plain.
Read more...Nesvizh is a city in Belarus. It is the administrative center of the Nesvizh District (rajon) of Minsk Province and location of the Architectural, Residential and Cultural Complex of the Radziwill Family at Nesvizh World Heritage Site.
Read more...The Mirsky Castle Complex, is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Belarus located in the town of Mir in the Karelichy District of the Hrodna voblast.
The construction of the castle began at the end of the 15th century, in the Gothic architecture style. Building of the castle was completed by Duke Ilinich in early 16th century near the village Mir (formerly of Minsk guberniya). Around 1568 the Mir Castle passed into the hands of Mikolaj Krzysztof "the Orphan" Radziwill, who finished building the castle in the Renaissance style. A three-storey palace was built along the eastern and northern walls of the castle. After being abandoned for nearly a century and suffering severe damage during the Napoleonic period, the castle was restored at the end of the 19th century.
Minsk is the capital and largest city in Belarus, situated on the Svislach and Niamiha rivers. Minsk is also a headquarters of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). As the national capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is also the administrative centre of Minsk voblast (province) and Minsk raion (district).
The earliest references to Minsk date to the 11th century (1067), then a provincial city within the principiality of Polotsk. In 1242, Minsk became a part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and it received its town privileges in 1499. From 1569, it was a capital of the Minsk Voivodship in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. It was annexed by Russia in 1793, as a consequence of the Second Partition of Poland. From 1919–1991, Minsk was the capital of the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic.
