Description of the attraction
Vitebsk City Hall is a symbol of Vitebsk, its proud memory of the times of independence and self-government. Town halls were allowed to build only those cities that were granted Magdeburg Law - a set of laws according to which the city, in which all the necessary institutions functioned and law and order were strictly observed, were granted freedom from feudal duties, local laws, and the state court.
In 1597 the King of Poland and Sweden, the Grand Duke of Lithuania Sigismund III Vasa granted the Magdeburg right to the city of Vitebsk. In Vitebsk, its own self-governing body, the magistrate, was established and a wooden town hall was built on the market square.
In 1623, riots broke out in Vitebsk in connection with the uprising of the Orthodox population against the Uniate Church. For this, in 1624 Vitebsk was deprived of the Magdeburg right as a city that is unable to maintain order and tranquility within its walls.
In 1644, for outstanding services in the war with Russia, the king of Poland and the prince of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania Sigismund III restored Magdeburg law in Vitebsk, in connection with which the town hall was also decreed. The wooden building of the town hall burned down several times, therefore, in 1775 it was decided to build a brick town hall.
In 1883, a clock was installed on the tower of the town hall and a pointed turret in the form of a rotunda was completed. In 1911 the third floor was completed. Since 1924, a local history museum has been housed in the former town hall.
In memory of the partisans executed during the Great Patriotic War, in front of the town hall, a memorial sign was erected in the place of the former gallows.
