Hello everybody! In my opinion, the city hall is not only a monument of architecture, but also a reminder of the times of city self-government and independence. The majestic building of the town hall first of all indicated the level of wealth and wealth of the city. In Belarus, only 7 out of 60 city halls have survived, one of which I have already talked about earlier. Today I will talk about the ancient architectural symbol of the independence of the Belarusian capital.
The history of the Minsk City Hall dates back to 1582. After receiving the Magdeburg Law, many cities gained the long-awaited independence and the right to self-government. The Minsk City Hall stood out not only for its majestic architecture of that time, but also had the only clock in the city. Over time, changes were made to the architecture of the building. For example, at the end of the 18th century, the town hall was rebuilt in the style of classicism.
The rectangular building with an elongated main facade is covered with a sloping roof. The ends of the Town Hall and its central part are decorated with 4-columned porticos. On the back side, the facade is decorated with many decorative elements. In my opinion, the tower of the building is one of the main elements. Since the town hall was built on a hill, in ancient times the tower could be seen from many parts of the city. The weather vane tower is 32 meters high and has a clock and the coat of arms of the city.
Until the abolition of the Magdeburg law in Minsk, the town hall performed a number of important functions. First of all, meetings of the Minsk magistrate and courts were held in the building. The town hall was the place where the city treasury was located, the standards of volume and units of weight and the archive were stored. In addition, weapons for the city militia, fire fighting equipment, a small prison and a guard room were located in the basement. And in the mid-1800s, a music school and dramatic and musical performances were located here. But not for long...
Under the reign of the king, power in the cities of Magdeburg law was abolished. Thus, the cities lost the possibility of self-government. In 1857, the town hall building fell into disrepair and lost all its former functions. The authorities did not want to see an architectural monument of the times of self-government in the city, and for this reason it was decided to demolish the building of the city hall. An interesting fact is that not a single resident of Minsk wanted to take part in the destruction of the town hall, even for good money. The dismantling of the building was carried out by prisoners from the city prison.
Go restore the town hall appeared in the 1980s. Before proceeding with the restoration, a large number of scientific studies were carried out. Drawings, drawings and documents were found and studied in the archives of Warsaw, Moscow, St. Petersburg and Vilnius. In 1978 and 1988, archaeological excavations were carried out, which supplemented the information about the destroyed architectural monument. Thanks to this, in 2002, the construction of a new town hall identical to the destroyed one began. Even the thickness of the walls remained the same - half a meter. In 2004, the grand opening of the restored architectural landmark was held.
At present, the Minsk City Hall performs not an administrative, but a cultural role. Every hour, the chimes on the tower beat out a fragment of the melody "Songs about Minsk" by one of the famous local composers. Numerous exhibitions, Days of the City are held in this place and guests of honor of the capital of Belarus are received. At the walls of the Town Hall, interesting performances are arranged and musical groups perform. But the most important thing is that residents and guests of the capital love the city hall.
In the near future, I will visit the City Hall again and show its interior.
Photo information:
Author:
Camera: Nikon D5200
Location: Minsk, Belarus
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