Pruzhany
Encyclopedia
Pruzhany is a town
in Brest Voblast
, Belarus
. Pruzhany is the center of a district in Brest Region, Belarus. Its population is about 20.000 people. The town is located at the confluence of the Mukha River and the Vets Canal, which give the start to Mukhavets River.
of Poland. She brought Renaissance
influence and development of trades in this part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
. In 1589, her daughter Anna granted a town charter and the coat of arms of Pruzhany (a blue snake swallowing a baby on a silver shield). The coat of arms was borrowed from that of the Sforza family of Milan
. Pruzhany was a center of pottery trade at those times. In the mid 19th century a wealthy Polish landlord Walenty Szwykowski laid out a park and built a pretentious palace that houses a museum today after a restoration. The museum has a rich collection on the history and arts of the region. Another tourist attraction is the landmark at the confluence of the Mukha River and the Vets Canal. It presents a statue of a passionate pair rising over waves.
The Jewish population in 1900 was 5,080. In 1941 the Nazis hoarded the Jews
here to create a ghetto
. During January 28–31, 1943 the Nazis deported 10,000 Jews of Pruzhany to Auschwitz, via Birkenau, where the men, women and children were ruthlessly and sadistically liquidated.
In 2003 the central part of the town was reconstructed to prepare the town for the national harvest festival “Dozhinki” in autumn 2003.
Pruzhany is the birthplace of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, the Torah scholar and Jewish leader.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in Brest Voblast
Brest Voblast
Brest Voblast or Brest Oblast is a province of Belarus with its administrative center being Brest.Important cities within the voblast' include: Baranovichi, Brest, and Pinsk.-Geography:...
, Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
. Pruzhany is the center of a district in Brest Region, Belarus. Its population is about 20.000 people. The town is located at the confluence of the Mukha River and the Vets Canal, which give the start to Mukhavets River.
History
Pruzhany has been known as Dabuchyn since 1487. In the 16th century it belonged to queen Bona SforzaBona Sforza
Bona Sforza was a member of the powerful Milanese House of Sforza. In 1518, she became the second wife of Sigismund I the Old, the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, and became the Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania.She was the third child of Gian Galeazzo Sforza and his wife...
of Poland. She brought Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
influence and development of trades in this part of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
. In 1589, her daughter Anna granted a town charter and the coat of arms of Pruzhany (a blue snake swallowing a baby on a silver shield). The coat of arms was borrowed from that of the Sforza family of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
. Pruzhany was a center of pottery trade at those times. In the mid 19th century a wealthy Polish landlord Walenty Szwykowski laid out a park and built a pretentious palace that houses a museum today after a restoration. The museum has a rich collection on the history and arts of the region. Another tourist attraction is the landmark at the confluence of the Mukha River and the Vets Canal. It presents a statue of a passionate pair rising over waves.
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
here to create a ghetto
Ghetto
A ghetto is a section of a city predominantly occupied by a group who live there, especially because of social, economic, or legal issues.The term was originally used in Venice to describe the area where Jews were compelled to live. The term now refers to an overcrowded urban area often associated...
. During January 28–31, 1943 the Nazis deported 10,000 Jews of Pruzhany to Auschwitz, via Birkenau, where the men, women and children were ruthlessly and sadistically liquidated.
In 2003 the central part of the town was reconstructed to prepare the town for the national harvest festival “Dozhinki” in autumn 2003.
Pruzhany is the birthplace of Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, the Torah scholar and Jewish leader.