Gediminas Avenue ( lt, Gedimino prospektas) is the main street of
Vilnius
Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...
, where most of the governmental institutions of
Lithuania are concentrated, including the government,
parliament
In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
,
Constitutional Court
A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ...
and ministries. It is also the location of cultural institutions such as the
Lithuanian National Drama Theatre,
Bank of Lithuania,
Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre and
Martynas Mažvydas National Library. It is also a popular shopping and dining street. It is partially a
pedestrian street
Pedestrian zones (also known as auto-free zones and car-free zones, as pedestrian precincts in British English, and as pedestrian malls in the United States and Australia) are areas of a city or town reserved for pedestrian-only use and in whi ...
in the evenings when traffic is prohibited.
Named after the
Grand Duke of Lithuania
The monarchy of Lithuania concerned the monarchical head of state of Kingdom of Lithuania, Lithuania, which was established as an Absolute monarchy, absolute and hereditary monarchy. Throughout Lithuania's history there were three Duke, ducal D ...
Gediminas
Gediminas ( la, Gedeminne, ; – December 1341) was the king or Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1315 or 1316 until his death. He is credited with founding this political entity and expanding its territory which later spanned the area ranging from t ...
, the street terminates at the
Žvėrynas Bridge over the
Neris River
The river Neris () or Viliya ( be, Ві́лія, pl, Wilia ) rises in northern Belarus. It flows westward, passing through Vilnius (Lithuania's capital) and in the south-centre of that country it flows into the Nemunas (Neman), at Kaunas, a ...
near
Seimas Palace
Seimas Palace ( lt, Seimo rūmai) is the seat of the Seimas, the Lithuanian parliament. It is located in Lithuania's capital Vilnius.
History
Work began on the construction of the first wing of the palace, a purpose-built building for the Supre ...
on one end and at the
Cathedral Square and
Vilnius Castle Complex
The Vilnius Castle Complex ( lt, Vilniaus pilių kompleksas or ) is a group of cultural, and historic structures on the left bank of the Neris River, near its confluence with the Vilnia River, in Vilnius, Lithuania. The buildings, which evolved ...
on the other, passing
Lukiškės Square
Lukiškės Square (other spellings include ''Łukiszki, Lukiski, Lukishki'', lt, Lukiškių aikštė) is the largest square (about in Vilnius, Lithuania, located in the center of the city. A major street in Vilnius, Gediminas Avenue, passes ...
. It connects the
Old Town with
Žvėrynas.
History
The street, built in 1836, was initially known as St. George Avenue,
Mickiewicz
Adam Bernard Mickiewicz (; 24 December 179826 November 1855) was a Polish poet, dramatist, essayist, publicist, translator and political activist. He is regarded as national poet in Poland, Lithuania and Belarus. A principal figure in Polish R ...
Street ( pl, ulica Mickiewicza), when Vilnius was under
Polish
Polish may refer to:
* Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe
* Polish language
* Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...
rule (1922–1939) and
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
Street during
Nazi
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
occupation. At the beginning of the Soviet occupation in 1940 it was called
Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secretar ...
Avenue, later renamed
Lenin
Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1 ...
Avenue. The avenue carries its present name from 1939 to 1940 and since 1989. In the Soviet period the avenue was used for demonstrations and military parades in honor of
International Workers' Day on 1 May and the
October Revolution
The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key mome ...
on 7 November.
A portion of the avenue from the
Vilnius Cathedral
The Cathedral Basilica of St Stanislaus and St Ladislaus of Vilnius ( lt, Vilniaus Šv. Stanislovo ir Šv. Vladislovo arkikatedra bazilika; pl, Bazylika archikatedralna św. Stanisława Biskupa i św. Władysława, historical: ''Kościół Kated ...
to
Vincas Kudirka
Vincas Kudirka (; – ) was a Lithuanian poet and physician, and the author of both the music and lyrics of the Lithuanian national anthem, "". He is regarded in Lithuania as a national hero. Kudirka used the pen names V. Kapsas, Paežeri ...
Square was thoroughly reconstructed before the celebration of the 750th anniversary of
Mindaugas
Mindaugas (german: Myndowen, la, Mindowe, orv, Мендог, be, Міндоўг, pl, Mendog, c. 1203–1263) is the first known Grand Duke of Lithuania and the only crowned King of Lithuania. Little is known of his origins, early life, or ...
' coronation in 2003. The reconstructions included building an underground parking facility – the first such in Lithuania - under the Municipality Square and renovation of all kinds of pipelines and communication cables under the street. Over 100 new trees were planted. During the excavations a few archaeological findings were found and are now on display in the parking garage. Other sections of the avenue were also reconstructed; this work was completed in 2009.
Gallery
File:GO9 by Augustas Didzgalvis.jpg, GO9 Mall
File:Lietuvos bankas by Augustas Didzgalvis.jpg, Bank of Lithuania
File:Lithuania Vilnius Gediminas Avenue.jpg, Gedimino Avenue
File:VilniusLaNoche01.JPG, At night
File:Gedimino 9 palace in Vilnius1.JPG, Shopping centre „ Gedimino 9“
File:Gedimino22 2010 02 09Vilnius03.JPG, Gedimino 22
File:Lietuvos bankas.JPG, Bank of Lithuania
File:LMTA Palace.jpg, LMTA Palace
File:Vilnius, Gedimino pr. buvęs Šv. Georgijaus prospektas 1900.jpg, Saint George
Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldie ...
prospectus (1900)
File:Vilna.jpg, Prospectus (1912)
See also
* Former
Jabłkowski Brothers
Jabłkowski Brothers ( pl, Bracia Jabłkowscy) is a Polish trading company, known for its group of high-end department stores in pre-war Poland. The Warsaw store was the very first department store in Poland.
Founded in 1884 in Warsaw by Aniela ...
department store in Mickiewicz Street in Vilnius
{{coord, 54, 41, 14, N, 25, 16, 40, E, type:landmark, display=title
Streets in Vilnius
Pedestrian malls