Jašiūnai ( pl, Jaszuny) is a town in
Lithuania. It is situated on the
Merkys River and an edge of the
Rūdninkai Forest. According to the 2001 census, it had population of 1,879. The town's population is primarily
Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in C ...
(some 74,5%), with
Lithuanians (12,4%) and
Russians
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118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 '' Winkler Prins'' estimate)
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(8,4%).
History
The town was first mentioned in written sources in 1402.
From the 15th to 18th century, the town belonged to the
Radziwiłł family. In 1811 it was bought by Ignacy Baliński, father of historian
Michał Baliński. His wife from the Śniadecki family initiated construction of the
neoclassical Jašiūnai Manor, designed by architect
Karol Podczaszyński.
The construction was undertaken between 1824 and 1828. The manor became a cultural center: it was a residence of
Jan Śniadecki
Jan Śniadecki (29 August 1756 – 9 November 1830) was a Polish mathematician, philosopher, and astronomer at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries.
Life
Born in Żnin, Śniadecki studied at Kraków Jagellonian University and in Paris. He ...
and
Juliusz Słowacki
Juliusz Słowacki (; french: Jules Slowacki; 4 September 1809 – 3 April 1849) was a Polish Romantic poet. He is considered one of the " Three Bards" of Polish literature — a major figure in the Polish Romantic period, and the father of m ...
frequently visited by
Adam 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 Ro ...
,
Tomasz Zan,
Stanisław Bonifacy Jundziłł,
Józef Mianowski. This generation of
Polish Romantics studied and idealized the history and culture of the former
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state that existed from the 13th century to 1795, when the territory was partitioned among the Russian Empire, the Kingdom of Prussia, and the Habsburg Empire of Austria. The state was founded by Lit ...
.
These studies had great influence on the worldview of the
szlachta of the
Vilnius Region
Vilnius Region is the territory in present-day Lithuania and Belarus that was originally inhabited by ethnic Baltic tribes and was a part of Lithuania proper, but came under East Slavic and Polish cultural influences over time.
The territor ...
: they would identify themselves as Poles while remaining loyal to the Grand Duchy.
Alongside cultural life, the manor owners encouraged small industry: a ceramics workshop (still operating as of 2009), a factory of
resin
In polymer chemistry and materials science, resin is a solid or highly viscous substance of plant or synthetic origin that is typically convertible into polymers. Resins are usually mixtures of organic compounds. This article focuses on n ...
and
turpentine
Turpentine (which is also called spirit of turpentine, oil of turpentine, terebenthene, terebinthine and (colloquially) turps) is a fluid obtained by the distillation of resin harvested from living trees, mainly pines. Mainly used as a spec ...
,
[ brickyard, paper factory.][ ] After the Uprising of 1863
The January Uprising ( pl, powstanie styczniowe; lt, 1863 metų sukilimas; ua, Січневе повстання; russian: Польское восстание; ) was an insurrection principally in Russia's Kingdom of Poland that was aimed at ...
and Baliński's death, Jašiūnai lost its position as a cultural center. The valuable library collection was transported to Poland or lost during the wars. As part of the Wilno Voivodeship, Jašiūnai belonged to the Second Polish Republic during the interwar period.
During World War II, Jews were assembled in a building in the Jašiūnai manor and locked there. In September 25, 1941, the Jews of Jašiūnai were shot, together with those from other villages by the Vilnius Special Squad. According to the Jäger Report, 575 Jews were murdered that day: 215 men, 229 women and 131 children. Three Roma people
The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...
were shot and buried together with the Jews.
Religion
The first church, named after St. Anna, was built in 1515.[ When the Radziwiłłs converted to ]Protestantism
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
, the church was also transformed from a Catholic to a Protestant church. The church was destroyed during the Great Northern War
The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swed ...
with Sweden (1700–1721). For a long time the town had only a chapel.[ The current church was built in 1929. It is half-brick, half-wooden church with a single rectangular tower. Its central ]nave
The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...
is separated from the aisles by wooden pillars. The wooden ceiling attempts to imitate vaults. The main altar is decorated with a copy of Our Lady of the Gate of Dawn
''Our Lady of the Gate of Dawn'' ( lt, Aušros Vartų Dievo Motina, pl, Matka Boska Ostrobramska, be, Маці Божая Вастрабрамская, german: Mutter Gottes vor den Toren der Morgenröte, ua, Богородиця біля бр ...
.
Symbols
In 2001 the town received its coats of arms, designed by Arvydas Každailis. The coat of arms depict a silver column in a red shield with two golden stars on each side. The column represents classical architecture and the manor. It also carries symbolical meaning of strength and power. The two stars are dedicated to the two families prominent in town's history – Balińskis and Śniadeckis.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jasiunai
Towns in Lithuania
Towns in Vilnius County
Vilnius Voivodeship
Vilensky Uyezd
Wilno Voivodeship (1926–1939)
Holocaust locations in Lithuania