Kopys ( Belarusian and

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

: ''Копысь'', Belarusian and , pl, Kopyś, yi, קאָפּוסט ''Kopust'') is an

urban-type settlement Urban-type settlementrussian: посёлок городско́го ти́па, translit=posyolok gorodskogo tipa, abbreviated: russian: п.г.т., translit=p.g.t.; ua, селище міського типу, translit=selyshche mis'koho typu, ab ...

in the

Orsha Raion Orsha District ( be, Аршанскі раён, ''Aršanski raion''; russian: Оршанский район, ''Orshansky rayon'') is a second-level administrative subdivision (district) of Belarus in the Vitebsk Region. The center of the district ...

Vitebsk Region Vitebsk Region or Vitebsk Oblast or Viciebsk Voblasts ( be, Ві́цебская во́бласць, ''Viciebskaja voblasć'', ; rus, Ви́тебская о́бласть, Vitebskaya oblast, ˈvʲitʲɪpskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a region ( oblas ...

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

History

The first references to Kopys are dated at 1059. From the 14th century, it was part of the

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 Li ...

and subsequently the Polish–Lithuanian Union after the

Union of Krewo In a strict sense, the Union of Krewo or Act of Krėva (also spelled Union of Krevo, Act of Kreva; be, Крэўская унія, translit=Kreŭskaja unija; pl, unia w Krewie; lt, Krėvos sutartis) comprised a set of prenuptial promises made ...

(1385). Administratively, it was part of the

Vitebsk Voivodeship Vitebsk Voivodeship ( be, Віцебскае ваяводзтва, pl, Województwo witebskie, la, Palatinatus Vitebsciensis) was a unit of administrative division and local government in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (from 1569 Polish–Lithu ...

. It was granted

town rights Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the tradition ...

in the 16th century. It was a

private town A private town is a town owned by a private person or a family. History of Private Towns in Poland In the history of Poland, private towns (''miasta prywatne'') were towns within the lands owned by magnates, bishops, knights, princes, etc. ...

owned by the

Ostrogski family The House of Ostrogski ( pl, Ostrogscy, lt, Ostrogiškiai, ua, Острозькі - ''Ostroz'ki'') was one of the more prominent families in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The f ...

and, after 1594, the

Radziwiłł family The House of Radziwiłł (; lt, Radvila; be, Радзівіл, Radzivił; german: link=no, Radziwill) is a powerful magnate family originating from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and later also prominent in the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland. ...

.''Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich'', Tom IV, Warsaw, 1883, p. 388 (in Polish) A castle stood in the town of Kopys and a

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

church was founded by

Krzysztof Mikołaj Radziwiłł Prince Krzysztof Mikołaj Artur Radziwiłł (; 29 July 1898 – 24 March 1986) was a Polish translator and politician, descendant of the well-known aristocratic Radziwiłł family. He was a supporter of the Communist regime in Poland, which gai ...

. 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-Swedi ...

, in 1707, Kopys was destroyed by Russian troops. In 1772, it became a part of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

in the course of the First Partition of Poland. The

Kapust The Kopust branch of the Chabad Hasidic movement was founded in 1866 by Rabbi Yehuda Leib Schneersohn after the death of the third rebbe of Chabad, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneersohn. The movement is named after the town of Kopys in the Vitebsk Re ...

Hasidic dynasty originates in Kopys. By the end of the 18th century, there was a Jewish typography in the town.

Notable Natives & Residents

Alexander Lukashenko Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko (as transliterated from Russian language, Russian; also transliterated from Belarusian language, Belarusian as Alyaksand(a)r Ryhoravich Lukashenka;, ; rus, Александр Григорьевич Лука� ...

, president of Belarus *

David Remez David Remez ( he, דוד רמז, 1886 – 19 May 1951) was an Israeli politician, the country's first Minister of Transportation, and a signatory of the Israeli declaration of independence. Biography Remez was born David Drabkin in the village o ...

, Israeli politician * Veniamin Blazhenny, poet

References

External links

Kopys
at radzima.org

Coats of Arms of Kopys

The murder of the Jews of Kopys
during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, at

Yad Vashem Yad Vashem ( he, יָד וַשֵׁם; literally, "a memorial and a name") is Israel's official memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. It is dedicated to preserving the memory of the Jews who were murdered; honoring Jews who fought against th ...

website * {{Belarus-geo-stub Populated places in Vitebsk Region Urban-type settlements in Belarus Orsha District Polochans Vitebsk Voivodeship Goretsky Uyezd Holocaust locations in Belarus