The Presidential Palace () is the

official residence An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of th ...

and workplace of the

president of Lithuania The president of the Republic of Lithuania () is the head of state of the Republic of Lithuania. The president directs and appoints the executive branch of the Government of Lithuania, represents the nation internationally and is the commande ...

. Located in

Vilnius Old Town The Old Town of Vilnius (), one of the largest surviving medieval old towns in Northern Europe, as inscribed within UNESCO World Heritage Sites, has an area of 3.59 square kilometres (887 acres). It encompasses 74 quarters, with 70 streets and ...

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

. The palace dates back to the 14th century when it was first used as the residence of the

Bishop of Vilnius Bishops of Vilnius diocese from 1388 and archdiocese (archdiocese of Vilnius) from 1925:" ...

. and during its history, it has undergone various reconstructions, supervised by prominent architects, including

Laurynas Gucevičius Laurynas Gucevičius (; 1753–1798) was a Polish -Lithuanian architect from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, where all of his designs were built. Biography He was born in the village of Migonys near Kupiškis, in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. H ...

and

Vasily Stasov Duke Vasily Petrovich Stasov (Russian: Васи́лий Петро́вич Ста́сов; 4 August 1769 – 5 September 1848) was a famous Russian architect, born into a wealthy noble family: his father, Pyotr Fyodorovich Stasov, came from ...

. Throughout its history, the palace was used as a residence for prominent European leaders, including the monarchs of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Kings and Emperors of France and the Emperors of Russia. In 1997 the palace became the official seat of the president of Lithuania. The term "Prezidentūra" is also used as a

metonym Metonymy () is a figure of speech in which a concept is referred to by the name of something associated with that thing or concept. For example, the word "wikt:suit, suit" may refer to a person from groups commonly wearing business attire, such ...

to refer to the Office of the President of Lithuania.

History

The palace traces its history back to the 14th century, when Jogaila, the

grand duke Grand duke (feminine: grand duchess) is a European hereditary title, used either by certain monarchs or by members of certain monarchs' families. The title is used in some current and former independent monarchies in Europe, particularly: * in ...

, issued an edict donating land in the city to the

Vilnius Diocese Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

, for this reason the palace is sometimes referred to as the Bishops' Palace. Construction of the palace took place in the late 14th century under the auspices of the first Bishop of Vilnius,

Andrzej Jastrzębiec Andrzej Jastrzębiec (died 1398), also known as Andrzej Wasilko or Andrzej Polak, was a Polish Catholic priest and diplomat, a first bishop of Seret and of Vilnius. He was part of the Jastrzebiec ancestral line of the szlachta (noble families) ...

, and over succeeding generations, the building was gradually enlarged and renovated. During the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

, the palace was once again renovated, and parks and gardens surrounding the building were expanded. As the 18th century unfolded, a number of dramatic events in the palace's history took place: the last Bishop of Vilnius lived in the palace,

was annexed by the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

, and the building itself was badly damaged by two major fires in 1737 and 1748. The palace was reconstructed in 1750 under the supervision of the architect

. After its reconstruction, the palace was used as a residence for

emperors The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/ grand empress dowager), or a woman who rule ...

kings Kings or King's may refer to: *Kings: The sovereign heads of states and/or nations. *One of several works known as the "Book of Kings": **The Books of Kings part of the Bible, divided into two parts **The ''Shahnameh'', an 11th-century epic Persia ...

and noblemen. During 1796,

Tsar Tsar (; also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar''; ; ; sr-Cyrl-Latn, цар, car) is a title historically used by Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word '' caesar'', which was intended to mean ''emperor'' in the Euro ...

Paul I Paul I may refer to: *Paul of Samosata (200–275), Bishop of Antioch *Paul I of Constantinople (died c. 350), Archbishop of Constantinople *Pope Paul I (700–767) *Paul I Šubić of Bribir (c. 1245–1312), Ban of Croatia and Lord of Bosnia *Paul ...

lived at the palace. During the course of the 19th century, the palace served as a residence for several Imperial Russian governors, such as

Mikhail Muravyov Mikhail Nikolayevich Muravyov may refer to: * Mikhail Nikitich Muravyov (1757-1807), Russian poet and prose writer *Count Mikhail Muravyov-Vilensky (1796-1866), known for his suppression of the Polish-Lithuanian January Uprising of 1863 *Count Mikh ...

, nicknamed "The Hangman". It was also visited by

Louis XVIII Louis XVIII (Louis Stanislas Xavier; 17 November 1755 – 16 September 1824), known as the Desired (), was King of France from 1814 to 1824, except for a brief interruption during the Hundred Days in 1815. Before his reign, he spent 23 y ...

, the future

king of France France was ruled by monarchs from the establishment of the kingdom of West Francia in 843 until the end of the Second French Empire in 1870, with several interruptions. Classical French historiography usually regards Clovis I, king of the Fra ...

, in 1804. In 1812, both the Russian Tsar

Alexander I Alexander I may refer to: * Alexander I of Macedon, king of Macedon from 495 to 454 BC * Alexander I of Epirus (370–331 BC), king of Epirus * Alexander I Theopator Euergetes, surnamed Balas, ruler of the Seleucid Empire 150-145 BC * Pope Alex ...

and the French Emperor

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

used the palace as their residence. During

Napoleon's invasion of Russia The French invasion of Russia, also known as the Russian campaign (), the Second Polish War, and in Russia as the Patriotic War of 1812 (), was initiated by Napoleon with the aim of compelling the Russian Empire to comply with the continent ...

, he organized military operations and Lithuanian army units from this palace, including five regiments of infantry, four cavalry regiments, and the National Guard of Vilnius. He received Lithuanian noblemen, newly appointed officials of the administration, and other dignitaries in this palace as well. After Napoleon's defeat in 1812, the palace was used for ceremonial proposes; it was here that then-general

Mikhail Kutuzov Prince Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov-Smolensky (; – ) was a Field Marshal of the Russian Empire. He served as a military officer and a diplomat under the reign of three Romanov monarchs: Empress Catherine II, and Emperors Paul ...

was awarded Russia's highest military award – the

Order of St. George The Order of Saint George () is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. It was originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) as the highest military decoration of the Russian Empire for commiss ...

. During 1824–1834, the palace was reconstructed by the prominent

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

architect

in the

Empire style The Empire style (, ''style Empire'') is an early-nineteenth-century design movement in architecture, furniture, other decorative arts, and the visual arts, representing the second phase of Neoclassicism. It flourished between 1800 and 1815 duri ...

, under supervision of

Karol Podczaszyński Karol Podczaszyński (; 7 November 1790 – 19 April 1860) was a Polish- Lithuanian leading Vilnius architect, a representative of the neoclassical architecture and a professor of the Vilnius University, as well as one of the pioneers of indus ...

. Stasov's reconstruction of the palace has remained to this day. After Lithuania regained its independence in 1918, the palace housed the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the ministry of foreign affairs (abbreviated as MFA or MOFA) is the highest government department exclusively or primarily responsible for the state's foreign policy and relations, diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral r ...

and the

ELTA ELTA is a Lithuanian news agency based in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius. In a day, it receives about 5,000 news articles and produces about 300 articles in Lithuanian, Russian, and English. ELTA cooperates with foreign news agencies such as R ...

news agency until it ended up in Poland in 1920. It was restored in the 1930s by Stefan Narębski. After the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the palace served as the Military Officers Centre; later it housed various Lithuanian artists. The palace was gradually adapted for use as a presidential office, and since 1997 it has served as the official office of the president of Lithuania. The first president to reside in the new ''Prezidentūra'' was

Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas (, 1932 – 2010) was a Lithuanian politician who served as the fourth president of Lithuania from 1993 to 1998. He also served as the Prime Minister of Lithuania, prime minister of Lithuania from 2001 to 2006. Braz ...

. Before him, other presidents never occupied the palace and instead used the

Presidential Palace A presidential palace is the official residence of the president in some countries. Some presidential palaces were once the official residences to monarchs in former monarchies that were preserved during those states' transition into republics. ...

Kaunas Kaunas (; ) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius, the fourth largest List of cities in the Baltic states by population, city in the Baltic States and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaun ...

which served as the temporary national capital for 19 years, from 1920 to 1939, while Vilnius was yet to be returned to Lithuania. Currently, adaptations are underway to expand the palace's functions to also serve as the president's official residence. A flag displaying the coat of arms of the president is hoisted when the president is present in the palace or in the city.

Public access

Guided tours in Lithuanian and English are available for the general public. They are arranged on Saturdays and Sundays free of charge, but require advance registration. Presidential Palace is also open to the public during Open House Vilnius and other open door events. There is a 1,5 ha gated park, surrounded by a 4-5 meter brick wall. The park is open to the general public outside the regular office hours, during evenings on weekdays and weekends.

Gallery

File:Presidential Palace in Vilnius 2019.jpg, Façade of the Palace in 2019 File:2009 m. Respublikos Prezidento inauguracija.jpg, Hoisting the presidential flag during the inauguration ceremony File:Valdas Adamkus and George W. Bush in Vilnius, Lithuania (2002).jpg, Lithuanian and American Presidents

Valdas Adamkus Valdas Adamkus (; born Voldemaras Adamkavičius; November 3, 1926) is a Lithuanian politician, diplomat and civil engineer who served as the fifth and seventh president of Lithuania from 1998 to 2003 and again from 2004 to 2009. Adamku ...

and

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

in the White Hall in 2002 File:100th anniversary of the restoration of statehood 07.jpg, The Commemoration Ceremony of the 100th Anniversary of the

Act of Independence of Lithuania The Act of Independence of Lithuania () or the Act of February 16th, also the Lithuanian Resolution on Independence (),The signed document is actually titled simply , meaning 'decision' or 'resolution', and it "proclaims the restoration of the ...

in front of the Palace in 2018 File:-i---i- (53040441170).jpg, Guests of the 2023 Vilnius Summit in the Courtyard of the Palace File:Prezidentura by Augustas Didzgalvis.jpg, Aerial view (green rooftops) File:President Biden visit the Presidential Palace in Vilnius before the NATO Summit (4).jpg, Inside the Courtyard of the Presidential Palace during the welcoming ceremony of American President

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

in 2023 File:President Biden visit the Presidential Palace in Vilnius before the NATO Summit (1).jpg, American President Joe Biden signing in a guests book in the White Hall nearby Lithuanian President

Gitanas Nausėda Gitanas Nausėda (; ; born 19 May 1964) is a Lithuanian politician, economist, and banker who is serving as the ninth and incumbent president of Lithuania since 2019. Born in Klaipėda, Nausėda graduated from Vilnius University with an economic ...

File:LRP White Hall 1 by Augustas Didzgalvis.jpg, The White Hall of the Palace (the main representative hall where guests are welcomed and events are held) File:LRP White Hall 2 by Augustas Didzgalvis.jpg, The White Hall of the Palace File:LRP Press Briefing Room 1 by Augustas Didzgalvis.jpg, The Press Room of the Palace File:LRP Staircase by Augustas Didzgalvis.jpg, Staircase inside the Palace

Notes

References

* Vilniaus architektūra. Vilnius, 1982
Prezidento Rūmų istorija

Virtual tour of the Palace

External links