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A small agricultural town with the population less than 500 people is situated not far from Lithuanian border. Here you can find the majestic Trinity Church that is one of the greatest architectural monuments of Belarus. It is 61 m above the ground and that is the height of a 20-storeyed building.
There are several opinions about the origin of its name. Famous historians suggest that 200 years BC Gervyaty was founded by a German family. That’s why it got the name Germant and as a result of a spelling mistake the name changed into Gervyaty. According to another opinion there were a lot of herons in local area ( “gerve” is a Lithuanian word for a heron).
Historical chronicles
First Gervyaty was mentioned in writing sources in 1434. It’s one of few Lithuanian settlements existing nowadays. In 1536 the wooden Trinity church was built. It was bishop Yan from Vilna who had paid for it. And in 1903 the famous stone Catholic Church appeared in its place. In 1565 Gervyaty was mentioned as a village and it became a part of Vilna lands.
The third partition of Poland in 1795 gave the ownership of Gervyaty to the Russian Empire. The settlement was gifted to Russian ambassador in Turkey Martin Shuasel de Gyfia. And in 1801 he gave it to Domeiko family who owned it till 1939.
The destiny of Gervyaty in the 20th century is the same as the destiny of other towns in Belarus. During the First World War it was occupied by Germans, in 1920 the town became a part of Medieval Lithuania and then it passed to Poland. It belonged to Vilnuis district of Vilnya province. But unlike other architectural monuments of Belarus, Gervyaty Church was sage and unharmed through all fighting events of two World wars of the 20th century.
Only in 1939 Gervyaty became a part of the BSSR. It was the center of Ostrovets region but as a village, not as a town. In 1940 a collective farm was built in Gervyaty. It restarted its work after the war. Now Gervyaty is a developing agricultural settlement with cultural and historical heritage.
Main attractions
The main sightseeing as it has been mentioned is the neo-gothic Trinity Church. This amazing temple was built by Vilna architect Vatslav Mihnevich. Dozens of people worked to build it. The lime that was used for building was mixed with row eggs to make solution more solid. Maybe that’s why this wonderful building is still safe and looks original.
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