Glybokoe

The Town of Hlybokaye, Vitebsk region

General information

Hlybokaye is a town in the West of Vitebsk region which is 187 km remote fr om the regional center. The distance to Minsk is a little less than 162 km. The population of the town hardly reaches 19 thousand.

The Origin of the Name

The town took its name from one of five lakes situated within the locality Hlybokoye. Today this lake has another name – Kagal derived from the word “kagal” of Jewish community which rented this water body long ago. By the way, these days it is the only hydronym in Belarus which has Jewish origin.

The History of the Town

Hlybokaye was first mentioned in historical sources in 1414. At that time it was a trading place and a part of The Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Located between Polotsk and Vilnius the town was of great importance in the trade of that time. The trade with Riga, Warsaw and Konigsberg was established by local merchants. Throughout the XVI-XVIIIth centuries in the place there was the Castle of Zenovich-Radzivill destroyed during the Northern War.

In 1920-1930 Hlybokaye was a part of Poland. Since 1940 the town has become the center of the area and also in the same year it received the town privileges.

The Сoat of arms

Hlybokaye coat of arms was laid down only in 2006. There we can see the town wall which protected it from invasions throughout the centuries. Below there are portrayed the crossed sables – a symbol of the local armed guard and also there are three gold coins – the reminder of the importance of trade in the town history.

The Places of interest

Hlybokaye is rich in the historical monuments associated with various events which took place in the town at different times. One of the main attractions of Hlybokaye can rightly be considered to be the Birth of the Virgin Cathedral built as a Carmelite Church in the middle of the XVIIth. The Church is a pattern of Vilnius Baroque School. Another architectural and religious landmark of the town is the Church of St. Trinity – the Catholic Church erected in the second half of the XVIIIth. In the town there has been preserved the cemetery wh ere Polish soldiers are buried who died during the Polish-Soviet war. In the cemetery there was erected the memorial column which was built there in the honour of the Constitution of May 3, 1971 as well the Catholic chapel of St. Elijah of the end of XVIII century.

In the same cemetery named “Koptevka” there is a burial dated in 1871. Here are buried Ferdinand and Wilhelmina von Münchhausen. And although they weren’t related to famous Baron Munchausen, nowadays there is a monument dedicated to the very same Baron Munchausen in the town.

Outside the town in the direction of Postavy there was fixed up a plane – the monument to the famous native of the town and outstanding aircraft designer P. O. Sukhoi.

Another local attraction is an arboretum which is remote from Hlybokyae at the distance of 1,5 km. This arboretum was opened in 1967 and includes about 500 plants all over the world. Today this body gives way only to Minsk Botanical Garden. And nearby in specially designed pens there live sika deer from the Far East.