The small town of
Trakai, about 30km west of the Lithuanian capital Vilnius, is the capital of Trakai district, but with its 6000 inhabitants only the second city in the district after Lentvaris, a moderately interesting transportation hub on the road to Vilnius. Trakai's location alone, on a peninsula jutting into lake Galve and in the neighbourhood of several other lakes of the Trakai National Park, would justify the steady stream of tourists coming to the town, but additionally the town contains a few great buildings as a testimony of its long history.
Little is known about the prehistory of the area, but it is certain that around 500AD the area was settled by Baltic tribes, who were probably expelled from their Central-European homeland by the Slavs, who in their turn were fleeing from Germanic and Hun expansions. Around 1000AD the Kingdom (the later Grand Duchy) of Lithuania was established in this area, with
Kernave as its capital. After the destruction of Kernave by the crusading German Teutonic Knights in 1320, Grand Duke Gediminas shifted its capital 30km south to a place he called "Trakai". Nowadays this place is known as
Senieji Trakai (Old Trakai), and located 3km east of Trakai city centre. The duke constructed a brick defence castle, only to be destroyed again by the Knights 70 years later under the rule of Gediminas' son Kestutis. He shifted its capital to Vilnius, but constructed 2 new wooden castles in Trakai on the banks of Lake Galve, now known as the Peninsula Castle and the Island Castle. They were replace by brick castles by Kestutis' son Vytautas the Great. During the 15th century, the castles lost its military importance due to the formation of the stable Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Peninsula Castle was abandoned and the Island Castle was transformed into a Polish-style renaissance palace for the Lithuanian Grand Dukes. The 18th century was severely disadvantageous for the commonwealth, as it was split between Eastern Europe's new forces Prussia, Austria and Russia, that gained control over present-day Lithuania. Russian and later Polish, Nazi and Soviet rulers didn't care about Lithuanian heritage so the historical buildings in Trakai were abandoned and left in disrepair. Only with the renewed Lithuanian independence in 1990 came a sweep of restoration and now the town is one of the largest tourist attractions in the Vilnius region.
The old town of
Trakai is located on a peninsula jutting out into lake Gatve. There are several places from where you can rent rowing, sailing or motorboats for a Gatve trip. In the south of town is another small lake, known as Gilusio. Nearby are the train and bus station, with a few trains and several buses a day connecting with Vilnius and Kaunas. The town itself contains several interesting building, like the old wooden post office, the gothic-style Church of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin or the 18th century synagogue for the small Crimean Karaite community. About 2km east of the town is another interesting sight, the 18th century baroque mansion of the Polish-Lithuanian noble Tyszkiewicz family located on the banks of lake Gatve. These sights are dwarfed by Trakai's 2 castles. The first one is the 14th century peninsula castle on the lake shore, in a beautiful state of disrepair. Only its walls, some watchtowers and a restored Dominican convent, now housing an art exhibition, remain. Across the lake, on a small island, is the magnificent red brick Island Castle a.k.a. Little Malbork, due to its similar style to its larger Polish brother. A footbridge links the island to the mainland. The castle is beautifully restored and contains the rebuilt Ducal Palace. To enter the castle you have to pay a small entrance fee, but the interior of the buildings is quite empty and non-descript, so you could easily give it a miss. Instead, you could go for a boat ride on the lake from where you have excellent views on the castles.
From journal Vilnius' Turbulent Past and Bright Future