Kaunas

History

At the place of current Kaunas old town, at confluence of two large rivers, there was a settlement as far back as 10th century BC. The town was first mentioned in written sources in 1361. In 13th century a stone wall was built for protection from constant Teutonic Knights attacks. At 1408 the town was chartered with Magdeburg Rights. Kaunas then started to grow as an important city at trade route intersections and river port. In 1441 Kaunas joined the Hansa and had Hansa merchant offices opened. Already in 16th century Kaunas had a public school, a hospital, a drugstore and was one of best formed towns in Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

The 17th and 18th centuries were unfortunate for Kaunas. In 1665 Russian army attacked the city several times. In 1701 the city was occupied by the Swedish army, and also suffered from plagues in 1657 and 1708, fires in 1731 and 1732. At 1812 the Grand Army of Napoleon was crossing Nemunas, so the city was devastated two times in this year.

In 1862 a railway connecting the Russian Empire and Germany was constructed, making Kaunas a significant railway hub. In 1898 the first power plant started operating. After Vilnius was occupied by Russians in 1919, the government of Republic of Lithuania established its main offices here. As Vilnius was annexed by Poland following the Suwalki Treaty in 1920, Kaunas became the capital of Lithuania.

Between the World Wars the Kaunas industry prospered, as it was the largest city of Lithuania. During the Second World War the city suffered heavy ravages. During the Soviet era it was restored and became the main industrial city of Lithuania - it produced about a quarter of Lithuanian industrial output in those days. Trolleybuses started to operate in 1966.

After regaining Lithuanian independence in 1991 the TV and radio transmitters in Sitkunai during Soviet aggression were the critical part of remaining free media and the people were on duty to protect them, willing to sacrifice their lifes.

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