About Lithuania
Lithuania is a country and the southernmost of Europe’s Baltic States, a former Soviet bloc nation bordering Poland, Latvia and Belarus. Its capital, Vilnius, near the Belarus border, is known for its medieval Old Town. It also has Gothic, Renaissance and baroque architecture, and 18th-century cathedral built on a pagan temple site. Hilltop Gediminas' Tower, a symbol of the city and the nation, offers sweeping views. For centuries, the southeastern shores of the Baltic Sea were inhabited by various Baltic tribes. In the 1230s, the Lithuanian lands were united by Mindaugas, the King of Lithuania, and the first unified Lithuanian state, the Kingdom of Lithuania, was created on 6 July 1253. During the 14th century, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was the largest country in Europe; present-day Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, and parts of Poland and Russia were the territories of the Grand Duchy. Lithuania's climate, which ranges between maritime and continental, is relatively mild. Average temperatures on the coast are −2.5 °C (27.5 °F) in January and 16 °C (61 °F) in July. In Vilnius the average temperatures are −6 °C (21 °F) in January and 17 °C (63 °F) in July. Lithuania is the only Baltic country with more than eight hundred years of statehood tradition and its name was first mentioned one thousand years ago, in 1009. Wedged at the dividing line of Western and Eastern civilizations, Lithuania battled dramatically for its independence and survival. Once in the Middle Ages (15th century), Lithuania was the largest state in the entire continent of Europe, where crafts and overseas trade prospered.
Jewish History, POI & Kosher Establishments in Lithuania
Jews trace their origins in Lithuania back to the days of Grand Duke Gedeyminus, who founded the first Lithuanian state in the 14th century. By the late 15th century, there were already thriving communities. In time, Vilnius became known as the "Jerusalem of Lithuania," a great center of Jewish religious learning. The Jews of Lithuania lived an intense Jewish life, and their role and influence in the major Jewish political and cultural movements were far greater than their numbers would have suggested. There are synagogues in Vilnius and Kaunas, but attendance is low. Matzot and other supplies, such as kosher meat and wine, are imported. The Chabad House, with its own rabbi, has been especially active in organizing classes for young people and promoting knowledge of Judaism. On the eve of the Shoah, there were about 160,000 Jews in independent Lithuania and another 60,000 in Vilnius and the surrounding area, which were transferred to Lithuania after the Soviet conquest of eastern Poland. That population was bolstered by Jewish refugees from German-occupied Poland. During the German occupation, about 95% of Lithuanian Jewry was killed (a greater percentage than in any other community in Europe), in large measure due to the enthusiastic participation of ethnic Lithuanians. Important sites include the medieval Jewish quarter of Vilnius and the grave of the Vilna Gaon. The Romanesque-Moorish Choral Synagogue is the only Jewish house of worship to survive the Shoah. Among the objects in the State Jewish Museum in Vilnius are ritual items salvaged from the Great Synagogue that was destroyed by the Soviets. These include parts of the original ark and reader's desk. The museum also includes a section devoted to the destruction of Lithuanian Jewry. In Trokai there is a museum adjacent to the Karaite Synagogue that tells the story of this community. The Nazi killing grounds such as Paneriai (Ponary), where 70,000 Jews were massacred, and the infamous Ninth Fort of Kaunas also attract visitors.
