PALACE OF RADZIWILL (ЗАМКОВЫЙ-ЗАМКОВЫЙ ДВОРЦОВО)

This magnificent residence was built on the order of Mikolaj Radziwill in 1583. The project by Gian Maria Bernardoni has been rebuilt several times, hence its eclectic appearance combining classical and military architecture. Surrounded by ramparts of about 20 metres, the palace at the time housed an arms museum, a rich numismatics collection, the state archives of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the largest library in Belarus (more than 20 000 volumes and manuscripts). After the death of Charles Radziwill, the wealth of the family was confiscated by Russian power and the palace remained abandoned. In 1865, Anton Vilgelm and his wife Maria Dorota, descendants of the Berlin branch of the family, returned to Niasvij and created around the palace a beautiful park with lakes and water jets. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it reopened in 2012, after many years of renovation.