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16-450: Construction of the earth bastion-type castle started in 1586 by the order of Krzysztof "Piorun" Radziwiłł . In 1575, preparing for this construction, a dam was built on the Agluona and Apaščia rivers at their confluence, and the artificial Lake Širvėna , covering about 40 km (15 sq mi), was created. Major works were finished in 1589. Since the second half of the 17th century,

32-733: The Great Northern War broke out, he was placed in command of a newly created regiment of infantry . He was one of the few successful commanders against the Russians in the Baltic region while King Charles XII was on campaign in Poland and Saxony . In 1705, Lewenhaupt won the battle of Gemauerthof and was appointed Governor of Riga . In 1708, he was ordered to march east with a supply column, to support Charles's primary invasion force in Russia. This led to

48-593: The battle of Lesnaya (1708), in which he was defeated and forced to abandon his supplies. In 1709, after having connected with the King's army, Lewenhaupt was given command of the infantry at the disastrous battle of Poltava (1709) and the surrender at Perevolochna . He was kept a prisoner in Russia, and he lived in Moscow until his death on 12 February 1719. His memoirs, edited by his son-in-law, were published at Stockholm in 1757. This biographical article related to

64-540: The Emperor Alexander I of Russia ordered the preservation of the castle's remains. At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, a garden was planted in the courtyard. In 1931 a sculptural bust of Jonušas Radvila was erected (sculptor Juozas Zikaras ). In 1955-62 the remains of the manor house were conserved, in 1978-86 the castle was restored; in 1989 the Biržai Region Museum SĖLA

80-718: The Strong , King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Elector of Saxony , and Peter the Great , Tsar of Russia , signed the anti-Swedish Treaty of Biržai at the castle. In 1704, the Swedish General Adam Ludwig Lewenhaupt 's army retook the fortress. The Swedes retreated and blew up the castle and other buildings of the stronghold. In 1811 Biržai Castle passed to the Tyszkiewicz family . In 1822,

96-567: The Swedish King Gustav II Adolf . After a second siege on 7 September 1625, the castle garrison surrendered and the stronghold was destroyed. The Swedes took 60 cannons with them. In 1627, a treaty was signed with the King of Sweden , according to which the castle was returned to the Radvilas. In 1637, Duke Krzysztof II Radziwiłł began a major rebuilding of the fortress, not only restoring

112-457: The autumn of 1655, the castle again changed hands and passed to the Swedes. On 20 August 1659, the castle was recaptured by the dragoons of Bogusław Radziwiłł . Between 1659 and 1669, the embankments and the dam were repaired, and a new manor house, barracks, arsenal and gate tower were built according to the design of architect Teofilis Krell-Spinovskis. After the death of Bogusław Radziwiłł in 1669,

128-508: The castle but also transforming the type of fortification, replacing the Italian style with the Dutch style. Following the plan of the Dutch bastion castles, the embankments were rebuilt by the architect Georgas Pirkas and a new manor house was built. In 1640, Janusz II Radziwiłł , the future Grand Hetman of Lithuania and son of Krzysztof, inherited Biržai, continued the reconstruction of the castle. In

144-668: The castle has been the main seat of the Biržai- Dubingiai Radziwiłł family line, which was transferred here from the Dubingiai Castle . Biržai Castle served as an essential Lithuanian stronghold during the wars with Sweden . The castle was reconstructed from ruins in the 1980s, in the Renaissance - Baroque style. The residential manor of the castle houses a library and a regional history museum "Sėla" (literally Selonia ), founded in 1928. Duke Krzysztof Radziwiłł built

160-570: The largest and strongest, at that time, Italian-style bastion fortress in Lithuania for the protection of his lands and the northern Lithuanian border with Livonia . Works began in 1575 with the construction of a dam at the confluence of the Apasčia and Agluona rivers. In 1586-1589, the embankments were poured. A stately manor house , an Evangelical-Reformed Church, an arsenal and food storehouses, barracks and other buildings were built. The fortress and

176-529: The last male descendant of the Biržai-Dubingiai branch of the Radvila family, the restoration of the castle ceased. In his will, Bogusław Radziwiłł left all his property to his daughter Ludwika Karolina Radziwiłł . The reconstruction of the fortress was resumed in 1671 and lasted until 1682. The rebuilt stronghold was much larger than the first. On 26 February 1701, during the Great Northern War , Augustus II

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192-454: The town formed an integrated defensive complex. Construction was completed in 1589. The Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland , Sigismund III Vasa , and later his descendants, did not give up their claim to the Swedish throne and led Lithuania and Poland into years of war with Sweden, during which on 7 August 1625, the castle was besieged by about 8000 Swedish troops. The siege was led by

208-551: Was an ardent Calvinist and adherent of the Polish Reformed Church , and defended it against the rise of the Counter-Reformation . This Lithuanian biographical article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Adam Ludwig Lewenhaupt Adam Ludwig Lewenhaupt (15 April 1659 – 12 February 1719) was a Swedish general , particularly known for his participation in the Great Northern War . He

224-623: Was born on 15 April 1659 in a Swedish fortified camp near Copenhagen . He attended Lund University , Rostock , Wittenberg and Uppsala , he originally pursued a career in the diplomatic arena, but found this occupation quite undesirable. He then became a soldier, served in the Austrian Army against the Turks , and later in the Dutch Army under William III in Holland . He returned to Sweden in 1697. When

240-932: Was one of the most talented commanders in the service of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth during the wars against Muscovy and Sweden, and won the Battle of Kokenhausen . He received the epithet "Piorun" (translated as "Lightning" or "Thunderbolt") for his deadly and very successful cavalry raids against Ivan the Terrible 's forces in Russian Tsardom territory during the Livonian War , forcing it to capitulate. His achievements, combined with his powerful Radziwiłł family backing, helped him rise to his various voivode and starost offices and further increased his family's wealth. Like his father, brother, and nephew, he

256-639: Was opened there. Krzysztof %22Piorun%22 Radziwi%C5%82%C5%82 Prince Krzysztof Radziwiłł , epithet " Piorun " ("Lightning") ( Lithuanian : Kristupas Radvila „Perkūnas“ , 1547–1603) was a Reichsfürst of the Holy Roman Empire and a member of the nobility of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth . He was cup-bearer of Lithuania from 1569; Field Hetman of Lithuania from 1572; Castellan of Trakai , Deputy Chancellor of Lithuania from 1579; Voivode of Vilnius Voivodeship from 1584; Lithuanian Grand Hetman from 1589; and Starost . Radziwiłł

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