Senieji Trakai

Senieji Trakai Castle was a castle in Senieji Trakai (literally: Old Trakai), Lithuania. The first enclosure-type brick castle was built by Grand Duke Gediminas, who transferred the capital of Lithuania from Kernavė to Trakai (today's Senieji Trakai) before 1321. The wedding of Grand Duke Kęstutis and Birutė was held there and it was the birthplace of the Grand Duke Vytautas in 1350. The castle in Senieji Trakai was destroyed by the Teutonic Order in 1391, subsequently abandoned and never rebuilt as a new castle had been erected in Trakai by Kęstutis. The ruins of the castle were granted to Benedictian monks by Vytautas in 1405. It is presumed that the present monastery building, dating from the 15th century, holds the remains of Gediminas' castle. Archaeological research on the hillfort mound was carried out in 1996–1997. The findings confirmed the existence of a former rectangular masonry castle wall, which had surrounded the hill. It is supposed that the residential buildings had occupied the area near the church and the churchyard.

Varnikai is a small village located in the Trakai District Municipality in Lithuania. The population is 75 inhabitants according to the 2011 census.

Trakai (; see names section for alternative and historic names) is a city and lake resort in Lithuania. It lies 28 kilometres (17 miles) west of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania or just 7 kilometres (4 miles) from the administrative limits of the Lithuanian capital city. Because of its proximity to Vilnius, Trakai is a popular tourist destination. Trakai is the administrative centre of Trakai district municipality. The city is inhabited by 5,357 people, according to 2007 estimates. A notable feature of Trakai is that the city was built and preserved by people of different nationalities. Historically, communities of Karaims, Tatars, Lithuanians, Russians, Jews and Poles lived here. Historically, the Trakai Island Castle, which construction was finished by Grand Duke Vytautas, served as a residence of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania.

The Troki uezd was a county (uezd) of the Vilna Governorate of the Russian Empire. The uezd was bordered by the Mariampol, Kalvariya, and the Seyny uezds of the Suwałki Governorate to the west, the Lida uezd to the south, the Vilna uezd to the east, and the Kovno uezd of the Kovno Governorate to the north. The administrative centre of the county was the city of Troki (present-day Trakai). The area included most of the modern Trakai, Elektrėnai districts of Vilnius County, and Varėna, Šalčininkai districts of Alytus County, as well as part of Kaišiadorys, Alytus, and Prienai districts.

Trakai Voivodeship, Trakai Palatinate, or Troki Voivodeship (Latin: Palatinatus Trocensis, Lithuanian: Trakų vaivadija, Polish: Województwo trockie), was a unit of administrative division and local government in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from 1413 until 1795.

St. Mary Church in Trakai, Lithuania, is a Roman Catholic church. It was founded by Vytautas the Great in 1409 and constructed in gothic style. Later it was significantly altered during the Baroque period, and its current appearance is mostly defined by these alterations. The main altarpiece contains the icon, The Mother of God of Trakai.

Trakai Peninsula Castle is one of the castles in Trakai, Lithuania. It is located on a peninsula between southern Lake Galvė and Lake Luka. Built around 1350–1377 by Kęstutis, Duke of Trakai, it was an important defensive structure protecting Trakai and Vilnius, capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, against attacks of the Teutonic Knights. Much of the castle was destroyed in the 17th century. Remaining walls and towers are preserved and protected by the Trakai Historical National Park. The castle had seven towers connected by a 10 m (33 ft) high wall. The three largest towers, measuring 15 m × 15 m (49 ft × 49 ft), protected the most vulnerable southwestern flank. A 12–14 m (39–46 ft) wide moat separated the structure from the town. The castle was attacked in 1382 and 1383 (during the civil war of 1381–1384) and in 1390 (during the civil war of 1389–1392). After the 1422 Treaty of Melno, the castle lost its significance as a defensive structure. It is known that Grand Dukes used it as a residence. Sigismund Kęstutaitis was murdered in the castle on 20 March 1440.In the 16th century the castle was used as a prison. It was destroyed during the Russo-Polish War (1654–1667) and never rebuilt. The territory was granted to a Dominican cloister in 1678 by Marcjan Aleksander Ogiński, Voivode of Trakai. It was not until the 1770s that the monks eventually built their monastery and church; these buildings are also part of the castle ensemble.

Trakai Kenesa is the kenesa (synagogue) of the Qaraite Jewish community in Trakai, Lithuania, and a rare example of one of the surviving kenesas of the former Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It was built in the 18th century, restored in the 1890s and is still in use.

Užutrakis Manor (Lithuanian: Užutrakio dvaras, Polish: pałac Tyszkiewiczów w Zatroczu) is a late 19th-century residential manor of the Tyszkiewicz family in Užutrakis, on the shore of Lake Galvė, opposite the famous Trakai Castle.It is considered one of the most important monuments of Lithuania’s estate heritage.

Trakai Island Castle (Lithuanian: Trakų salos pilis; Polish: Zamek w Trokach) is an island castle located in Trakai, Lithuania, on an island in Lake Galvė. The construction of the stone castle was begun in the 14th century by Kęstutis, and around 1409 major works were completed by his son Vytautas the Great, who died in this castle in 1430. Trakai was one of the main centers of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the castle held great strategic importance. The castle was rebuilt in the 1950s–1960s by Lithuanian initiative, although it had received resistance from Soviet authorities. The Trakai History Museum was established after the reconstruction.

Lake Galvė is a lake in Trakai, Lithuania. It has 21 islands, and one of them houses Trakai Island Castle. Trakai Peninsula Castle is located on its southern shore. There are ruins of the little Orthodox church in Bažnytėlė Island. Trakai was the capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from 1321 to 1323 before moving to Vilnius. The lake and most of the other lakes surrounding the castle and city have myths and legends connected to them, of which most contain a tragic love story.