Barysaw

Barysaw Барысаў Борисов
Coat of arms
Barysaw Location of Barysaw
Coordinates: 54°14′N 28°30′E
Country	Belarus
Voblast	Minsk Voblast
Raion	Barysaw Raion
Founded	1102
Population (1999)
• Total	150,700
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Area code(s)	+375 01777
Website	www.borisovcity.net

Barysaw (Belarusian: Бары́саў [baˈrɨsau̯]; Russian: Бори́сов, Borisov; Polish: Borysów) (population 150,700 as of 1999), also transliterated Barysau, is a city in Belarus situated near the Berezina River in the Minsk Voblast.

History

Barysaw is first mentioned in Laurentian Codex as being founded (as Borisov) in 1102 by Polotsk prince Boris Vseslavovich. During the next couple of centuries it was burned and then rebuilt slightly south of its original location.

At the end of thirteenth century it became a part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. In 1569 (after the Union of Lublin) it became part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and then became part of the Russian Empire in 1793 as a result of the Second Partition of Poland).

On 22 January 1796 the town's arm of coats was established (decree #17435) by Stanislaw August, the top half containing the coat of arms of Minsk, while the lower half had two stylized towers on a silver background with a passage between them and Saint Peter above the towers holding a key in his hand. At that time, Borisow was an uyezd town.

In 1812 Napoleon's troops were defeated while crossing the Berezina river, with some of the action taking place at the nearby Hospital Heights. This event was reenacted by medieval military amateurs during town festivals. A cannon from the Napoleonic era is kept near town's museum.

In 1871, the railway between Brest and Moscow passed near Barysaw, and a station was built there. In 1900 the area around the station was annexed to Barysaw. In November 1917 the area became a part of the Soviet Union but was occupied by Germany and then Poland from 1918 until 1920 after which the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic was established.

During World War II, Barysaw was occupied by Nazi Germany from July 2, 1941, to July 1, 1944, and most of the city was destroyed. More than 33,000 people were killed in six death camps which were constructed around the town.

Industry

After the war Barysaw became a major industrial centre, and as of 2002 there are 41 large factories, whose goods are exported to Russia, the CIS, and abroad. The railroad is still an important artery, but now it is powered by overhead electric lines. The largest factories, in no particular order, are:

• BATE (electricity automobile parts)
• AGU (avto-gidro-usilitel — power steering in Russian)
• Pharmaceutical plant (medpreparatov)
• Turbocompressors plant (agregatov)
• match factory (Borisovdrev)

Modern living

Monument to Prince Boris Vseslavovich in front of an Orthodox church

Town is divided by river to Old and New parts connected by one bridge. Railway station, internation road, Ispolkom (ex-KPSS Gorispolkom), military staff and central place are in new part. As usual for this region, families live mostly in flats in large, modern apartment buildings, but there are some single-family homes on the outskirts, some of which do not yet have indoor plumbing. The water comes from an artesian well and is very clean and healthy.

Authorities

• President of the Republic of Belarus Lukashenko January 9, 2009 has assigned Vladimir Miranovich to the position of Head of Regional Administration (Ispolkom).
• Head of City Administration, or Mayor, is Vassily Burgun

Media

• “Borisovskiye Novosti” newspaper: privately owned independent media on both languages. A recent scandal related to an attempt by the Mayor to stop distribution of the paper, recently overturned by a court
• Official “Adzinstva” newspaper in Belarussian.
• Local TV company "Skif" (website)

Notable residents

• Anatoly Chubais, Soviet and Russian economist
• Haim Laskov, the fifth Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Force
• Andrei Aramnau, a weightlifter and current world record holder
• A Swiss song about the Battle of Berezina exists

Sport

Football team FC BATE are based in the city. They have won the Belarusian Premier League eight times, and competed in the UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League.

External links

• Website of the City of Barysaw
• Barysaw Online
• Photos of Borisov Uyezd by Prokudin-Gorsky
• Adzinstva newspaper website
• "Borisov news" website
• Adzinstva newspaper website
• Rayispolkom
• Travel guide to Barysaw