Rokiškis Manor

Rokiškis Manor
Native name Rokiškio dvaras (Lithuanian)
Rokiškis Manor in 2013
Type	Residential manor
Location	Rokiškis, Lithuania
Coordinates	55°57′55″N 25°36′4″E / 55.96528°N 25.60111°E / 55.96528; 25.60111
Built	1801
Built for	Ignotas Tyzenhauzas (Ignacy Tyzenhauz)
Architect	Karolis Jankovskis, Pranciškus Lilpopas
Architectural style(s)	Classical Revival
Owner	Rokiškis Regional Museum
Website	www.muziejusrokiskyje.lt/en
Cultural Monuments of Lithuania
Type	National
Designated	20 November, 2001[1]
Reference no.	1010
Location of Rokiškis Manor in Lithuania

Rokiškis Manor (Lithuanian: Rokiškio dvaras) is a former residential manor in Rokiškis, north-eastern Lithuania. From 1940-1942 and again from 1952, the manor house is used by Rokiškis Regional Museum.^[2]

The original manor house from the 16th century did not survive and there is little information about the appearance of the old manor house. It is known that the manor stood on a hill, was built of wood, in the shape of a cross, and had deep cellars. On the foundations of the old manor house, a neo-Gothic brewery building was built which resembled a small castle and since then colloquially referred to as the Krošinskiai Castle.^[3] During the centuries the current manor house was remodelled several times. Originally the manor house was a single-storey building in Classical Revival style with a small dome. In 1905, Jonas Pšezdzieckis began the renovation of the manor according to the project of the architects Karolis Jankovskis and Pranciškus Lilpopas. The manor became two storeys high and more spacious, but its style became mixed with Baroque Revival, neo-Renaissance and Art Nouveau features.^[4]

Rokiškis manor was first mentioned in 1499 in the privilege of Grand Duke Alexander Jagiellon of Lithuania for cutting the forest for Jurgis Stanislovaitis Astikas. The privilege mentions Alexander's property the Rokiškis Manor. From 1503 the estate belonged to the Grand Duchess of Lithuania and Queen of Poland Helena of Moscow and briefly belonged to Voivode of Vilnius Mikalojus Radvila the Old.^[5]

From the mid-16th century onwards, the Rokiškis manor together with the town was ruled by three famous Lithuanian noble families: the Krošinskis family, descendants of the House of Gediminas, Princes of Smolensk, the Tyzenhauz family of Livonia, and the Counts Przeździecki from Masuria.^[6]

After the death of Grand Duchess Helena in 1514, the Rokiškis manor was passed on to Duke Timotiejus Filipovičius Krošinskis. By a privilege of 9 November 1547, the Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland, Sigismund the Old, gave the Rokiškis manor, by right of fiefdom, to Ivanas Timotiejevičius Krošinskis and his descendants in perpetuity. The Krošinskis family owned the Rokiškis manor until the first half of the 18th century the last of whom was Juzefas Krošinskis who died in 1715. The Krošinskis brought their coat of arms to Rokiškis - a silver trident on a red field. They tried to establish order in the town, prevent lawlessness, defend the market rights and promote trade. Rokiškis was located at the crossroads of important routes, with the trade route to Livonia passing through Rokiškis. However, like many noblemen of the time, the Krošinskis had no hesitations in both mortgaging and leasing Rokiškis. They were fierce and often quarrelled with the neighbouring lords. The old manor house where the Krošinskis lived has not survived. However, according to the 1634 inventory of the manor, which was headed by Vendragovskis, it is clear that the manor house stood on a hill, was built of wood, in the shape of a cross, and had large cellars. There were accessory buildings nearby and three ponds. In 1715, the Rokiškis manor was transferred to the Dukes of Tyzenhaus in satisfaction of debts.^{[4] [6]}

The Tyzenhauz family brought their coat of arms - a black buffalo on a golden field - to Rokiškis. The new owners also leased and mortgaged the manor. This had a negative impact on the development of Rokiškis and discouraged economic activity. And yet, in the 18th century, Rokiškis already had a large market square, a Saika as a measure of its volume, a blacksmith's forge, a brewery and a mill. Rokiškis flourished most at the end of the 18th century, when Ignacy Tyzenhauz (Ignotas Tyzenhauzas), a major-general in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania's army, and a participant in the Kościuszko Uprising of 1794, became the owner of the estate and made it his permanent residence. In 1801, he commissioned a new manor house to be built in the style of classicism with two officines from both sides.^[4]

Konstanty Tyzenhauz (Konstantinas Tyzenhauzas) inherited Rokiškis after the death of his father Ignotas. A military officer by profession and a renowned ornithologist by hobby, a student of professor Stanislovas Jundzilas, he turned Rokiškis into a hub of science. He set up a laboratory and planted many tropical and warmer climate plants in the orangery. His ornithological collections amounted to some three thousand specimens, and books authored by him are used as a source of study for today's Lithuanian biology students. Konstatinas' sister Sophie de Choiseul-Gouffier (Sofija Tyzenhauzaitė de Šuazel-Gufjė) was also intellectually gifted and wrote over 10 historical novels.^[4]

Duke Reinoldas Tyzenhauzas (1830-1880) replaced the serfdom on his estates with a rent tax, easing the peasants' of corvée. Founded one of the first music schools in Lithuania. On his initiative and financial support, a church in Salos and the neo-Gothic Church of St. Matthew the Apostle in Rokiškis was built in the second half of the 19th century, decorated with stained-glass windows bearing the coats of arms of the Lithuanian nobility. The Duke's sister, Marija Tyzenhauzaitė- Pšezdzieckienė (Maria Przeździecki), contributed to the interior decoration of the Rokiškis church. Her husband, the Polish historian Aleksander Przeździecki (Aleksandras Pšezdzieckis), brought to Rokiškis his family coat of arms, a silver lily with three stripes on a red field.^[4]

After Tyzenhauzes, the estate became the residence of the Przeździecki family who owned the estate until World War II.^[7] In 1905, Jonas Pšezdzieckis (Jan Przeździecki) (1877-1944), the last owner of the manor and the grandson of Marija Pšezdzieckienė, began the remodelling of the manor house. During his time, the original Zakopane Style dining room and the bright and high concert hall were decorated with works of fine art collected by the families who ruled the estate - the Counts Tyzenhauz and later Przeździecki. The collection included canvases by Titian, Caravaggio, Rubens, Bruegel, Adriaen van Ostade and other famous painters of Western Europe. The manor had an excellent collection of musical instruments, including works by Stradivarius, Groblicz, and Dankworth.^[4]

When the Soviets occupied Lithuania in 1940, the Rokiškis Manor and many of its valuables were nationalised. Jonas Pšezdzieckis and his wife Hermancija Sapiegaitė (Hermancja Sapieha) had to secretly flee, leaving all their belongings behind, as they probably did not think that they were leaving Rokiškis forever. Later the Rokiškis Manor was severely damaged. The palace was looted and vandalised by the Red Army. During that time Rokiškis Regional Museum was operating on the premises of the manor house, sharing it with the Soviet army garrison which used the manor as headquarters. On 15 June 1940, Petras Bliūdzius the curator of the museum, together with his whole family was arrested by the Soviets and deported to Siberia after he tried to save the works of art in the manor. In 1941 the manor was captured by the Wehrmacht and the museum was closed.^[5]

In the Post-war years, the manor estate was transferred to the Rokiškis Sovkhoz a state-owned farm, and later the manor housed a library and a museum. The manor and adjacent buildings were still inhabited by people who had lived here since the time of the Przeździeckis, others who had sought work after the war, and war refugees.^[8] The manor house had become almost dilapidated and was in need of major repairs. Water was leaking through the roof and ceiling. The more spacious rooms had become grain storage, and other rooms housed people. The ceiling collapsed and the attic caved in. The Rokiškis Sovkhoz, which owned the manor, did not undertake repairs, as they did not get the approval of the Soviet government in Moscow.^[5]

After Lithuania regained its independence restoration works started in Rokiskis Manor at the end of the 20th century.^[9]

Currently, the museum exhibits the works of the Lithuanian woodcarver Lionginas Šepka (1907-1985), paintings by Monika Bičiūnienė (1910-2009), a collection of musical instruments, restored original interior, paintings and other works of art with the only preserved collection of Count's clothes in the Baltic States.^[4]

In 2011 Rokiškis Manor became a winner in the Tourism and Regeneration of Physical Sites category by EU's project EDEN.^[9]

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