Editing Vilnius (section)

==Cityscape==
{{See also|Vilnius Central Business District}}
{{scalable image|Vilnius Old Town Skyline at dusk, Lithuania - Diliff.jpg|1000px|alt=Large photo of Vilnius, seen from above|Panorama of Vilnius Old Town, seen from [[Gediminas' Tower]] at dusk. Vilnius has one of the largest and best-preserved old towns in [[Northern Europe|northern]], [[Eastern Europe|eastern]], and [[central Europe]].<ref name="unesco">{{cite web |title=Vilnius Historic Centre |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/541/ |website=[[UNESCO]] |access-date=12 August 2019}}</ref><ref name="TheCapital">{{cite web |title=The capital – Vilnius |url=https://www.lithuania.travel/en/place/the-capital-vilnius |website=Lithuania.travel |access-date=12 August 2019 |archive-date=12 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190812134902/https://www.lithuania.travel/en/place/the-capital-vilnius |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="VWH">{{cite web |title=Vilnius Historic Centre, Lithuania |url=https://visitworldheritage.com/en/eu/vilnius-historic-centre-lithuania/5e1ea201-d0a2-4390-8e32-596a4ca5a90b |website=VisitWorldHeritage.com |access-date=28 January 2023 |archive-date=8 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208131412/https://visitworldheritage.com/en/eu/vilnius-historic-centre-lithuania/5e1ea201-d0a2-4390-8e32-596a4ca5a90b |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Lurk">{{cite web |title=Main facts about Lithuania |url=https://lurk.lt/en/apie-mus/main-facts-about-lithuania/ |website=Lithuanian University Rectors' Conference |access-date=28 January 2023 |archive-date=7 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207171705/https://lurk.lt/en/apie-mus/main-facts-about-lithuania/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> Its skyline is dominated by [[List of churches in Vilnius|spires of churches]] dating to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bideleux |first1=Robert |last2=Jeffries |first2=Ian |title=A history of Eastern Europe: crisis and change |date=1998 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0415161114 |page=122}}</ref><ref name="VWH"/>|tooltip=no}}

===Urbanism and architecture===
[[File:Vilnius St Anns church.jpg|thumb|left|alt=Exterior of two old, red churches|[[Church of St. Anne, Vilnius|St. Anne's Church]] and the [[Church of St. Francis and St. Bernard, Vilnius|Church of St. Francis and St. Bernard]] are examples of [[Gothic architecture in Lithuania]].]]
[[File:St. Peter and St. Paul's Church 1, Vilnius, Lithuania - Diliff.jpg|thumb|alt=Interior of a large Baroque church|The [[Baroque architecture|Baroque]] [[Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, Vilnius|Church of St. Peter and St. Paul]] was built by [[Michał Kazimierz Pac]] to commemorate victory over the Muscovites and their expulsion from Vilnius after six years of occupation.]]
The Old Town covers about {{cvt|3.6|km2}}, and its history dates to the [[Neolithic]]. The glacial hills were intermittently occupied, and a wooden castle was built at the confluence of the Neris and Vilnia {{circa|1000 AD}} to fortify [[Gedimino Hill]]. The settlement developed into a town in the 13th century, when the [[pagan]] [[Baltic people]] were invaded by [[Western Europeans]] during the [[Lithuanian Crusade]]. Around 1323 (the first written sources about Vilnia), it was the capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and had a few brick buildings. By the 15th century, the duchy extended from the [[Baltic Sea|Baltic]] to the [[Black Sea]] (primarily present-day Belarus, Ukraine and Russia). The historic centre consists of [[Vilnius Castle Complex|three castles]] (Upper, Lower and Curved) and the area previously encircled by the [[Wall of Vilnius]]. It is mainly circular, centered on the original castle site. Streets are small and narrow, with large squares later developed.<ref name="unesco" /> [[Pilies Street]], the main artery, links the Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania with Vilnius Town Hall. Other streets are lined with the palaces of feudal lords and landlords, churches, shops and craftspeople's workrooms.

Historic buildings feature [[Gothic architecture|Gothic]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Gotika |url=http://www.ivilnius.lt/apie-vilniu/architektura/gotika/ |website=iVilnius.lt |access-date=12 August 2019}}</ref> [[Renaissance architecture|Renaissance]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Renesansas |url=http://www.ivilnius.lt/apie-vilniu/architektura/renesansas/ |website=iVilnius.lt |access-date=12 August 2019}}</ref> [[Baroque architecture|Baroque]]<ref>{{cite web |title=Barokas |url=http://www.ivilnius.lt/apie-vilniu/architektura/barokas/ |website=iVilnius.lt |access-date=12 August 2019}}</ref> and [[classical architecture]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Klasicizmas |url=http://www.ivilnius.lt/apie-vilniu/architektura/klasicizmas/ |website=iVilnius.lt |access-date=12 August 2019}}</ref> The variety of preserved churches and former palaces of the Lithuanian nobility exemplifies Vilnius' multicultural heritage.<ref name="unesco" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Vilniaus architektūra |url=https://www.vle.lt/Straipsnis/Vilniaus-architektura-125335 |website=vle.lt |access-date=12 August 2019}}</ref>

Lithuanians and others shaped the development of the capital, with Western and Eastern influences. Lithuania was [[Christianization of Lithuania|Christianized]] in 1387, but Eastern Orthodoxy and the growing importance of [[Judaism]] led to construction of the [[Cathedral of the Theotokos, Vilnius|Orthodox Cathedral of the Theotokos]] and the [[Great Synagogue of Vilna]]).<ref name="unesco" />

[[File:Vilnius Cathedral Chapel of Saint Casimir, Vilnius, Lithuania - Diliff.jpg|thumb|alt=An ornate chapel, seen from the side|The 17th-century Chapel of Saint Casimir, the [[patron saint]] of Lithuania and its youth, in [[Vilnius Cathedral]]]]
Disasters resulted in building reconstructions in [[Vilnian Baroque]] style, which later influenced the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.<ref name="unesco" /><ref name="VilniusBaroqueVWH">{{cite web |title=Baroque Vilnius |url=https://visitworldheritage.com/en/eu/baroque-vilnius/bed60a87-d5d1-4539-981e-2c13445280a2 |website=VisitWorldHeritage.com |access-date=12 February 2023 |archive-date=12 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230212121620/https://visitworldheritage.com/en/eu/baroque-vilnius/bed60a87-d5d1-4539-981e-2c13445280a2 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Artists such as [[Matteo Castelli]] and [[Pietro Perti]]) from the present-day [[Canton of Ticino]] were preferred by the Grand Duke and local nobility, and designed the [[Chapel of Saint Casimir]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Ar žinojote, kad Vilniaus barokinės architektūros perlus sukūrė šveicarai, o ne italai? |url=https://kultura.lrytas.lt/istorija/2017/04/30/news/ar-zinojote-kad-vilniaus-barokines-architekturos-perlus-sukure-sveicarai-o-ne-italai--996644/ |website=[[lrytas.lt]] |access-date=28 August 2019 |language=lt}}</ref> The Lithuanian [[Laurynas Gucevičius]] was a noted classical architect in the city.<ref>{{cite web |title=Laurynas Gucevičius: kaip formavosi žymiausio architekto vardas |url=http://m.ldkistorija.lt/index.php/istoriniai-faktai/laurynas-gucevicius-kaip-formavosi-zymiausio-architekto-vardas/1361 |website=ldkistorija.lt |access-date=28 August 2019 |archive-date=12 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171212162459/http://m.ldkistorija.lt/index.php/istoriniai-faktai/laurynas-gucevicius-kaip-formavosi-zymiausio-architekto-vardas/1361 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

The {{convert|352|ha|acre|adj=on}} Old Town was designated as a [[World Heritage Site|UNESCO World Heritage Site]] in 1994. The Vilnius Historic Centre is noted for maintaining its medieval street pattern with no significant gaps. Some places were damaged during Lithuania's occupations and wars, including [[Cathedral Square, Vilnius|Cathedral Square]] (demolished in 1795) and a square east of the [[Church of All Saints, Vilnius|Church of All Saints]] where the [[Church of St. Joseph the Betrothed, Vilnius|Convent of the Barefoot Carmelites]] stood with [[Deputy Chancellor of Lithuania|Vice-Chancellor]] [[Stefan Pac]]'s Baroque [[Church of St. Joseph the Betrothed, Vilnius|Church of St. Joseph the Betrothed]] (both demolished by the [[tsar]]. The Great Synagogue and part of the buildings in [[Vokiečių Street]] were demolished after World War II.<ref name="unesco" />

Vilnius covers {{convert|401|km2|sqmi}}, of which one-fifth is developed; the remainder is greenspace and water. The city is known as one of Europe's "greenest" capital cities.<ref>{{cite web |title=About Vilnius |url=http://www.vaspvt.gov.lt/node/499 |website=vaspvt.gov.lt |access-date=12 August 2019 |archive-date=12 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190812153855/http://www.vaspvt.gov.lt/node/499 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Crypts===
Notable Lithuanian Catholics are interred in the crypts of Vilnius Cathedral. Grand Duke [[Alexander Jagiellon]], Queen [[Elizabeth of Austria (1436–1505)|Elizabeth of Austria]], [[Barbara Radziwiłł]], and the heart of Grand Duke Władysław IV Vasa are buried at the Royal Mausoleum. These crypts have one of the country's oldest frescoes, painted in the late 14th or early 15th century after Lithuania was Christianized.<ref>{{cite web |title=Crypts |url=http://www.bpmuziejus.lt/crypts.html |website=bpmuziejus.lt |access-date=3 October 2019 |archive-date=24 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190924113344/http://www.bpmuziejus.lt/crypts.html |url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Housing===
[[File:Vilnius Pilies street.jpg|thumb|left|alt=Pedestrians on a narrow street|Pilies Street has a medieval atmosphere.]]
Vilnius Old Town ({{langx|lt|link=no|Vilniaus senamiestis}}), with medieval stone-paved streets, and Užupis have prestigious housing, with [[apartment]]s featuring views of iconic churches and urban landmarks (particularly [[Gediminas Tower]]), enclosed inner courtyards, high ceilings, attics, non-standard layouts and luxurious interiors;<ref name="asa">{{cite web |title=Patraukliausi Vilniaus rajonai |url=https://lt.lt.allconstructions.com/portal/categories/134/1/0/1/article/18031/patraukliausi-vilniaus-rajonai |website=asa.lt |access-date=13 August 2019 |language=lt}}</ref> Flats in these neighbourhoods may cost millions of [[euro]]s.<ref>{{cite web |title=Flats in Vilnius Senamiestis and Užupis |url=https://en.aruodas.lt/butai/vilniuje/?FQuartal=16%2C19&FOrder=PriceExp |website=aruodas.lt |access-date=13 August 2019}}</ref> Traffic jams, expensive parking, air pollution, high maintenance costs and limitations on renovation, however, also encourage wealthy Vilnians to buy or build [[private house]]s in outlying parts of the city such as [[Balsiai]], [[Bajorai]], [[Pavilnys]], [[Kalnėnai]] and [[Pilaitė]] or the nearby [[Vilnius District Municipality]].<ref name="asa" /> Around 21,000 residents live in the Old Town, and 7,000 in Užupis.<ref name="Mikrorajonai">{{cite web |title=Mikrorajonai |url=http://www.ivilnius.lt/apie-vilniu/mikrorajonai/ |website=iVilnius.lt |access-date=13 August 2019}}</ref>

[[File:Valakampiai neighborhood.jpg|thumb|alt=A scenic riverside neighborhood, seen from above|Part of the Valakampiai neighborhood in [[Antakalnis]] on the Neris, seen from [[Verkiai Palace]]]]
[[File:Savanoriu avenue Vilnius.JPG|thumb|left|Helios City complex in [[Naujamiestis, Vilnius|Naujamiestis]] with [[shopping mall]] and apartments]]
[[:lt:Valakampiai|Valakampiai]] and [[:lt:Turniškės|Turniškės]] are prestigious neighborhoods, with private houses on large lots surrounded by [[Scots pine|pine]] forests which are easily accessible from the city centre. Wealthy people and heads of state (such as the president) live there, and most of the larger private houses costs millions of euros.<ref name="asa" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Houses in Vilnius Valakampiai and Turniškės |url=https://en.aruodas.lt/namai/vilniuje/?FQuartal=135%2C66092&FOrder=PriceExp |website=aruodas.lt |access-date=13 August 2019}}</ref> Part of the [[Žvėrynas]] neighbourhood has luxurious private houses near Vingis Park, but it also has Soviet-era apartment buildings and wooden houses in poor condition.<ref name="Mikrorajonai" /><ref name="asa" />

Neighbourhoods around the Old Town (Antakalnis, Žirmūnai, Naujamiestis, and Žvėrynas) have a variety of flats and green space, and are popular with [[middle class|middle-class]] residents. Wealthier people live in a new construction or renovated Soviet-era apartments.<ref name="asa" /> The government is supportive of renovation, and reimburses 30 percent or more of the cost.<ref>{{cite web |title=Keičiasi renovacijos rėmimo tvarka |url=http://www.renovacija.lt/naujiena/keiciasi-renovacijos-remimo-tvarka-skaitykite-daugiau-https-www-15min-lt-verslas-naujiena-kvadratinis-metras-nekilnojamasis-turtas-keiciasi-renovacijos-remimo-tvarka-973-805040/ |website=renovacija.lt |access-date=13 August 2019}}</ref> Poorer residents and low-income [[pensioner]]s, however, foster [[Regionalism (politics)|regionalism]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Šilti namai ne visur: kodėl kai kurios savivaldybės neskuba atnaujinti daugiabučių? |url=https://www.alfa.lt/straipsnis/50223770/silti-namai-ne-visur-kodel-kai-kurios-savivaldybes-neskuba-atnaujinti-daugiabuciu |website=alfa.lt |access-date=13 August 2019 |language=lt}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Didmiesčiai liko be naujų renovacijos planų |url=https://www.verslozinios.lt/verslo-aplinka/2016/09/21/8051/didmiesciai-liko-be-nauju-renovacijos-planu |website=vz.lt |access-date=7 October 2019 |language=lt |archive-date=7 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191007021331/https://www.verslozinios.lt/verslo-aplinka/2016/09/21/8051/didmiesciai-liko-be-nauju-renovacijos-planu |url-status=dead}}</ref>

More-distant neighbourhoods, such as Lazdynai, Karoliniškės, Viršuliškės, [[Šeškinė]], Justiniškės, Pašilaičiai, Fabijoniškės and [[Naujininkai]], have more-affordable housing. Their disadvantages are a longer commute, unrenovated Soviet-era [[high-rise building]]s, traffic congestion and a shortage of parking spaces near older apartments.<ref name="asa" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Prestižiniai Vilniaus rajonai: ar išlaikys miestiečių išbandymą? |url=https://www.15min.lt/verslas/naujiena/kvadratinis-metras/nekilnojamasis-turtas/prestiziniai-rajonai-973-689455 |website=[[15min.lt]] |access-date=13 August 2019 |language=lt}}</ref>

[[File:Vilnia, Śnipiški, Jezuicki. Вільня, Сьніпішкі, Езуіцкі (L. Bichebois, 1848-49).jpg|thumb|alt=19th-century painting of a large church on a river|Mid-19th-century painting of the Chapel of Jesus of Šnipiškės]]
The [[Šnipiškės]] eldership has received significant investment during the 2010s. The area was first mentioned in 1536, when Grand Duke Sigismund I the Old ordered [[Ulrich Hosius]] to build a wooden bridge over the Neris and a suburb developed around the bridge. That century, a building for [[Grand Duchy of Moscow|Muscovite]] and [[Tatars|Tatar]] messengers was built by the magistrate of Vilnius north of Šnipiškės.<ref>{{cite web |title=Šnipiškės. Nuo skurdaus priemiesčio iki patogaus centro |url=https://www.15min.lt/naujiena/aktualu/vilniaus-zinios/snipiskes-nuo-skurdaus-priemiescio-iki-patogaus-centro-793-1106084 |website=15min.lt |access-date=31 August 2019 |language=lt}}</ref> The Jesuit [[Church of St. Raphael the Archangel, Vilnius|Church of St. Raphael the Archangel]] and monastery and housing for wealthy and middle-class townspeople were built in Šnipiškės during the 18th century. Craftspeople lived on the outskirts, where a smoking-pipe factory, sawmills and a small candy factory were built. The {{convert|8|ha|acre|adj=on}} Skansenas neighbourhood, west of the Kalvarijų market,<ref>{{cite web |title=Šnipiškių dalis, vad. Skansenu |url=https://kvr.kpd.lt/#/static-heritage-detail/18cd9725-4d70-4f44-864c-4abc2da273b3 |website=kvr.kpd.lt |access-date=5 March 2021 |language=lt |archive-date=19 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161119142319/http://kvr.kpd.lt/#/static-heritage-detail/18cd9725-4d70-4f44-864c-4abc2da273b3 |url-status=dead}}</ref> has late-19th-century wooden houses. Nearby Piromontas<ref>{{cite web |title=Šnipiškių dalis, vad. Piromontu |url=https://kvr.kpd.lt/#/static-heritage-detail/bfaab7b3-9448-4afc-802a-f6bfef1fad71 |website=kvr.kpd.lt |access-date=5 March 2021 |language=lt |archive-date=19 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161119142319/http://kvr.kpd.lt/#/static-heritage-detail/bfaab7b3-9448-4afc-802a-f6bfef1fad71 |url-status=dead}}</ref> was built at the same time.

During the 1960s, Šnipiškės was renamed the [[Vilnius Central Business District|New City Centre]]. It had the city's first pedestrian zone and a number of buildings, including the country's largest shopping centre, a large hotel, a planetarium, a museum and a number of ministries of the Lithuanian SSR, were built before 1990.<ref>"Statyba ir architektūra", 1964, 2, pp. 1–2</ref><ref>articles in "Statyba ir architektūra", 1964, 11</ref><ref>"Statyba ir architektūra", 1973, 8, pp. 1–3</ref><ref>"Lietuvos TSR istorijos ir kultūros paminklų sąvadas. 1 dalis Vilniaus paminklai", 1988, 383. Naujasis miesto centras; pp. 506–509</ref><ref>Marija Drėmaitė, "Baltic modernism Architecture and housing in soviet Lithuania", pp. 220–224,</ref> Šnipiškės north of [[Konstitucijos Avenue]] was underdeveloped until the early 2000s, when the new [[Vilnius city municipality building]] spurred construction of Europa Square with a shopping centre, a 33-story office building and a 27-story apartment building. The former Museum of the Revolution became the National Art Gallery in the late 2000s.<ref>{{cite web |title=Vilniaus naujojo miesto centro transformacijos |url=https://sa.lt/vilniaus-naujojo-miesto-centro-transformacijos/ |website=sa.lt |access-date=31 August 2019 |language=lt |date=13 September 2018}}</ref>

[[File:Paupys district in Vilnius by Augustas Didžgalvis.jpg|thumb|alt=Aerial view of dense riverside housing|Modern housing in Paupys]]
According to economists, the number of transactions and the housing affordability index reached record highs in 2019 because of increased city-residents' income and slowing price increases for flats.<ref>{{cite web |title=Vilniuje būsto įperkamumas ir butų sandorių skaičius muša rekordus |url=https://ziniuterasa.swedbank.lt/spaudos-pranesimai/vilniuje-busto-iperkamumas-ir-butu-sandoriu-skaicius-musa-rekordus |website=swedbank.lt |access-date=13 August 2019 |language=lt}}</ref> One-fourth of residents 26 to 35 years old still live in homes owned by their parents or other relatives, however, the highest percentage in the Baltic states.<ref>{{cite web |title=Tyrimas: lietuviai tėvų namus palieka vėliausiai Baltijos šalyse |url=https://ziniuterasa.swedbank.lt/spaudos-pranesimai/tyrimas-lietuviai-tevu-namus-palieka-veliausiai-baltijos-salyse |website=swedbank.lt |access-date=13 August 2019 |language=lt |archive-date=13 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190813142647/https://ziniuterasa.swedbank.lt/spaudos-pranesimai/tyrimas-lietuviai-tevu-namus-palieka-veliausiai-baltijos-salyse |url-status=dead}}</ref>