Editing Minsk (section)

=== Late Middle Ages ===
[[File:Miensk._Менск_(1772)_(2).jpg|thumb|left|Minsk in 1772]]
Minsk escaped the [[Mongol invasion of Rus'|Mongol invasion of Rus]] in 1237–1239. In 1242, Minsk became a part of the expanding [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania]]. It joined peacefully and local elites enjoyed high rank in the society of the Grand Duchy. In 1413, the [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania]] and [[Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569)|Kingdom of Poland]] entered into a union. Minsk became the centre of [[Minsk Voivodeship|Minsk Voivodship]] (province). In 1441, as [[Grand Duke of Lithuania]], [[Casimir IV Jagiellon|Casimir IV]] included Minsk in a list of cities enjoying certain privileges, and in 1499, during the reign of his son, [[Alexander Jagiellon|Alexander I Jagiellon]], Minsk received [[town privileges]] under [[Magdeburg rights|Magdeburg law]]. In 1569, after the [[Union of Lublin]], the [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania]] and the [[Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569)|Kingdom of Poland]] merged into a single state, the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Hill |first=Melissa |title=Belarus |url=http://go.galegroup.com/ps/retrieve.do?tabID=T003&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchResultsType=SingleTab&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm&currentPosition=1&docId=GALE%7CCX3652100245&docType=Country+overview&sort=RELEVANCE&contentSegment=&prodId=GVRL&contentSet=GALE%7CCX3652100245&searchId=R1&userGroupName=lom_accessmich&inPS=true# |access-date=4 June 2019 |website=Worldmark Encyclopedia of Nations |publisher=Gale}}</ref>

By the middle of the 16th century, Minsk was an important economic and cultural centre in the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]]. It was also an important centre for the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]]. Following the [[Union of Brest]], both the [[Eastern Catholic Churches]] and the Roman Catholic Church increased in influence.{{citation needed|date=December 2011}}

In 1655, Minsk was conquered by troops of [[Alexis of Russia|Tsar Alexei]] of Russia.<ref>Robert I. Frost. ''After the Deluge: Poland-Lithuania and the Second Northern War, 1655–1660''. [[Cambridge University Press]]. 2004. p. 48.</ref> Russians governed the city until 1660 when it was regained by [[John II Casimir]], Grand Duke of Lithuania and King of Poland. By the end of the [[Russo-Polish War (1654–1667)|Polish-Russian War]], Minsk had only about 2,000 residents and just 300 houses. The second wave of devastation occurred during the [[Great Northern War]], when Minsk was occupied in 1708 and 1709 by the army of [[Charles XII of Sweden]] and then by the army of [[Peter I of Russia|Peter the Great]]. {{citation needed|date=December 2011}} The last decades of the Polish rule involved decline or very slow development, since Minsk had become a small provincial town of little economic or military significance.{{citation needed|date=December 2011}}