Velyka Berestovitsa is a large urban settlement in the Grodno region, the history of which has already crossed the mark of 500 years. During this long period, the town managed to be owned by the Khodkeviches, Mnisheks, Pototskys and Kosakovskys, under whom a real palace. To this day, this manor-palace has been preserved in a heavily rebuilt form, and only a few buildings have survived from the huge utility yard. Despite this, it is impossible to say that the estate is completely forgotten. There are dozens of high-quality photographs of the first half of the 20th century, allowing you to appreciate not only the appearance, but also the rich interiors.
By the way, in the very center of Bolshaya Berestovitsa there is also a mural depicting this unique architectural monument, it appeared at the end of 2019.
An unusual fact is that the palace itself in Bolshaya Berestovitsa actually consisted of 3 estates built at different times and in different architectural styles.
The neo-Gothic part of the palace with two towers looks the most curious, it is also the most recent, completed in the first half of the 20th century, according to the project of the architect Juliusz Vasyutinskiy.
It is also surprising that the old manor house, founded under the Khodkeviches, was not destroyed or rebuilt. In fact, it was connected to the new building wall to wall - this can be clearly seen in the picture below.
The interior and objects in the house deserve special attention.
The Kosakovskys collected a rich collection of valuables, among which were unique antique furniture of the 14th-17th centuries and paintings by eminent masters. In addition, items received from Napoleon Bonaparte himself were kept - a uniform with a hat, chess, binoculars and some other attributes. These things were sent to Józef Antony Kosakowski in 1814 on behalf of Napoleon.
But that's not all. Another priceless artifact is the iron chest of Jan Korol Chodkiewicz, passed down from generation to generation.
The new house of the Kosakovskys amazed the imagination not only with its decoration, but also with its progressive approach.
The palace was already considered technically equipped at that time. Count Kosakovsky received permission to conduct electricity in 1903. The house was consecrated with the help of the 181st lamp and a kerosene engine of a German company. The heating was stove, for which 61 stoves (!) were installed - of different sizes and decorations.
One of the brightest representatives of the Kosakovskys was Stanislav (died 1905), an amateur historian and also a photographer. It is thanks to his photographs that today you can look into the past and see what Bolshaya Berestovitsa and the palace looked like in those days.
The last owner of the estate is considered to be another Stanislav (grandson of Stanislav-Kazimir), who remained with his wife Maria in Berestovitsa until 1939. The rich palace will be plundered that year, and later completely burned. The Kosakovskys will leave these lands forever: first they were sent to the Urals, then Kazakhstan, then a long journey to Rome, and then moving to Poland.
A hospital will be built on the foundations of the lost palace during the Soviet years. Some outbuildings of the former complex were also partially used, but it is almost impossible to determine what and to what extent was rebuilt.
A good reminder that the Kosakovsky estate was located on the hospital territory is the entrance gate, which, apparently, miraculously survived.
If you want to see the place where the estate was located, then the mark with its location is below on the map:
In Bolshaya Berestovitsa you should definitely see massive temple ruins the Carmelite Order and Church of the Transfiguration of the Lord, in the construction of which those same Kosakovskys were involved.
