Lutsk

Lutsk (Луцьк, translit. Luts'k, Łuck, Луцак or Луцк, transliterated Lutchak or Lutsk) is a city on the Styr River in northwestern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Volyn Oblast (province) and the administrative center of the surrounding Lutskyi Raion (district) within the oblast. The city is also designated as a raion of its own within the oblast.

The estimated population was around 206,000.

Name etymology
Lutsk is an ancient Slavic town, mentioned in the Hypatian Chronicle as Luchesk in the records of 1085. The etymology of the name is unclear. There are three hypotheses: Its historical name in Ukrainian is Луцьк; in Bielarusian, Луцак or Луцк; in Russian, Луцк; and in Polish, Łuck; in Yiddish, Loytsk.
 * the name may be derived from the old-Slavic word luka, an arc or bend (of a river)
 * the name may be derived from Luka, the chieftain of the Dulebs, an ancient Slavic tribe living in the area
 * the name may be derived from Luchanii (Luchans), an ancient branch of the tribe just mentioned above.

History
According to legends Luchesk was founded in the 7th century. The first known documental reference is from the year 1085. The town was the capital of Halych-Volynia until the foundation of Volodymyr-Volynsky.

The town was founded around a wooden castle built by a local branch of the Rurik Dynasty. At certain times the stronghold was the capital of the duchy, but since there was no need for a fixed capital in medieval Europe, the town did not become an important centre of commerce or culture. In 1240 the nearby town was seized and looted by the Tatars, but the castle was not harmed. In 1321 George son of Lev, the last of the line, died in a battle with the forces of Gediminas, Grand Duke of Lithuania and the castle was seized by the Lithuanian forces. In 1349 the town was captured by the forces of Casimir III, but it was soon retaken by Lithuania.

During the period of Lithuanian rule the town began to prosper. Lubart, son of Gediminas, erected the Lubart's Castle as part of his fortification undertaking. Vytautas the Great founded the town itself by importing colonists (mostly Jews, Tatars, and Karaims). In 1427 he transferred the Catholic bishopric from Volodymyr-Volynskyi to Luchesk. Vytautas was the last monarch to use the title of "Duke of Volhynia" and to reside in Lubart's Castle. The town grew rapidly, and by the end of the 15th century there were 19 Orthodox and two Catholic churches. It was the seat of two Christian bishops, one Catholic and one Orthodox. Because of that the town was sometimes nicknamed the Volhynian Rome. The cross symbol of Lutsk is featured on the highest Lithuanian Presidential award, the Order of Vytautas the Great. In 1429 Lutsk was the meeting place selected for a conference of monarchs hosted by Jogaila and Sophia of Halshany to deal with the Tartar threat. Among those invited were Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, Vasili II of Russia, the king of Denmark Eric of Pomerania, Grand Master of the Livonian Order Zisse von Rutenberg, Duke of Szczecin Kazimierz V, Dan II the Hospodar of Wallachia and Prince-electors of most of the countries of Germany.

In 1432 Volhynia became a fief of the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and Lutsk became the seat of the governors, and later the Marshalls of the Land of Volhynia. That same year, the city was granted Magdeburg rights. In 1569 Volhynia was fully incorporated into the Polish kingdom and the town became the capital of the Volhynian Voivodeship and the Łuck powiat (Polish administrative unit). After the Union of Lublin the local Orthodox bishop converted to Greek-Catholicism.

The town continued to prosper as an important economic centre of the region. By the mid-17th century Łuck had approximately 50,000 inhabitants and was one of the largest towns in the area. During the Khmelnytskyi Uprising the town was seized by the forces of Colonel Kolodko. Up to 4,000 people were slaughtered, approximately 35,000 fled, and the town was looted and partially burnt. It never fully recovered. In 1781 the city was struck by a fire which destroyed 440 houses, both cathedrals, and several other churches.

In 1795 as a result of Partitions of Poland, Lutsk was annexed by the Russian Empire. The Voivodeship was liquidated and the town lost its significance as the capital of the province (which was moved to Zhytomyr). After the November Uprising (1830–1831) efforts increased to remove Polish influence and Russian became the dominant language in official circles, though the population continued to speak Ukrainian, the Polish population Polish, and the Jewish population Yiddish, if only in private circles. The Greek Catholic churches were turned into Orthodox Christian ones, which led to the self-liquidation of the Uniates here. In 1845 another great fire struck the city, resulting in a further depopulation.

In 1850 three major forts were built around Lutsk, and the town became a small fortress called Mikhailogorod. During the First World War the town was seized by Austria-Hungary on August 29, 1915. The town sustained a small amount of damage. During more than a year of Austro-Hungarian occupation Lutsk became an important military centre with the headquarters of the IV Army under Archduke Josef Ferdinand stationed there. A plague of epidemic typhus decimated the city's inhabitants.

On June 4, 1916 four Russian armies under general Aleksei Brusilov started what later became known as the Brusilov Offensive. After up to three days of heavy artillery barrage, the Battle of Lutsk began. On June 7, 1916 the Russian forces reconquered the city. After the signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk in 1917 the city was seized by Germany on February 7, 1918. On February 22, 1918 the town was transferred by the withdrawing German army to the forces loyal to Symon Petlura.

Second Polish Republic
During the Polish-Bolshevik War, on May 16, 1919 Lutsk was taken over by the forces of Poland's Blue Army after a heavy battle with the Red Army. The city was devastated and largely depopulated. It witnessed the Soviet counter-offensive of 1920. It was recaptured by Poland's 45th Rifles regiment and field artillery on September 15, 1920. According to American sociologist Alexander Gella "the Polish victory [over the Red Army] had gained twenty years of independence not only for Poland, but at least for an entire central part of Europe. Łuck was designated by the newly-reborn nation of Poland as the capital of the Wołyń Voivodeship.

The city was connected by railroad to Lviv (then Lwów) and Przemyśl. Several brand new factories were built both in Łuck and on its outskirts producing farming equipment, wood, and leather products among other consumer goods. New mills and breweries opened. An orphanage was built, and a big new bursary. The first high-school was soon inaugurated. In 1937 and airport was established in Łuck with an area of 69 ha. The 13th Kresowy Light Artillery Regiment was stationed in the city. In 1938 the construction of a large modern radio transmitter began in the city (see Polish Radio Łuck). As of January 1, 1939 Łuck had 39,000 inhabitants (approximately 17,500 Jews and 13,500 Poles). The powiat formed around the town had 316,970 inhabitants, including 59% Ukrainians, 19.5% Poles, 14% Jews and approximately 23,000 Czechs and Germans.

In 1939 as a result of the Invasion of Poland from both sides and the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, Lutsk, along with the rest of western Volyn, was annexed by the Soviet Union. Most of the factories (including the almost-finished radio station) were dismantled and sent east to Russia. Approximately 7,000 of the city's inhabitants (mostly Poles) were deported in cattle trucks to Kazakhstan and 1,550 were arrested by the NKVD.

After the start of Operation Barbarossa the city was captured by the Wehrmacht, but not before thousands of Polish and Ukrainian prisoners were shot by the retreating NKVD. Upon Nazi occupation most of the Jewish inhabitants of the city were forced into a ghetto and then murdered at the Polanka hill near the city. During the massacres of Poles in Volhynia approximately 10,000 Poles were murdered by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army in the area.

Following the end of the war the remaining Polish inhabitants of the city were expelled, mostly to the areas sometimes referred to as the Polish Regained Territories. The city became an industrial centre in the Ukrainian SSR. The major changes in the city's demographics had the final result that by the end of the war the city was almost entirely Ukrainian.

As one of the largest cities in Western Ukraine, Lutsk became the seat of a General Consulate of Poland in 2003.

Industry and commerce
Lutsk is an important centre of industry. Factories producing cars, shoes, bearings, furniture, machines and electronics, as well as weaveries, steel mills and a chemical plant are located in the area.
 * VGP JSC - manufacture of sanitary and hygienic products
 * LuAZ - automobile-manufacturing plant, part of Bogdan group
 * SKF - manufacture of bearings, seals, lubrication and lubrication systems, maintenance products, mechatronics products, power transmission products and related services globally
 * Modern-Expo Goup - one of the largest manufacturers and suppliers of equipment (metal shelving, high racks systems, checkouts, stainless steel equipment, POS-equipment and guidance systems) for retail and warehouse use in Central and Eastern Europe.

During the Cold War, the city was home to Lutsk air base.

Places of interest

 * Lubart's Castle
 * Saint Peter and Paul Cathedral
 * Great Synagogue
 * Holy Trinity Orthodox Cathedral
 * Lutheran kirche
 * Complex of Lutsk Orthodox Fellowship
 * Market square
 * Lesya Ukrainka street

Details

 * Parts of two castles (the Upper Castle from the 13th century and the Lower Castle from the 14th century)
 * A Catholic cathedral (built 1610 as a Jesuit church, reconstructed in 1781)
 * An Orthodox cathedral (built 1755 as a church and monastery of Bernardines)
 * Several monasteries, both Catholic and Orthodox: Basilians (17th century), Dominicans (17th century), Trinitarians (18th century) and Charites (18th century)
 * Two 16th century Greek-Catholic churches
 * Lutsk Synagogue (1626–1629)

Theatres and Museums
Drama Theatre, built in 1939 (during the communist period). (see here)

Children's Puppet Theater.

Museum of Regional Studies. Address: Shopena St. 20.

Museum of Ukrainian army and ammunition opened in 1999. Address: Lutsk, vul. Taborishi 4.

Museum of Volyn Icon was opened in August 1993. Relatively small museum in the centre on the town. Has some interesting and very old icons. Address: vul. Yaroshchuka 5. (behind the Lesia Ukrainka Volyn State University).

Others
Lutsk Compact Overhead Powerline, a powerline of unusual type.

Famous people from Lutsk

 * Alojzy Feliński — Polish scientist and writer
 * Anatoliy Tymoshchuk — Ukrainian football player
 * Boleslaw Kontrym, officer of the Polish Home Army, executed by the Communists
 * Florian Siwicki, General of the Polish Army
 * Mikolaj Kruszewski, Polish 19th century linguist
 * Iwan Tkatschuk, Officer of the Polish Army
 * Oksana Zabuzhko - contemporary Ukrainian poet, writer and essayist
 * Peter Bondra — Ukrainian-born Slovak ice hockey player
 * Raul Bajczman - contemporary Ukrainian-Argentinian politician born in Lutsk in 1927
 * Sasha Bonilova - Playboy model, Playmate of the Month for May 2011
 * Shmuel Shilo - Israeli theatre and cinema actor
 * Shimshon Unichman, Israeli politician and member of the Knesset
 * Svetlana Zakharova- A Russian Ballet dancer
 * Tetiana Naumovych-Senzyuk — born in 1982, artist
 * Tartak — all the group members were born in Lutsk
 * Zalman Sorotzkin - Famous Jewish Rabbi, Author
 * Anzhelika Savrayuk - member of the Italian group of rhythmic gymnastics was born in Lutsk, 3 times world champion in group all around, bronze medallist in the group all around at London 2012

Twin towns — Sister cities
Lutsk is twinned with:

In popular culture
The NKVD and Nazi massacres are mentioned in the Prix Goncourt awarded novel The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell.

Is a location taken over by post-apocalyptic slavers in the Sci-Fi/Adventure Novel The Crisis Pendant by Charlie Patterson