The name Vilnius was first mentioned in 1323 in the letter of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Gediminas to the North German cities. Seven hundred years ago, Vilnius emerged in history as a civitas regia, the city of the ruler, as well as an open city where representatives of all social groups, from knights and clergy to merchants and craftsmen, were invited, and where strangers were granted legal assurances and promised peaceful coexistence.
All these years, Vilnius has served as a crossroads where cultures have met and interacted, even in challenging circumstances, a place for important discussions and ideas shaping a regional and European intellectual space.
It is hardly surprising, then, that Vilnius emerged as a critical intellectual hub, holding symbolic significance in Jewish, Polish, German, Belarussian, Ukrainian, Tatars, and Lithuanian cultures, and known variously as Northern Rome, Northern Prague, and Northern Jerusalem. The city has remained an outpost of European ideas and values while simultaneously mediating between civilizations.
A symbolically and historically significant, and geographically easternmost, Vilnius NATO summit in history was hosted there last year. The city still embodies the values set out in Grand Duke Gediminas' fourteenth-century letters, which remain relevant today: tolerance, multiculturalism, and creativity.
This event celebrated the seven-hundredth anniversary of the founding of Vilnius, as Professor Rimvydas Petrauskas of Vilnius University – itself founded more than 400 years ago – shares stories from the city's fascinating history.
Cosponsors for this event include the Chicago/Vilnius Sister Cities Committee, celebrating its 30th anniversary; World Business Chicago; Vilnius University; and the Lithuanian Foundation, Inc.
SPEAKER
Professor Rimvydas Petrauskas is the rector of Vilnius University and a Lithuanian historian. He has received numerous awards for outstanding research, including the Knight's Cross of the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas, the Knight's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland, and the Lithuanian Science Prize.
This event originally took place May 2, 2024 at the Newberry.
