Trinity Suburb Tour

Trinity Suburb is an old picturesque part of Minsk located on the bank of the Svisloch River in the city center. Its cozy little streets and houses, with tile roofs and delicate colors, have become a symbol of Minsk. Their image can be often seen on souvenirs and candy.

Trinity Suburb, Upper Town, the surroundings of the destroyed Minsk Castle, and Rakov Suburb form the historic center of Minsk with its captivating historic buildings and Orthodox and Catholic churches.

The settlement Trinity Hill appeared near the Svisloch River in the 12th and 13th centuries. Nobody knows exactly how the name came about. Some believe it came after the name of the ancient Trinity Catholic Church founded by the Grand Duke of Lithuania Jahajla. Others think that the name derives from the defensive redoubt of the Holy Trinity, or the Church of the Holy Trinity.

In ancient times this suburb was a commercial center. It was a place where roads from Vilno, Polotsk, Smolensk, and Mogilev intersected. In the late 16th century, it became the largest marketplace in the town called Trinity Market.

In the 15th -17th centuries Trinity Hill, Lower Market, and Rakov Suburb were surrounded by fortresses next to which stood little wooden houses of artisans, merchants, peasants, and servicemen.

The ancient design of the suburb was lost in the great fire of 1809. This place was redeveloped and, in line with the project approved by Emperor Alexander I, new stone buildings were built here.

In the 1930s-1960s some buildings and entire streets of the suburb were ruined.

Buildings in Trinity Suburb and Upper Town were renovated in the 1980s to give them a touch of 19th-century Minsk.

In 2004 the place was renovated according to the concept of the borders of the historic center of Minsk.

Trinity Suburb was included in the Old Town Complex. Special protection measures were introduced concerning the western part of the suburb. After the renovation, this part was turned into an open-air museum where one can enjoy the stone architecture of the 19th century.

In 2009 the park built at the site of the former marketplace was given its historic name Trinity Hill. The Bolshoi Opera and Ballet Theater, built in the 1930s, is also located here.

Many buildings located in the Trinity Suburb house museums, antique shops, souvenir stores, cafes, restaurants, and art galleries.

Work is also underway to reproduce the historic appearance of Trinity Suburb and rebuild the missing buildings in Upper Town. Work is also in progress to redevelop one of the main sights of Minsk’s historic center, the surroundings of the ancient Minsk Castle.

Trinity Suburb is a “gem” of the city architecture where one can enjoy the old Minsk and get familiar with its cultural heritage. Here you can visit:

the branch of the State Museum of History of Theatrical and Musical Culture of Belarus under the name The Living Room of Vladislav Golubok

The State Museum of History of Belarusian Literature (undergoing renovation)

Maksim Bogdanovich Literature Museum (undergoing renovation)

The House of Nature (the building of the former synagogue)

the crafts galleries Slavutast and Slavutyia Maistry

the Venok store which offers books and antiques. Its interior imitates that of a 19th-century bookstore

the Troitskaya pharmacy features a unique collection of pharmaceutical utensils and books from the 19th-century

Trinity Suburb features fascinating sculptures of famous persons such as artist Yazep Drozdovich (Life-Long Wanderer), and Maksim Bogdanovich.