History
Rechytsa is one of the oldest towns of Belarus. First settlements in this region are dated back to the epoch of mesolite (9–5th centuries B.C.). Later on the area was inhabited by the Dregovichi tribe. The town was first mentioned in the Novgorod chronicle in 1213 as a town of the Chernihiv Principality. Rechytsa was also ruled by Kiev and Turaŭ Grand Dukes. At the time of Gedimin reign (1311–1341) the town was annexed to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Rechytsa as well as Orsha, Shklov, Mogilev, Staryi Bykhov and Rahachow formed a well-developed frontier defense system at the River Dnepr.
1392–1430 – the reign of Grand Duke Vitovt. He constructed a fortified castle with five towers in the area of the detinets (old Belarusian for the downtown) on the bank of the Dnepr. At that time the town had three fortification lines in the form of water trenches and ramparts with bastions. In the area between the fortress and the second fortification line there was a territory for rich mansions, Church of the Order of Friars Preachers and a trade square. The town inhabitants settled lived between the second and third fortification lines. The construction of the town had clear right-angled forms.
In 1561 the town was partially granted the Magdeburg law.
In the middle of the 17th century Rechytsa was practically destroyed during the Cossack war of 1648–1651. After the Truce of Anrusovo the town became a part of Rzecz Pospolita. In 1793 Rechitsa joined Russia and became an used center of the Minsk province.
The first permanent town plan of Rechytsa was approved in 1800. During the Patriotic War in 1812 the town was a temporary residence of the Minsk governor.
Today Rechytsa – a town of Belarusian oil industry – is an industrial and cultural center of Homiel Voblast.
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