Varniai

Varniai is a village now, but it was the ecclesiastical capital of Samogitia from the fifteenth century, seat of the bishops and of a seminary that trained the clergy of the region, and in the nineteenth century it was a centre of the Lithuanian national revival under Bishop Motiejus Valančius, who organised the printing and smuggling of Lithuanian books when they were banned in Latin script. Two churches survive, the cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul and the older church of St Alexander, along with the seminary building that now holds the Samogitian Diocese Museum. The Varniai regional park protects the lakes and forest around. The scale of the buildings against the size of the village is the striking thing.

History

The earlier town of Medininkai, first mentioned in 1320, received Kulm law in 1491, and the renamed Varniai, after the Varnelė river, received Magdeburg rights in 1635; after the baptism of Samogitia the bishop of Samogitia resided here (Wikipedia, Varniai).

Highlights

• The cathedral - the former Samogitian bishops' church.
• St Alexander's church - the older of the two churches in the village.
• The seminary museum - the diocesan collections in the old college.
• The regional park - lakes and forest around the village.

When to go

May to September for the surroundings; the museum keeps limited hours and closes on Mondays and in winter. The scale contrast is best appreciated on a quiet weekday.

What to expect

The village is very small with almost no facilities. Churches may be locked outside service times. Museum interpretation is largely in Lithuanian. There is little to do beyond the buildings and the park.

Nearby

Telšiai lies northwest; Šiluva is southeast.

Key facts