Attractions of Berdychiv

The Berdychiv City History Museum is located in the center of the city of Berdychiv in one of the wings of the monastery of the Discalced Carmelites - the former house of priests.

In addition to the main exposition, which tells about the history of the city of Berdychiv, in the museum you can visit various thematic exhibitions.

The Berdychiv Museum of Jewishness was opened in 2015 in the premises of the City Children's Library.

The exposition in two halls tells about the life of Berdychiv Jews, about the history and traditions of the Jewish people, as well as about the tragic events of the Holocaust during the Second World War.

The exhibits were provided by residents of Berdychiv, in particular, the city's Jewish community.

The museum of the English writer Joseph Conrad (Yuzef Kozhenovsky), a native of Berdychiv and a Pole by origin, was opened in 2015 in the complex of the Monastery of the Barefoot Carmelites.

The exhibition materials were shared by the Adam Mitskevych Museum of Literature (Warsaw), the Jagiellonian Library (Krakow), the Beineke Library (Yale University), the Central Maritime Museum (Gdansk), and the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich (England). Professor Zdzislav Nayder (Poland) also provided materials from his own archive.

The main exhibit is a fragment of the hull of the ship Otego, captained by Joseph Conrad. Interactive technologies are widely used in the exhibition.

The visit is free.

The monastery-fortress of the Discalced Carmelites in Berdychiv is the All-Ukrainian Sanctuary of the Mother of God of the Holy Scapular.

The majestic architectural complex with defensive walls, towers and a magnificent baroque church was founded in the 16th century as a castle of the Tyshkevych, who owned these lands since the 14th century.

In 1630, Voivode Yanush Tyshkevych, after his remarkable rescue from Tatar captivity, donated the castle to the Catholic Order of the Discalced Carmelites. The construction of the monastery lasted from 1634 to 1632. In the 18th century, it was reconstructed according to the project of Yan de Vitte, who built the upper church of the Holy Trinity above the lower church of the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary.

The main shrine is the miraculous icon of the Mother of God Berdychivska, given to the monastery by Yanush Tyshkevych. In 1997, a copy of the icon was consecrated and crowned by Pope John Paul II. Her sanctuary (holy storage) is the upper temple. The parish of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary operates at the sanctuary.

The Catholic Church of Saint Barbara was built in Berdychiv in 1826 according to the project of the architect Antoniy Prushynskyi on the site of the old wooden church built by the Radzyvill princes in 1759.

In 1850, the famous French writer Onore de Balzak married Evelina Hanska, Countess of Verkhivnya, in the church of Saint Barbara (a memorial plaque is installed on the facade).

In addition, the church of Saint Barbara is known for the fact that in 1824-1825, while staying at the court of the Radzivill princes, the young Fryderyk Shopen played and learned to play stringed instruments in the church from Professor Zhyvniy.

Next to the church is the grotto of the Virgin Mary.

In Soviet times, the church premises were used as a gym.

Now the temple is active.

Berdychiv Brewery is widely known in Ukraine as a producer of quality unpasteurized beer.

The plant was built in 1861 by the Czech colonist Stanislav Chep. Since then, the technology has changed little: malt is germinated in the attic, it is poured into the boilers with plywood shovels, and the beer itself ferments in the cellars.

Now the brewery produces 13 varieties of "live" beer without preservatives: "Berdychiv hoppy", "Berdychiv lager", "Berdychiv Yuvileyne", "Berdychiv Original", "Berdychiv Carmelit", "Berdychiv Hetmanske", "Berdychiv Premium", "Stary Berdychiv". ", "Berdychiv Classic" and others.

Excursions are available by prior arrangement, during which you can see with your own eyes how beer is brewed according to the classic technology with the help of modern equipment.

The Great Choral Synagogue was built in Berdychiv in 1850 at the expense of the city's large Jewish community (up to 93% of the population was Jewish).

The Berdychiv Synagogue was one of the first choral synagogues in the Russian Empire. Its monumentality and size indicated its significant role in the life of the city community.

In 1929, the Soviet authorities turned the temple into a club, and during the German occupation it was destroyed.

After the Second World War, the surviving Jewish community of Berdychiv restored the synagogue, but in 1964, the Soviet authorities took the building again and opened a glove factory in the temple premises, which is still operating today.

The three-story commercial school building in Berdychiv is a vivid example of provincial modernism.

It was built in 1908 at the expense of Berdychiv merchants. Bricks of different texture and color are used in the decoration, which gives the building a general yellow-gray tone. Densely placed window openings provide excellent lighting.

Since 1923, pedagogical courses began to work here. Today it is the Berdychiv Pedagogical College.

The Holy Trinity Parish in Berdychiv was founded in the middle of the 18th century, and the first wooden Trinity Church was built in 1759.

Prince Mykola Radzivill, one of the owners of the city, is considered to be the founder of the parish. In 1834-1836, archpriest Sylvester Lipsky built a stone, cross-domed church with a bell tower. The old wooden church was dismantled, and the wood from it was used to fire bricks for the new church.

During the Soviet rule, the Trinity Church was closed. Its premises housed offices, warehouses, living quarters and even a stable. After the liberation of Berdychev from the German-fascist occupiers in 1945, the Holy Trinity parish resumed work, the church was handed over to the Orthodox religious community. Since then, it has been open for religious services.

A monument to the French writer Honore de Balzac was opened in 2011 in Berdychiv in front of the entrance to the office complex named after the writer.

The "Honore de Balzac" complex was built by a French investor in the center of Berdychiv, opposite the church of Saint Barbara, where Balzac married the landowner Evelina Hanska from Verkhivnia in 1850.

On the 3rd floor of the complex, there is a French cultural center, in which a corner of Balzac has been opened (a museum is planned).

The grandiose Jewish necropolis is located in Berdychiv near the city center, just behind the crossing. Thousands of tombstones with Yiddish inscriptions have been preserved.

Here is the grave of tzaddik Levi Itskhak Berdychevsky - a place of pilgrimage for Hasids from all over the world.

Saint Nicholas Cathedral, the main Orthodox church of Berdychiv, was built on the site of the wooden church of Saint Nicholas, which was built in 1748 by the efforts of the owner of the city, Varvara Zavish.

The church kept an ancient icon of Nicholas the Wonderworker, which was considered miraculous.

The stone temple in the late baroque (rococo) style was built and consecrated in 1908. The interior is richly decorated with paintings. In 1996, Berdychiv's Saint Nicholas Church received the status of a cathedral.

The Central Yevropeyska (European) Square of Berdychiv in front of the Berdychiv City Council building was opened in 1977 after the completion of the building that housed the city CPSU and the City Executive Committee in Soviet times. Initially, the square was called Zhovtneva.

Recently, the architecturally boring square has been enlivened by original city sculptures: a monument to Berdychiv beer, a monument to a Berdychiv costume, a Berdychiv globe of the world, etc.