Belovezhskaya Pushcha

Belovezhskaya Pushcha (Belovezhskaya Pushcha Primeval Forest) is a remnant of former lowland primeval forests stretching in the earlier days from the Baltic Sea to Bug and from Oder to Dnieper. Step-by-step these areas were deforested. Only several parts were preserved relatively intact up to the present, and the largest of them is the Belovezhskaya Pushcha. Its existence to the great extend depended on the fact that persons of high rank - Kiev and Lithuanian princes, Polish kings, Russian Tsars, General secretaries and heads of states - hunted there and they kept it intact for their hunting. Preservation of a dense forest was possible because of bison's population inhabiting this place. The first attempts to establish protected regime for the Belovezhskaya Pushcha are dated to the beginning of XV century, when in 1409 the prince Yagailo reserved the right for hunting in this territory for himself and his brother Vrtovt.

Throughout the history the Belovezhskaya Pushcha was passed from one owner to another, and its security regime was sometimes very severe and sometimes not that strict, however it has never been completely abolished.

In accordance with current understanding of nature conservation the Pushcha became nature reserve since 1921, when it was part of Poland. At that time a national park "Reservat" with an area of about 5 thousand hectares was created. In 1939, when the Pushcha found itself to be in the territory of the Byelorussian SSR, its territory was declared a state Belarusian national park. After the Second World War the Pushcha was divided by a state boundary. At the Polish side the national park "Reservat" within the bounds of 1921 was established, and the whole Belarusian part became a reserve that was transformed in the so-called "State Protected-hunting Sanctuary" in 1957. In 1991 on its base the first State National Park was established in the Republic of Belarus, reporting to the affairs management department of the President of the Republic of Belarus. .

A unique forest ranges with their intact primeval look are considered to be the most valuable thing in the Pushcha. Here it is possible to find relict assemblages of plants and animals; more than thousand giant trees are registered here; 600-year-old oak trees, 350-year-old ash and pines trees, 250-year-old fir trees and more than 1000 species of higher plants grow in the Pushcha. Not without reason the famous Russian journalist Vasili Peskov named Pushcha as "the main forest of Europe". Such plantations of trees including elements both of taiga and broad-leaved forests do not exist in the planet. But they indeed were an integral part of the nature of the Central and Western Europe... .

Rich and variegated greenery of the Belovezhskaya Pushcha creates favorable conditions for habitation of various fauna. It includes 58 mammal, 252 bird, 11 reptile, 7 amphibian and other species; many of them are listed in the Red Data Book of the Republic of Belarus. But the most famous and well-known among all of them is a bison - a relict of former times. People from all over the world come to see these animals. Bison's current population is more 300. From the Belovezhskaya population they are settled in other areas of our republic and in many countries of the world. .

There are a lot of historical and cultural monuments in the territory of the Belovezhskaya Pushcha. Some burial mounds and stone-altars, an oak with throughout hollow for magic ceremonies are preserved up to now... .

The Belovezhskaya Pushcha is one of the most valuable nature conservation objects not only in Belarus, but in the world as well. By the decision of UNESCO in 1992, this lowland forest, the oldest in Europe, was included in the World Heritage Monument List. The next year, in 1993, the Park was declared a biosphere reserve, and in 1997 it was presented with a European Diploma.

In 2006 and 2007 in the International Leaders' Forum (professional competition "The Year Brand") the State Environment-Oriented Enterprise "National Park Belovezhskaya Pushcha" was awarded a gold medal in the nomination "Spadchyna" ("Heritage").
The Belovezhskaya Pushcha possesses a unique attraction for tourists the number of which increases from year to year. Therefore in order to get acquainted with the places of interest a number of tourist programs and routes have been worked out. Among them the most popular are excursions in the Nature museum, to the estate of the Belarusian Santa Claus and other tourists' routes and environmental passes. All excursions are attended by guides of the National Park.