Vilnius in the sixteenth century was a city, of which particularly cared Lithuanian-Polish kings, princes, and the most important offices were among the largest families of nobles in Lithuania: Kieżgajło, Gasztołd, Sapieha, Sołtan, Radziwill. Jagiellons often lived in Vilnius and not in Krakow. Alexander Jagiellon preferred to spend time in Vilnius, which meant that during the Renaissance city matched the other larger cities in Europe.
In the sixteenth century, rebuilt in the Renaissance style of the Lower Castle, Town Hall, arranged arsenal, mint and a pharmacy. At the beginning of the sixteenth century were already clearly formed in Vilnius jurydyki (settlement right outside a royal city, that was independent from the municipal laws and rulers): Magdeburg, bishop of Roman Catholic Church, Chapter, bishop of the Orthodox Metropolitan of Kiev at the head and jurydyka monastery. An important event in the history of the city in the early sixteenth century there were around Vilnius walls. Good period in the history of the city are the times of Sigismund Augustus. Created the bridge over the river Vilejka, mills numerous hospitals and numerous palaces. They worked architects and sculptors Italian: Giovanni Cini, Giovanni Maria Padovano. Vilnius has become a city of many nationalities: Poles, Russians, Belarusians, Jews, Germans, Italians, Lithuanians, Tatars.
Sixteenth century to Vilnius and its people was extremely culture-and development, as never before or since there has been no meeting of so many faiths and religions in the city. In the city operate 32 churches of various denominations: 15 Orthodox churches, 13 Catholic churches, one temple had Evangelical Lutheran Church, Evangelical Reformed Church, with Jews-Jews had a synagogue, a mosque Islamists. Vilnius was a center of the Reformation movement. In the capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, in addition to the rapidly growing structures of the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church there were all kinds of Protestant trends. Also reached the urban self-government. Vilnius at the last Jagiellons and especially for Queen Bona and Sigismund Augustus took unprecedented glitz. The Renaissance is also the golden age of Vilnius. Revival and development of ideas of humanism influenced a significant impact on the state of consciousness of the residents of Vilnius.
In the sixteenth century, in Vilnius operated 11 publishing houses, among others, Mamonicz, Karcan, Sultzer, Jesuit Academy, Orthodox Brotherhood. Batory King Stephen (1576-1586) confirmed all the privileges Jagiellons, and also created the Lithuanian Tribunal in 1578, the reunions – convocations were held in Vilnius. His greatest achievement was the establishment of the Vilnius University. Decree of April 1, 1579 year approved February 22, 1585, King Jesuit College raised to the rank of an academy under the name University of the Society of Jesus, giving rise to the establishment of science and Western culture the only east Europe. In the city there was no place for religious and cultural separation of national, because Vilnius residents were at each other open. It is true that the mission of the Jesuits ran and opened the door for dissenters academy, it was not a city Vilnius burning stacks.
