In the territory of the Bernardine Garden, forests have grown since ancient times, which were considered sacred in pagan times. When in 1469 Kazimieras Jogailaitis invited the Bernardine brothers to Vilnius, they were given a plot of land for settlement southeast of the Castle Hill, in front of the Three Crosses and Bekeš mountains, in the Vilnius loop, near the Royal Mill (which stood on the site of the current tennis courts, built by U. Hozijaus, as well as the Green Bridge). , south of Sereikiskii. Often, royal persons and city residents registered plots of land for houses of prayer.
Over time, the Bernardines received a plot of land to establish a house of prayer and a garden. 16th century at the beginning, the Bernardines built St. Anne, St. The complex of the Franciscan and Bernardine churches and the monastery, he turned the marshy area into a cultured garden with ponds, canals and fertile gardens, planted apiary, and kept a mead factory.
The territory of the former Bernardinai Garden formed the major part of the current Sereikiski Park. The old course of Vilnelė flowed in the place of the present-day central park avenue and gate, today's Barboras Radvilaitė street, thus dividing the park in half. Only in the 19th century in the second half, the furrow was filled and the territory changed.
The monastery gardens were traditionally closed. Thus, the Bernardin garden was surrounded by a brick fence. Part of the garden was agricultural, the other part was recreational (a swimming pool was installed at the foot of Franciscan (Three Crosses) mountain).
The situation changed in 1864, when the monastery was closed by order of Governor-General M. Muravyov, and all property was handed over to the state treasury - Yekaterina barracks were located in the monastery, and the garden was designated for the summer residence of the Governor-General (later this area became the first public garden in Vilnius).
1869 - 70 the current Maironios street was built through a part of the garden and the territory of the former old Bernardine cemetery.
In 1870-72, under the commission of the Governor-General, the architect N. Chiaginas drew up a project for the connection of three city gardens - Botanika (in a small part of the current Sereikiški Park), Bernardinai and the Cathedral at the foot of Gediminas Hill (also called Veršynu). The residents of Vilnius city often called the garden Bernardinai. Territorially, this name is not accurate, as only a part of the Bernardine garden entered the park. Other names are occasionally found - City Garden, Botanical Garden.
1887 - 88 artist A. Strauss prepared another project for the arrangement of the Bernardine garden, according to which wooden gazebos and buildings with a similar decor were built in the garden. All of them were rented. I. Shuman established a luxurious restaurant in the garden, which included a concert hall and lunch rooms, as well as a "buffet".
One of the tenants of the "buffet", V. Freinbergas, in order to attract visitors, hired a military orchestra to play outdoors on Thursdays and Sundays.
1901 - 02 at the agricultural and small industry exhibition held here, a wooden crafts pavilion designed by architect K. Korojedov was built on the axis of the main avenue, which was opened in 1907. was adapted for a summer theater (demolished in 1939).
Later, Lithuanian and Polish art critics recognized this theater as one of the best modern-style buildings in Vilnius.
As you know, after World War II, the garden was named Jaunimo.
Source: http://www.gidas.mb.vu.lt
