Protective status of ancient park in Brest region revoked

Local authorities coordinated the decision with the State Inspectorate for Animal and Plant World Protection under Lukashenka, the Zhabinka District Inspectorate for Natural Resources and Environmental Protection, OJSC 'Rahaznyanski', and the Leninsky Village Executive Committee.

The 'Atyachyzna' Park was founded around 1800 and was part of the estate of the noble Belsky family. Initially, its area was 7.3 hectares, later reduced to 5.973 hectares.

The most famous feature of the park was an ancient oak, estimated to be 700-800 years old. The tree was about 25 meters tall, and its trunk diameter reached 2.6 meters. In 2015, a significant part of the oak broke off and fell during a strong wind.

Besides the oak, the park preserved old large trees of common hornbeam, pedunculate oak, small-leaved linden, white fir, ash, chestnut, and other species. The Ministry of Natural Resources characterized them as large-aged, large-sized, and ecologically and aesthetically significant plants, which were in good condition.

Only individual outbuildings of the Belsky estate have survived to our time. Among them are fragments of a brewery built in 1904, a warehouse, and an outbuilding. The manor house itself and other buildings were completely destroyed during the war and in the post-war years.

The Belsky family was an ancient Catholic noble family originating from the Lublin Voivodeship of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. After the partitions of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, representatives of the family were recognized as Russian nobles and entered into the sixth part of the Grodno Governorate Genealogical Book. This part recorded the oldest noble families whose nobility was confirmed before 1685.

The first mistress of the estate was Yauhenia Belskaia. Under her son Ksavery, the estate transformed into a significant economic and cultural center. He built a modern brewery for his time, a large cheese factory where cheeses were made according to Swiss recipes, and also laid out a landscape park.

The descendants of the Belskys continued to develop the estate in the late 19th — early 20th century, modernized production, and participated in the public life of the Kobrin district. The family was related by kinship to other famous noble families of the Brest region and Polesia — Shadurski, Bykhaŭtsy, Reitan, and Azheshka. The last owner of the estate was Edward Belsky, Ksavery's son.

In March 2025, the park became the site of a demonstration cleanup campaign. It was attended by representatives of the Zhabinka District Executive Committee and the local council of deputies, representatives of the pro-government party 'Belaya Rus', employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, housing and communal services, the district hospital, the sugar factory, students of Leninsky Secondary School, and other residents of the district.

Павялічыць

State media then reported that after the work carried out, the park became more well-maintained and aesthetically appealing.

Currently, the condition of the preserved outbuildings of the estate is assessed as critically dilapidated. Parts of the brick walls still remain, as do authentic arched window openings. However, the roofs of the buildings are completely destroyed, the internal ceilings have collapsed, and the interior space is gradually being overgrown with plants. The ancient park itself is now effectively located amidst the modern development of the village of Leninsky.

The territory of the former industrial zone of the estate is fenced. The preserved objects are on the balance sheet of the Leninsky Village Executive Committee and the Zhabinka District Executive Committee. Fragments of the outbuildings previously belonged to a local agricultural enterprise, now called OJSC 'Rahaznyanski'.

In recent years, dilapidated historical estates in Belarus are often put up for auction with a very low starting price — for one basic unit, which currently amounts to 45 Belarusian rubles. However, the preserved buildings of the Belsky estate have not yet been put up for auction.

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