Žasliai

History

Žasliai was first mentioned on 28 February 1457. During the reign of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Vytautas, Žasliai belonged to Lithuanian nobleman Jaunius Valimantaitis from Valimantas family and later to noblemen from Goštautas family. In 1522 Žasliai was a town. In 16th century Žasliai was the property of the Grand Duke of Lithuania Sigismund II Augustus who later donated it to his wife Barbara Radziwiłł. In the map Magni Ducatus Lituaniae caeterarumque regionum illi adiacentium exacta descriptio issued in 1613 by Mikołaj Krzysztof Radziwiłł the Orphan, Žasliai was marked as a rural town. In 1777 operating parish school was mentioned. On 12 January 1792, Žasliai got Magdeburgian rights and the coat of arms with the inscription EX MANCIPIO LIBERTAS (Freedom comes from property). Žasliai were mentioned in the Lithuanian legend about Palemonids. After the death of Pajauta, mother of the Duke Kukovaitis, he created an idol for her an erected it near the lake of Žasliai. Inhabitants believed Pajauta was a goddess and worshiped her. After the idol perished, the place was worshipped. During the Lithuanian Wars of Independence on 2–8 April 1919 the Žasliai battle was fought between Lithuanian and Soviet Russian armies. 1400 Lithuanian soldiers commanded by officers Stasys Nastopka, Kazys Škirpa, Jurgis Butkus fought in the battle. In the middle of the nineteenth century, approximately 650 Jews resided in Žasliai. On the eve of the Soviet annexation of Lithuania in 1940, the roughly 1000 Jewish inhabitants of the town made up half of the total population, making a living from commerce, artisanship and agriculture. On June 22, 1941, the German army invaded Lithuania, entering Žasliai within days thereafter. On August 17 of 1941, most of the town's Jewish inhabitants were…

Most-observed species

• Eurasian Coot

  Fulica atra Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  39
• Great Crested Grebe

  Podiceps cristatus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  36
• Mute Swan

  Cygnus olor (J.F.Gmelin, 1789) · Aves
  36
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  35
• Hammered Shield Lichen

  Parmelia sulcata Taylor · Lecanoromycetes
  34
• Norway Maple

  Acer platanoides L. · Magnoliopsida
  34
• Common Chaffinch

  Fringilla coelebs Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  33
• Mistletoe

  Viscum album L. · Magnoliopsida
  33