Gediminas Tower

Gediminas Tower stands on Castle Hill at the southern end of the Vilnius Castle Complex, the surviving upper tower of the hilltop fortress that was the original seat of power in Lithuania. It has become the defining image of Lithuanian statehood, reproduced on banknotes and military insignia, and it is the only part of the upper castle still standing after the fires and wars of subsequent centuries. A funicular railway makes the short ascent from the Old Town an easy one, though the hill can also be climbed on foot via a tree-lined path.

From the top of the tower, the view encompasses the full sweep of the city. The Neris River cuts a green ribbon through the urban fabric below, and the rooftops of the Old Town spread out in ochre and terracotta, punctuated by church spires and the occasional Soviet-era housing block that serves as an inadvertent landmark. On a clear day the view extends thirty kilometres to the surrounding lakes and forests. The tower itself houses a modest museum covering Lithuanian history from the 13th century to the interwar period, with exhibits on the Grand Duchy, the unions with Poland, and the emergence of the modern Lithuanian nation. The Lithuanian flag flies from the top of the tower permanently, a practice established after independence in 1990, and it has become a potent symbol of restored sovereignty.

The tower and the historic park surrounding it form the core of the Castle Complex. The lower castle, of which little survives above ground, stretched down the hill to the river and was linked to the upper castle by a gallery passage. Three remaining towers of the lower castle stand in the park below, converted into the New and Old Arsenals. The hill itself is covered in broadleaf woodland despite its small size, giving the impression of a wild corner of forest in the centre of the city. The park at its base is a favourite with joggers and dog-walkers, and the paths around the Arsenals offer some of the best free views of the tower from below.

The tower was damaged in the Russian assault on Vilnius in 1701 and then destroyed by retreating French troops in 1812 during the Napoleonic campaign, after which it lay in ruins for over a century. The Lithuanian poet Adam Mickiewicz wrote about the ruins in his 1828 epic Conrad, and the image of the tower as a ruin became romanticised in Lithuanian literature as a symbol of the lost state. The tower was reconstructed in the 1930s following designs by Ferdinand Rink, and reopened to the public in 1931.

The single most recognisable symbol of Lithuanian independence; the flag has flown permanently atop the tower since 1990.

Panoramic views of Vilnius from the top; one of the few high viewpoints accessible by foot in the Old Town area.

The castle park and arsenals below are free to visit and offer excellent views of the tower itself.