Eastern and Central Europe (Eyewitness Travel Guides)

GREAT CAPITALS 25

Vilnius

The capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania,

which stretched from the Baltic to the Black Sea

in its 15th-century heyday, Vilnius is packed

with grand architecture befitting its wide-

ranging historical heritage.

Moscow

Capital of Russia

since 1480, Moscow

rose to become the

nerve centre of

the Tsarist Empire.

Though displaced by

St Petersburg from

1712–1918, this

fascinating city

remained the heart-

land of Russian

Orthodox culture as

is evident from the

fine churches lining

its central squares.

Warsaw

Elegant Neo-Classical Warsaw was

almost completely destroyed by the

Germans in 1944. Pain s takingly

reconstructed after World War II,

today it is an enduring symbol of

Polish national survival.

BLACK

SEA

BULGARIA

SERBIA

ROMANIA

ESTONIA

St Petersburg

LATVIA

Moscow

LITHUANIA

RUSSIAN

FEDERATION