Population – 5,000
Households - 928
Crafts - 40 types
By the beginning of the 15th century Berestye had become a trade, craft and cultural center of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. However, further development of the town was hampered by new attacks by the Teutonic Order. Since 1403 the crusaders made devastating raids into the Polish, Lithuanian, Belarusian lands several times a year. Polish King Jahajla and Grand Duke of Lithuania Vitaut met in secret in Berestye Castle in December 1409 in order to develop a plan to repel the Teutons. Khan Jalal al-Din, who was a son of the Tatar Khan Tokhtamysh and had been in the service of Vitaut together with his cavalry, also participated in the negotiations.
They spent nine days in Berestye to develop a plan for a summer battle and the further course of the war between the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland against the Crusaders.
The joint force consisting of 91 regiments (banners), including the Berestye regiment, secured a crushing victory over the militant knights in the Battle of Grunwald in June 1410. The outcome of the war with the Teutonic Order was predetermined.
As a result of the administrative reform of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania since 1413 Berestye was part of the Trakai Voivodeship and became the center of the Berestye starostvo. In 1441 the town was officially recognized as one of the 15 main towns of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The popularity of Berestye is also evidenced by the fact that the documents of that time mention Berestye’s arshin as a measure of length.
In the second half of the 15th century significant political events took place in the town - the conclusion of peace treaties between the duchy and the Teutonic Order on very unfavorable conditions for the crusaders.
Many foreign merchants lived in Berestye, whom the locals called German merchants. There was even a German street. Local merchants actively traded with foreign countries, exported raw materials to the West - leather, soap, wax, tallow; products of local artisans - shoes, harness items, and so on. Cloth, silk, gloves, various haberdashery goods, mirrors, and so on were imported. Import of large quantities of salt from salt mines near Krakow played an important role. Wealthy citizens funded the opening of a town shelter for the homeless, poor and elderly. The shelter’s first mentioning dates back to 1495.
During this period the Bug-Pripyat waterway lost its significance. In contrast, the role of land roads increased. The most significant of them passed through Berestye, including one of the roads connecting the capitals of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania - Krakow and Vilna. Roads to Mensk (Minsk at present), Smolensk, Moscow and Kiev through Volyn branched off from this path in Berestye. The treasury of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania used to receive a rental fee to the tune of 700 kopas in Lithuanian money from the Berestye customs house. The sum exceeded those from the customs houses located in Kovno, Vladimir-Volynsky, Mensk and Smolensk combined. The sum was nearly twice as much as the fee paid by the Kiev customs house and more than five times as much as that of the Mensk customs house.
