Bratslav

Bratslav stands on the Southern Bug, where the river runs through the eastern reaches of Podolia. Its castle guarded a vulnerable frontier against raids from the steppe. The town gave its name to a wide province, though its position brought destruction as well as authority.

After the Lithuanian victory at Blue Waters in 1362, Bratslav came under the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Tatar attacks devastated it in 1497 and again in 1551. Granted Magdeburg rights in 1564, it became the capital of Bracław Voivodeship after the Union of Lublin placed the region under the Polish Crown in 1569. The provincial courts moved to Vinnytsia in 1598. During the Cossack uprising of 1648, Bratslav became the centre of a Cossack regiment; Ottoman rule followed from 1672 until 1699. In the early nineteenth century Rabbi Nachman lived and taught here, giving his name to the Breslov Hasidic movement.