Kopys

Belarus, Belarus

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Kopys is a small urban-type settlement in Orsha District, Vitebsk Region, Belarus, situated on the banks of the Dnieper River with a population of around 600-609 residents.

First mentioned in historical records in 1059 as part of the Polotsk Principality, it later fell under the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from the 14th century and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, gaining town rights in the 16th century while owned by noble families like the Ostrogskis and Radziwiłłs.

Once featuring a wooden castle and a Calvinist church founded by Krzysztof Mikołaj Radziwiłł, it suffered destruction by Russian troops during the Great Northern War in 1707 and joined the Russian Empire after the First Partition of Poland in 1772; today, remnants like the 5-meter-high Petrovsky earth rampart attract locals for walks amid forested surroundings.