Town Hall Square (Rotušės aikštė) is the open space at the south end of Pilies and Didžioji streets in the Old Town of Vilnius, where the city has traded and gathered for more than five centuries. The white building on the square is the Town Hall, rebuilt in classical style by Laurynas Gucevičius after its Gothic tower collapsed in 1781. On its walls, two plaques quote foreign leaders promising to stand by Lithuania.
Town Hall Square at a glance
- Where: on Didžioji Street in the Old Town, where Vokiečių Street begins; the Town Hall is at Didžioji 31.
- Built: a town hall here is first recorded in 1432; the present building dates from 1785–1799.
- By: Laurynas Gucevičius, the leading Lithuanian architect of classicism, who also rebuilt Vilnius Cathedral.
- What it is today: the city's ceremonial town hall, used for official receptions, concerts and exhibitions, on a square that hosts fairs, concerts and national celebrations.
- Time needed: 15–20 minutes for the square, longer if you join a tour of the cellars.
From a Gothic tower to a classical portico
Vilnius received Magdeburg rights in 1387, which gave it a town council, and a town hall on this site is first recorded in 1432. It became a two-storey Gothic building with a bell tower and a clock, and from the early 15th century the square around it was lined with small shops selling salt, iron and meat. Fires in the 17th and 18th centuries damaged the tower, it began to lean after a mid-18th-century rebuilding, and in 1781 it collapsed during repair work.
Gucevičius then rebuilt the whole building in classical style between 1785 and 1799, this time without a tower; he died in 1798, before it was finished. The town council moved out in the 1840s, and from 1845 to 1924 the building was the City Theatre. After a renovation in the late 1930s it became a museum, and from 1941 it housed the city's art museum, known in Soviet times as the LSSR Art Museum. In 1999 it became the Vilnius Town Hall again.
What to look for
- The portico: the columns and triangular pediment on the front, Gucevičius's classical answer to the Gothic hall that once stood here.
- The missing tower: there is no tower at all, unusual for a European town hall. The old one fell in 1781 and was never rebuilt.
- The Bush plaque: it quotes the words George W. Bush spoke on this square in November 2002: 'Anyone who would choose Lithuania as an enemy has also made an enemy of the United States.'
- The Merz plaque: on the side facing Vokiečių Street, a plaque in Lithuanian and German quotes the German chancellor Friedrich Merz: 'Lithuania's security is also our security.'
- The crown of St Casimir's: look south along Didžioji Street for the dome of St Casimir's Church, topped by a crown.
Two sentences on the wall
On 21 November 2002, at the NATO summit in Prague, Lithuania was invited to join the alliance. Two days later George W. Bush spoke to a crowd on Town Hall Square, and his line about Lithuania's enemies was set in a plaque on the building. Lithuania joined NATO in 2004. A second quotation followed in 2025: on 22 May, at the inauguration of the German brigade stationed in Lithuania, Friedrich Merz said that the protection of Vilnius is the protection of Berlin, and a plaque with his words was unveiled on 1 December.
Tips for your visit
- Come in early March for the Kaziukas Fair, held around St Casimir's Day (4 March), when craft stalls fill the Old Town streets and this square.
- Ask at the Town Hall about tours of the Gothic cellars, which once held the town prison.
- Combine the square with a walk north along Pilies Street towards the Cathedral, or south along Didžioji Street to the Gate of Dawn.
Nearby
- St Casimir's Church: the oldest Baroque church in Vilnius, built by the Jesuits from 1604 and used as a museum of atheism from 1963 until 1991, a minute's walk away.
- Contemporary Art Centre: the large exhibition space right behind the Town Hall, with changing shows of contemporary art.
- Gate of Dawn: the only surviving gate of the old city walls, with a chapel holding a revered painting of the Virgin Mary, a short walk south.
- Literatų Street: a short lane off Pilies Street whose walls carry small artworks dedicated to writers connected with Lithuania.
See Vilnius with World City Trail
Our Vilnius scavenger hunt turns the old town into a game you play on your phone. The route links 10 stops and takes around 3 hours, with about 58 minutes of walking. Town Hall Square is one of the stops, along with the Gate of Dawn and Literatų Street. You can play in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish and Dutch.
If you prefer a different format, there is also a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game in Vilnius.
Play the Vilnius scavenger hunt →
Take the self-guided walking tour of Vilnius →
Play the outdoor escape game in Vilnius →
Facts checked in October 2026.