A congress of European monarchs took place in ancient Luchesk (the old name of Lutsk) in 1429. Then, kings, emperors, and princes from all over Europe gathered in the city. Luchesk, meanwhile, was then the southern capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. This meeting of the powerful men of the age is sometimes called a forerunner of European integration. The 590th anniversary of the congress of monarchs will be celebrated in the city in 2019. At its meeting, the organizing committee tasked with preparing for the 590th anniversary of the congress of European monarchs envisioned a lot of interesting events that would popularize the history of Lutsk and Volhynia and promote tourism there.
The city will host a week-long festival program called “The Congress of European Monarchs.” It will begin with the festival of medieval spirit called “A Princely Feast,” and end with the festival “A Night in the Lutsk Castle.” Head of the department of tourism and city promotion Kateryna Telipska noted that the Old Town area and the park of culture and rest would host mass festivities, including a reenactment of the life of medieval Lutsk. Some of the other events will be a large-scale applied and fundamental research conference devoted to the congress and an international forum dealing with national security and counter-terrorism issues. There are also plans to finally create a city museum in Lutsk.
