Upytė Mound (Čičinskas Hill)

It is believed that in the 13th to 16th centuries on top of the 4-5 meter high hill there was a castle that was the centre of the whole Upytė land, including the present Panevėžys district. The castle was surrounded by Vešeta lake and has been the main obstacle for the Livonian Order during the occupation. In the 17th and 18th centuries the Polish nobleman Władysław Wiktoryn Siciński had his mansion in the vicinity of the former castle. Władysław Siciński is known for being the first to execute his Liberum veto rights in order to disrupt the Sejm convention. The Liberum veto was believed to be one of the factors leading to the collapse of Polish-Lithuanian democracy.

According to a local legend the evil landowner Siciński (Lith. Čičinskas) was struck by the thunder God Perkūnas for all his sins, and his estate sank in a sinkhole near the Upytė Hillfort, currently known as the Hill of Čičinskas.

Upytė, Panevėžys District

55.655967, 24.227173 (WGS)