The town was probably established in the 14th century. It was a
private town, owned by the Giedygołdowicz, Steczko and Chreptowicz noble families. The first Catholic church of Saint Mary was built in 1424 by
castellan of
Wilno Siemon Giedygołdowicz, and then rebuilt in
Baroque style in 1637 by voivode of
Nowogródek Jerzy Chreptowicz. Around 1790, an iron
blast furnace was built. Following the joint German-Soviet
invasion of Poland, which started
World War II in September 1939, the town was
occupied by the Soviet Union until 1941, and then by Nazi Germany until 1944. The Germans established the Vishnyeva Ghetto, which included 1,100 men, women, children and infants, and all were burnt alive by the Nazis and their local collaborators in the Vishnyeva Synagogue on 22 September 1942. Among those killed on that day was the grandfather of
Shimon Peres, who later became
President of
Israel. Some Jews were taken to the
ghetto in the nearby town of Wołożyn (
Valozhyn) and killed there. Remains of a
Jewish cemetery can be located in the town. A few survivors have emigrated to Israel and to other countries. In 1944, the town was reoccupied by the Soviet Union, which eventually annexed it from Poland the following year. ==People==