Babruysk, city in southeast central Belarus, in Mahilyow Oblast, about 140 km (about 90 mi) southeast of the Belarusian capital, Minsk. Located on the Berezina River, Babruysk is an important port on a system of navigable waterways connecting the Baltic Sea with the Black Sea. Industries here manufacture industrial equipment, wood veneers, oak and pine furniture, chemicals, and shoes; lumber and food products are also processed. The city is connected by road and rail to Minsk. It is the headquarters of a Belarusian army corps.
Babruysk was first mentioned in historical accounts during the 16th century. It changed hands by conquest several times, passing from Lithuania to Poland in the late 14th century and then to Russia in the late 18th century. Reflecting its location on one of the major routes for invasion of Russia from the west, Babruysk retains parts of a fortress built in 1769. The town was again fortified in the early 19th century by Alexander I of Russia and survived heavy bombardment during the advance of Napoleon I on Moscow in 1812. Babruysk was badly damaged by fire in 1902. In 1922 it became part of the Belorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). In 1944, during World War II, Babruysk again was the scene of heavy fighting during the Soviet offensive to recover the city from German occupation. In 1991 it became part of newly independent Belarus. Population (1995) 297,834.
