Vilnius citizens were keen on watching punishments, and public executions, which took place in the Town Hall Square and could be watched like in the theatre, on the platform constructed for that purpose. People were beheaded, quartered and punished in other ways here. For stealing from a store - beheaded, for falsifying documents - burned at the stake, for rape send to the gallows. The mildest punishment was the shame pole. Thieves had their ears cut off, and the thugs were whipped. One of the harshest punishments for stealing from a church or monastery was burning at the stake. Several executions were carried out in the Town Hall Square: in 1563 the judge, state traitor Jonas Viktoras Giedraitis who spied for Muscovites for money, and a nobleman Grigalius Astikas were quartered here, in 1661 the Muscovite prince Danila Mysheckij, who ruled occupied Vilnius and killed hundreds of citizens, was beheaded.
The town used to have a tower, but it collapsed. The other European cities also had Town Halls with towers and clocks, It was trendy to have large and finely decorated towers. The first tower was built of brick, and the very top of it was made of wood, it burned down during the great Vilnius fire. Reconstruction work was started, and the brick tower was rebuilt, but the old foundation was used, and in a short while it started to lean to the side. According to L. Gucevičius’s plan, it had been tried to straighten the tower but it wasn’t strong enough and collapsed.
Since ancient times, the Vilnius Town Hall has been the city gate for all those who live here and visit the capital. In 1387 the Grand Duke of Lithuania and the King of Poland Jogaila granted Vilnius the rights of Magdeburg. The government of the city called a Magistrate, was formed, and the headquarters of it was the Town Hall. On the east side of the basement of the building, there is a hall of the Jogaila period, built using Gothic masonry. The town hall became the centre of self-government, which embraced the headquarters of the guards and the city governor, a prison, rented shops, the shame pole and the gallows stood nearby, and the main marketplace of the city was located.
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